Below are portions from the keynote address Christine Griffith, EEOC Commissioner, gave at the 25th Annual Perspectives on Employing People with Disabilities Conference held last week. In contains information about employment of people with disabilities in the federal sector.
“When I joined the EEOC in January, I was keenly aware of the high unemployment rate for people with disabilities, especially those with severe disabilities. For whatever reason, however, I assumed that the federal government was probably doing okay in this area. I learned very quickly that this assumption was wrong. In a briefing by EEOC’s federal sector staff, I learned that the number of people with severe disabilities employed by the federal government has been steadily decreasing for more than a decade. In fact, right now people with severe disabilities make up less than 1% of the federal workforce. We are exactly where we were in 1984!”
“Although I don't want to dwell on numbers, I do want to briefly go over the most recent federal sector statistics we have. From FY 1996 to FY 2005, the total federal work force increased by over 78,000 employees. That represents a net increase of about 3%. During that same time period, the number of federal employees with targeted disabilities decreased from almost 30,000 in FY 96 to roughly 25,000 in FY 2005. That represents a net decrease of 16%. In other words, over the last decade, the number of government employees overall grew by 3% while the number of people with severe disabilities employed by the federal government shrunk by 16%.
“Of the 2.6 million people employed by the federal government in FY 05, only about 25,000 were people with disabilities. That amounts to a participation rate of only 0.96%, which, as I mentioned, is exactly where we were back in 1984. So, we're not doing so well in the hiring arena.
“I want to see the federal government get to 2% by 2010. Two percent in three years - a modest goal with tremendous impact. 2010 marks the 20th anniversary of the Americans with Disabilities Act. Twenty years, or 37 if you count from the signing of the Rehab Act, is plenty of time for us to become the model employer we're supposed to be for all Americans, not just for those without a disability.
“I believe the more attention focused on the problem, the sooner we will start to see some positive changes. Who knows, maybe we will soon see the day when agencies are measured on their performance in this area. We all know "what gets measured, gets done"!
“Setting the goal is the small hurdle; the big one is in achieving them. When you return to work, find out where your agency is now, and then set a course to improve upon that. It's individuals that are going to make this work within agencies…Don't wait for Congress to pass legislation. Don't wait for the President to sign another Executive Order. Don't wait for anything.”
Day Al-Mohamed
Director of Advocacy and Governmental Affairs
American Council of the Blind
1155 15th St. NW
Washington DC 20005
Tel. 202-467-5081
dalmohamed@acb.org