Disability Friendly Employers are Looking for You to Fill Their Openings!



Employers are searching for you,
are you ready for them?

by Megan Elliott, Social Media Developer

Slowly but surely, we’re starting to see national chains pick up on the fact that there are plenty of people out there who are willing and want to work, and have a skill set that makes them perfect for their businesses. These people are our clients, our Ticket Holders, the people with disabilities (PWD), and the value is showing every time one of you gets employed!

Walgreens was one of the earliest businesses who recognized the value of hiring PWD, and has launched an educational initiative to help other businesses recognize opportunities to hire PWD. Walgreens launched a pilot program in Anderson, S.C., which just so happens to be in the same state that ERS operates in, that hired PWD to sort bulk shipments from their suppliers into the stock shipment orders from their stores.

Now, Lowe’s home improvement stores are jumping on board and learning from Walgreens on how to launch their own program for hiring PWD, and they’re not the only ones. OfficeMax, an office supply retail store chain, has won awards for their inclusion efforts from a national association of state vocational rehabilitation agencies. And more can be found here, on DisabilityInc’s list of top 50 companies for diversity.

So what does this mean for Ticket Holders, people who want to work and want to find the jobs out there? Well, make sure that you add your resume to the databases of www.jobaccess.org or www.gettinghired.com. We can help you with that if you are uncomfortable doing it yourself. Bookmark the career pages of the companies you want to work for, and check those postings regularly for positions you think you are qualified to apply for, and then submit your resume!

Alternatively, you can send a prospecting letter to the human resources department head. Here’s a great guide for writing a prospecting letter that will get you noticed. Don’t know the name of the human resources head? Well, here’s how to find that name! Your letter will get noticed more readily if you use a name, rather than a generic “Dear Sir or Madam,” in your cover letter anyway. Just make sure to keep it professional and on-point as to how you’re the perfect person for a job that they don’t have open right now, but may in the future.

Don’t you feel better knowing that companies are searching for you to fill that position that they know only you can fill? Now it’s up to you to let them know that you’re ready to go to work! Make sure to call or e-mail us and let us know if there’s any way we can help you prepare your cover letter, resume, or fill out an application. That’s what we’re here for!

Asking for Accommodations for the Job Interview

by Megan Elliott

Say you’ve been a client of ERS for a while, and we’ve found you a job that has your name all over it. You apply for it with the resume we’ve helped you create, and you’ve gotten a phone call from the company. They want you to come in for an interview!

Your career coach does mock interviews with you over and over again, and helps you feel better about the interview, but there’s something missing. There’s something that you can’t bring yourself to ask us, even though it’s a pretty important set of information. What are the rules about asking for an accommodation before the interview?

According to this factsheet, produced by the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, there are protections in the Americans with Disabilities Act not just for those who already have a job and have a disability, but also for those who are applying for jobs. “Reasonable accommodations,” or changes or adjustments to routines or facilities that do not place undue hardships on employers, are required of employers to enable all applicants to be considered for job openings.

When asking for accommodations for the interview, keep in mind that you will be asked what would be a reasonable accommodation for you, but it’s up to the employer to decide what will be reasonable for them. If a particular accommodation would cause a monetary hardship or would significantly alter business-as-usual to the employer, then you need to recognize that and perhaps offer another alternative.

Take this as an opportunity to demonstrate your negotiation skills. Accommodations are not favors done for the applicant, they are required by law. That doesn’t entitle you to demand the accommodations, and would most likely damage your chances of receiving an offer. Demonstrate those excellent communication skills you listed on your resume, and always leave the hiring manager with a good impression of you.

According to the U.S. Department of Labor’s Office of Disability Employment Policy, as of September 2012, 21.9% of the American labor force is disabled, and 13.5% of unemployed Americans are disabled. The need seems greater than ever before to have a solid strategy in hand for applying for jobs, for asking for accommodations once an interview is requested, and for asking for accommodations once an offer has been made.

ERS is here for you to support you throughout the process. Your career coach can help you brainstorm ideas for accommodations, and practice how to ask for them. This is your journey, but you won’t be walking it alone!

What kind of experiences have you had in asking for accommodations, for job interviews or for job offers? Share your stories with us in the comments!