About our blog:
Designed with disability, employment and workforce development professionals in mind, this site offers you the opportunity to hear what your colleagues around the state have to say and to join the dialogue as we all work to improve employment outcomes for individuals with disabilities in Massachusetts.
About our bloggers:
Welcome to the MassWorks Blog
for Disability and Workforce Development Professionals
We welcome comments from the public in response to our blog postings. To respond, select the "View/Add Comments" link or use the text box at the end of each posting.
If you are a member of the disability or workforce development community, and would like to be a guest blogger on employment issues, please contact amelia.robbins@umb.edu. Professional and consumer voices are welcome!
Latest Entries:
Tips for Job Development During Tough Times
Written by David Hoff
Yes, the unemployment rate continues to increase. Yes, it is a challenging time for job developers. However, there are still jobs out there. If you are a job developer and good at what you do, the most important thing is to continue doing what you know works - and recognize that you're just going to have to work a bit harder for those placements you do make. However, given the state of the economy, some additional strategies may be in order. In that vain, here are my 5 tips for job developme... (Continued)
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The Unemployment Rate: Is The Data Correct?
Written by David Hoff
A great deal of attention has been paid to the recent announcement, that the US Department of Labor will now be tracking the unemployment rate for people with disabilities on a monthly basis. The initial release of this information indicated that in January 2009, the unemployment rate for persons with a disability was 13.2%, compared to 8.3% for persons without a disability. This data had a lot of people scratching their heads, as it has been generally accepted that about 70% to 80% of adults ... (Continued)
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New ADA Amendments
Written by Rick Kugler
It
seems that the recent press coverage of the ADA
amendments has been mixed. Some have applauded it as a long overdue
remedy for inequality. Other coverage suggests "brace for more lawsuits" and
warns of a "expected lawsuit avalanche" like this recent article in the St.
Petersburg Times ( www.tampabay.com/news/business/workinglife/article977307.ece ).
This raises two questions on which I would love to hear feedback. First, of all the workers with disabilities you have known,
wha... (Continued)
Job Development: Don't Just Give Up
Written by David Hoff
A recent US News and World Report article indicated that the recession was hitting people with disabilities particularly hard. Having done job development in a recession, I can tell you it’s no picnic. However, if we just say “there are no jobs” that becomes a self-fulfilling prophecy. Additionally, I take issue with the view that people with disabilities go to the back of the line in terms of job opportunities during tough economic times. People with disabilities have as much right to ... (Continued)
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Ticket to Work
Written by David Hoff
Numerous changes have been made in the Ticket to Work to make it much
more attractive to service providers. Particularly given the current
challenging fiscal environment, it would seem to make sense to me for
any service provider who has any success in placing individuals at
earnings of $700 per month or higher, to go ahead and become an EN, in
order to generate revenue they would otherwise be "leaving on the
table". My sense is there lots of interest regarding the changes in the
Ticket, ... (Continued)
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Walk the Talk
Written by Rick Kugler
For those of you who provide or have provided direct services involving employment, you are likely aware that a big part of job development is advocacy and sales. In many respects, you are actually "selling" a concept-that people with disabilities can do the job; they can "fit-in" to the workplace, and make a real contribution to business or organization.
Before you read any further, stop and look around your office space. Do you share your office space with a co-worker who has a disability... (Continued)
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developing internships
Written by Elena Varney
Hi All,
I am new to the school system and will be developing internships for students with disabilities. I have experience doing job development, but this is an interesting twist to the approach.
If you have any tips or suggestions for me, that would be great!
thank you!
Elena Varney
Transition Coordinator
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Peer Employment Benefits Network, by Kimberly Tracey
Written by Kimberly Tracey
I was involved with a Peer Benefits Network project. During this project I was a peer leader who went into the community and talked to peers about work, school and benefits. I explained to them about SSI and SSDI. I handed out information about places in the community where they could go for the information they needed. I was trying to change the myths about what people had in their mind about going back to work. The most common response was “I can’t go back to work because I’ll lose m... (Continued)
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Job Coaching: A Two-Way Task Analysis
Written by Gil Cote
Written by Gil Cote
The primary goal of job coaching is to get in and out without making the environment dependant on our presence. The lessons I learned from this experience was to do a task analysis for the individual I was job coaching and one for myself. If there were ten needed support areas, I would focus on each one until I felt comfortable that the employee could do this task. This is where I would show respect to the supported employee and acknowledge that he or she doesn’t... (Continued)
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Blending In as a Job Coach
Written by Rick Kugler
When I was a job coach I felt that defining my role was similar to walking a tightrope between two approaches. On one side, I wanted it clearly known that I was there for both the supported employee and employer to help train, smooth the transition and help solve problems if they arose. My role was to be available, responsive- - very up front. On the other side however, was to practice discretion. I wanted to downplay my role and the issue of disability on behalf of the person with whom I was... (Continued)
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