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November 29, 2005

How Have You Gained an Equal Footing for Advancement ?

This week we’re looking at "EEOC Explains Employment Rights of Persons Who Are Blind or Visually Impaired" from another perspective: accommodations which give you an equal footing with others for advancement.

The U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity
Commission (EEOC) document is a broad statement of the "access and inclusion" rights people with visual impairments possess under the ADA when it comes to employment.

The EEOC issued the document to help "eliminate unfounded fears and stereotypes which lead to employment discrimination against so many people who are blind or visually impaired."

I think we can give employers an even clearer picture
of what we believe "inclusion" should look like in
today's workplaces.

Here are some of the key points the EEOC document makes about accommodating individuals with visual impairments under the ADA:

"An accommodation is any modification or adjustment to a job or work environment that will permit a qualified individual with a disability to apply for a job, to perform a job's essential functions (i.e., fundamental duties), or to enjoy equal ‘benefits and privileges’ of employment.

"Under the ADA, employers must provide reasonable accommodations to the known physical or mental limitations of persons with disabilities.

"Generally, an individual with a disability must request a reasonable accommodation before an employer will have an obligation to provide one.

"Once an accommodation has been requested, an employer should engage in an interactive process to determine whether an individual has a disability that requires an accommodation and, if so, must make a reasonable effort to determine the appropriate accommodation…

"Reasonable accommodations related to the ‘benefits and privileges’ of employment include accommodations that are necessary to provide individuals with disabilities access to facilities or portions of facilities to which all employees are granted access (e.g., employee break rooms and cafeterias), access to information communicated in the workplace, and the opportunity to participate in employer-sponsored training and social events…

"An employer does not have to provide a reasonable accommodation if doing so would be an undue hardship. Undue hardship means that providing the reasonable accommodation would result in significant difficulty or expense.

"In determining whether the provision of a particular accommodation would result in undue hardship, an employer should consider not only the cost of the accommodation in relationship to its own resources but also other resources that may be available in the form of tax incentives or funding from third parties…

"An employer does not have to remove an essential job function (i.e., a fundamental job duty), lower production standards, excuse violations of conduct rules that are job-related and consistent with business necessity, or provide employees with personal use items, such as eyeglasses or other devices that are used both on and off the job…

"The employer may choose among different reasonable accommodations as long as the chosen accommodation is effective. Therefore, as part of the interactive process, the employer may offer more than one suggestion for a reasonable accommodation…

"An employer must accommodate a vision impairment that results from another disability even if the vision impairment is not itself substantially limiting…"

Based on this framework, please consider this question:

What kind of accommodations have you requested and received that helped you gain an equal footing with other employees in terms of taking advantage of training and other opportunities for advancement?

Posted by Jim at 03:57 PM | Comments (1)

November 22, 2005

Some Discussions Not Appropriate Under the ADA?

See "EEOC Explains Employment Rights of Persons
Who Are Blind or Visually Impaired."

I believe the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) document is helpful for both employers and job seekers.

It's a broad statement of the "access and inclusion" rights people with visual impairments possess under the ADA when it comes to employment.

The EEOC issued the document to help "eliminate unfounded fears and stereotypes which lead to employment discrimination against so many people who are blind or visually impaired."

I think we can give employers an even clearer picture of what we believe "inclusion" should look like in today's workplaces.

Here are the key points the EEOC document makes about what an employer can ask about your disability:

"The ADA limits the medical information that an employer may seek from a job applicant. An employer may not require a job applicant to submit to a medical examination or ask about an applicant's disability before making a job offer.

"This means, for example, that an employer may not:

"An employer, however, may ask all applicants if they will need a reasonable accommodation for the application process…

"If a disability is obvious (or if an applicant discloses that she has a visual disability) and an employer reasonably believes the applicant will require a reasonable accommodation to perform the job, the employer may ask whether the applicant will need a reasonable accommodation and, if so, what type…

"The ADA strictly limits the circumstances under which an employer may ask questions about an employee's medical condition or require the employee to undergo a medical examination.

"Generally, an employer may ask an employee for medical information if the employer has reason to believe that:

"An employer must keep all medical information separate from general personnel files and treat it as a separate, confidential medical record. Issues regarding confidentiality more frequently arise in regard to non-obvious conditions; however, even if the impairment is obvious, information about it must be kept confidential…"

This week’s SiM discussion topic is:

What discussions about your disability have you had with prospective employers that you believe were not appropriate under the ADA?

Posted by Jim at 01:28 PM | Comments (0)

November 15, 2005

Is Your Visual Impairment a Disability Under ADA?

I believe the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) document Karen Thomas cites this week in eSight Community News is helpful for both employers and job seekers.

It’s a broad statement of the "access and inclusion" rights people with visual impairments possess under the ADA when it comes to employment.

The EEOC issued the document to help "eliminate unfounded fears and stereotypes which lead to employment discrimination against so many people who are blind or visually impaired."

See "EEOC Explains Employment Rights of Persons Who Are Blind or Visually Impaired."

The EEOC document, like most government directives, is a little bland, even though it includes 30 helpful but hypothetical examples of how the ADA guidelines can be applied to specific situations.

Let’s liven it up with our own personal-experience stories -– and give it some tinge of reality for both employers and job seekers.

Between now and the end of December, you’ll have an opportunity to think about five basic ADA questions covered by this EEOC document. We’ll consider them one week at a time. They are:

  1. When is visual impairment a "disability" under the ADA?

  2. What questions may employers ask job applicants about their visual impairments?

  3. What are the ADA’s provisions about accommodations for those with visual impairments?

  4. How should employers handle safety concerns?

  5. What does the ADA say about illegal harassment?

  • With that framework and our first-hand accounts, I think we can give employers an even clearer picture of what we believe "inclusion" should look like in today’s workplaces.

    On eSight’s "Swimming in the Mainstream" (SiM) blog last week, Liz wrote:

    "…We're still struggling with attitudes that (question whether) disabled people even have a place in society –- let alone (the right) to work and be independent…

    "If (there were a belief) that disabled people have as much right (as others) to be in society and function independently, we wouldn't have to be reinventing the wheel with each succeeding generation. We don't want to be designated as special; we just want to be included and be like everyone else."

    We don’t have to reinvent the wheel for each generation as individuals with disabilities, if we fully understand and demand our rights under the ADA.

    So, let’s take the first step this week and clarify when a visual impairment is a disability.

    The EEOC says:

    "A vision impairment is a disability if: (1) it substantially limits a major life activity; (2) it was substantially limiting in the past (i.e., if an individual has a ‘record of’ a substantially limiting impairment); or (3) an employer ‘regards’ or treats an individual as having a substantially limiting vision impairment…

    "Major life activities are those basic activities, including seeing, that an average person can perform with little or no difficulty…

    "A totally blind person still meets the ADA's first definition of ‘disability,’ even if she can move about freely with the use of a white cane or service animal, can work with assistive technology or a reader, and can use her hearing to do what others can do using sight (e.g., cross a street)…

    "A person who has a record of an impairment that substantially limited a major life activity in the past or who is regarded by his employer as having such an impairment also has a disability and, therefore, is covered by the ADA."

    This week’s SiM discussion topic is:

    Briefly explain an employment situation in which there was a question about whether your visual impairment qualified as a disability.

    Posted by Jim at 03:23 PM | Comments (4)

    November 08, 2005

    The Issue of Being Out But Not Yet In

    Sometimes it’s wise to take the path of least resistance.

    For instance, Debra L. Angel and Elizabeth E. Harney, authors of "No One is Unemployable: Creative Solutions for Overcoming Barriers to Employment," advise job seekers with disabilities to seek opportunities among disability friendly employers – no matter where they are – in an effort to reduce competition from just-as-qualified, non-disabled candidates.

    Those opportunities can range from sheltered workshops and non-profit organizations to public service agencies and disability friendly corporations.

    In fact, the authors suggest another career strategy of least resistance. Make your mark early in your career, they say, by creating an entry-level job for yourself in a specialty that others can’t easily duplicate.

    Then, they suggest using the experience you gain as an employee to eventually start your own business which offers a unique service for a niche group of customers. That’s a mid-career strategy which also reduces the even tougher competition you’ll encounter for senior jobs in the corporate and public service sector.

    My own career, with not much forethought on my part, roughly took that course. Such a career track can be fulfilling, particularly if you’re motivated to become a mentor to others during the later stages of your career.

    Check my personal-experience story, "Out but Not Yet In."

    I felt so lucky to be in mainstream, meaningful employment during the 1980s.

    But, as the only person with a disability within my business circles (some five years before the ADA), I began to realize how it felt to be included but still be apart.

    Sometimes it’s better to hit inclusion issues in employment head on.

    My uneasiness in the 1980s stemmed from a lagging attitude and awareness about disability within my social and business circles. Both attitude and awareness seem to lag behind advances in technology, which allow people with disabilities in 2005 to compete effectively for mainstream jobs.

    But, back in the 1970s and 1980s, I also realized there was a lag in my own development as a team player.

    So, during the 1980s when experiential learning was the vogue in management training, I took team building courses designed to develop my ability to trust team members through such strange exercises as rope climbing and gully jumping. I was an active participant only as a cheerleader for my fellow team members as we endured stress and a hint of danger, but I learned how gaining experience as a team member (which we, as individuals with a disability, often lack) was so vital to successfully swimming in today’s mainstream business world.

    I now believe even the experience of being part of a team in high school sports (even though they are often emphasized too much) gives our non-disabled counterparts an edge over us as they move from school to career.

    As a high school junior and senior, I was the locker room clean-up guy for the football team and ran the "riding" clock during wrestling matches. Though both occurred 45 years ago and were tangential to the public team effort, I still find those experiences valuable.

    In that light, here is the discussion question this week on eSight’s "Swimming in the Mainstream" blog:

    What "out-but-not-yet-in" issue have you had to address while swimming in the mainstream of competitive employment?

    Posted by Jim at 04:46 PM | Comments (3)

    November 01, 2005

    Summary for October: Taking Responsibility for "Easy Mark" Solutions

    You generated some interesting tips during October about how to fashion a life beyond being an "easy mark." You showed how to take personal responsibility when an "easy mark" situation comes into play while at work.

    I believe your tips are particularly important for employers. They show you know how to handle sometimes difficult situations. Problem solving, particularly when it comes to relationships among employees, is highly prized today within companies and organizations.

    With that kind of insight and experience, you’re valuable as an employee because you can save your supervisor time, money and effort. He or she won't have to handle issues that you, an employee with a disability, can personally resolve. And that expertise comes in handy in resolving issues which have nothing to do with disability as well.

    I thank all of you who contributed your thoughts about this issue. I’ve summarized your discussion from an employer standpoint in a new eSight article, "Hire People Who Resolve 'Easy Mark' Situations for Themselves."

    It’s featured this week in eSight’s Employer Resources section, and we’ll distribute it widely to employers through eSight’s extensive outreach mailing list -- all made possible by a grant from the American Express Foundation.

    If you have further thoughts to add to the discussion capped by "Hire People Who Resolve 'Easy Mark' Situations for Themselves," please do so here.

    Posted by Jim at 06:01 PM | Comments (0)