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Archived News Release--Caution:
information may be out of date.
For more information call: (202) 219-8211
Today, Labor Secretary Robert B. Reich announced plans to turn the
nation's One-Stop career centers into model facilities for providing access to
millions of disabled Americans who are seeking work.
"This nation depends upon all of its workers and it is important that we
make the workplace more accessible to everyone, including people with
disabilities," said Reich. "By increasing the accessibility of the nation's
existing and future One-Stop career centers we can better insure inclusion for
all workers," said Reich.
Reich made the announcements at the dedication ceremony of Gallaudet
University's Kellog Conference Center, a state of the art technological
resource offering continuing education and career planning for the deaf
community.
The Labor Department initiatives to increase employment access for
people with disabilities involve not only developing technical assistance on
disability issues for states operating One-Stop career centers but also
addresses plans for the Department's Bureau of Labor Statistics to conduct
further study, jointly with the Census Bureau, on the employment experience of
Americans with disabilities.
In efforts to increase accessibility for people with disabilities
seeking assistance at One-Stop career centers across the country, the
Department has identified funds to help states with technical assistance on
disability issues. Models for improved access to one-stop centers will be
developed with nearly $300,000 in funding.
Of the 29 million Americans of working age (21-64) with disabilities,
only 52.3 percent are employed, according to Census Bureau data. A 1994 Harris
Poll found that 79 percent of individuals with disabilities, who are not
working, want to work.
Archived News Release--Caution:
information may be out of date.
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