The Office of Disability Employment Policy (ODEP) is the only non-regulatory federal agency that promotes policies and coordinates with employers and all levels of government to increase workplace success for people with disabilities. To support this mission, ODEP sponsors the following policy development and technical assistance resources:
Partnership on Employment & Accessible Technology (PEAT)
The Partnership on Employment & Accessible Technology (PEAT) promotes the employment, retention, and career advancement of people with disabilities through the development, adoption, and promotion of accessible technology policy. PEAT brings together employers, technology developers, accessibility thought leaders, government policy makers, and consumers that provide a mix of resources, outreach and collaboration, to serve as a catalyst for innovation and policy development related to accessible technology in the workplace. To ensure new existing technologies can be used by people with disabilities, PEAT connects the world's leading companies yielding tangible results. For example, Oracle, which owns Taleo – one of the world's leading software providers – has cited PEAT’s call to action as the motivator that moved them to develop a fully accessible Taleo product within a year’s time. Similarly, ADP recently unveiled an accessible version of their new software platform for their 600,000 clients and credit PEAT’s work with helping them understand the competitive market advantages accessibility brings to the company. PEAT’s website (www.PEATworks.org) offers a central hub of online resources and opportunities for collaboration to employers and IT companies interested in adopting accessible technology as a part of everyday business practices. In keeping with ODEP’s mission to develop national policy resources, such as analysis, policy briefs, court decisions, and technology-related news updates. PEAT’s also created the TalentWorks, a robust online resource that helps employers and HR professionals make their eRecruiting technologies accessible to all jobseekers.
Job Accommodation Network (JAN)
The Job Accommodation Network (JAN) provides free, expert and confidential guidance on workplace accommodations to employers as well as employees, job seekers, family members and service providers. Beyond accommodations, JAN provides information and assistance to people with disabilities who may find that self-employment is their best career choice. It also provides easy to understand technical assistance and training to employers on the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) and other disability employment related laws and regulations. JAN annually responds to more than 40,000 individual requests for assistance via phone, email and/or chat services. Sixty percent of the requests are from employers. JAN also conducts nearly 100 trainings per year via in person, webinar and teleconference. The trainings reach employers, employer organizations, federal, state and local governments and service providers. More than eight million visitors use JAN’s comprehensive website, www.AskJAN.org, to access publications, tools and online training on job accommodations and the ADA. JAN conducts the ongoing study Workplace Accommodations: Low Cost, High Impact to demonstrate that the benefits employers receive from making workplace accommodations far outweigh the costs of accommodations. Finally, JAN continues to share information on accommodation best practices and ADA guidance through its outreach campaigns.
Employers Assistance and Resource Network on Disability Inclusion (EARN)
The Employer Assistance and Resource Network on Disability Inclusion (EARN) helps employers recruit, hire, retain and advance people with disabilities by responding to their need for effective and innovative strategies to optimize their workforce. EARN analyzes policies, practices and existing research on disability employment; conducts its own research on effective employer engagement; and provides technical assistance to employers including private sector businesses of all sizes, federal contractors, and federal state governments. Annually, EARN provides free, confidential technical assistance and resources to thousands of employers through webinars, in-person training, and through the EARN website. (www.AskEARN.org)
National Center on Leadership for the Employment and Economic Advancement of People with Disabilities (LEAD Center)
The National Center on Leadership for the Employment and Economic Advancement of People with Disabilities (LEAD Center) promotes employment of people with disabilities by conducting policy development to ensure they receive effective services under the Workforce Innovation and Opportunities Act (WIOA). Areas of focus for the LEAD Center includes nondiscrimination and equal opportunity, financial literacy, health care, and apprenticeship.
The Center for Advancing Policy on Employment for Youth
The Center for Advancing Policy on Employment for Youth (CAPE-Youth) is a collaboration between the Department of Labor’s Office of Disability Employment Policy, The Council of State Governments, the K. Lisa Yang and Hock E. Tan Institute on Employment and Disability at Cornell University, and the Transitions to Adulthood Center for Research at the University of Massachusetts Medical School. The Center improves employment outcomes for youth and young adults with disabilities by helping states build capacity in their youth service delivery and workforce systems. Its work includes conducting research on new and existing innovative policy and practice approaches to improving transition and employment-related outcomes of youth and young adults with disabilities; developing strategic partnerships between national, state, and local workforce systems; sharing best practices among key stakeholders from individuals and families to state legislators and beyond; and helping states identify opportunities to expand career pathways, work-based learning, strategic partnerships, systems coordination, and professional development for youth and young adults.