WASHINGTON—Labor Secretary Elaine L. Chao and Small Business Administration Administrator Hector V. Barreto today signed a Strategic Alliance Memorandum (SAM) designed to help people with disabilities pursue small business ownership and to also increase their employment opportunities in small businesses.

WASHINGTON—Today U.S. Secretary of Labor Elaine L. Chao delivered the keynote address at the two-day Labor Department event entitled “Emergency Preparedness For People With Disabilities: An Interagency Seminar Of Exchange For Federal Managers.”

WASHINGTON—Noting “inadequate transportation can inhibit employment for all people, but is an even greater barrier to people with disabilities,” Dr. Roy Grizzard, Assistant Secretary of Labor for the Office of Disability Employment Policy (ODEP) said today, “Government at all levels is working to coordinate transportation policies and programs for those people with disabilities who need it the most.”

WASHINGTON—Calling it “Yet another example of President George Bush’s deep commitment to making government easily accessible to all Americans,” Secretary of Labor Elaine L. Chao hailed the one-year anniversary of DisabilityInfo.Gov, a comprehensive Federal web site, managed by the Labor Department, with one-stop access to governmental disability information.

Award Recognizes Achievements on Behalf of People with Disabilities

WASHINGTON—Five businesses, four organizations, and one individual today received the Secretary of Labor’s annual New Freedom Initiative (NFI) Awards. The NFI Award recognizes exemplary and innovative public-private partnership efforts in furthering the employment objectives of the President’s New Freedom Initiative. The recipients were honored in a luncheon ceremony at the Labor Department.

WASHINGTON—Dr. Roy Grizzard, Assistant Secretary of the Office of Disability Employment Policy (ODEP), was the keynote speaker at a U.S. Labor Department ceremony kicking off the 5th annual celebration of Disability Mentoring Day.

Disability Mentoring Day comes during National Disability Employment Awareness Month. Labor Secretary Elaine L. Chao selected “America Works Best When All Americans Work” as the official theme for October to continue to focus on solutions that ensure the full inclusion of persons with disabilities into the 21st Century workforce.

WASHINGTON—Human service agencies in Rhode Island, North Carolina, South Carolina, Oklahoma, and Washington will take part in a training and technical assistance program for people with disabilities, U.S. Labor Secretary Elaine L. Chao announced today.

WASHINGTON—U.S. Secretary of Labor Elaine L Chao today issued a compliance assistance “Checklist” designed to ensure nondiscrimination against and equal opportunity for persons with disabilities under Section 188 of the Workforce Investment Act (WIA). The checklist was sent to all WIA program operators who receive government financial assistance.

“Tomorrow we celebrate the 13th anniversary of the signing of the Americans With Disabilities Act, a landmark legislation of compassion and empowerment. The ADA has been a major civil rights legislation for the disabled community. Since its passage, it has been a powerful force in removing barriers to people with disabilities by increasing their opportunities in education, home ownership, transportation, and employment.

WASHINGTON—Oct. 15, 2003 has been designated as National Disability Mentoring Day, Secretary of Labor Elaine L. Chao announced today.

Begun in 1999, National Disability Mentoring Day promotes career development for students and job seekers with disabilities through one-on-one job shadowing, group visits to public and private employers, and hands-on career exploration. It is held in October in conjunction with National Disability Employment Awareness Month.

WASHINGTON—The Departments of Labor (DOL) and Housing and Urban Development (HUD) announced today they were jointly making up to $13.5 million available to help fulfill the Administration’s goal of ending chronic homelessness among persons with disabilities.

WASHINGTON—Two solicitations to help mentor and successfully transition youth with disabilities to work were published in the June 16, 2003 Federal Register by the Office of Disability Employment Policy (ODEP), Secretary of Labor Elaine L. Chao announced today.

WASHINGTON—DisabilityInfo.gov, a comprehensive federal Web site with one-stop access to governmental disability information, has gone over the one-million visitor mark and achieved more than 20 million “hits,” Labor Secretary Elaine L. Chao announced today.

“DisabilityInfo.gov provides Americans with disabilities a direct and easy connection to information and resources they need to become full participants in the 21st Century workforce,” Secretary Chao said.

WASHINGTON—Two solicitations for Customized Grants and High School/High Tech (HS/HT) Development and Implementation Grants were published in the June 6, 2003 Federal Register by the Office of Disability Employment Policy, Secretary of Labor Elaine L. Chao announced today.

WASHINGTON—Two grant solicitations were published in the May 29, 2003 Federal Register by the Office of Disability Employment Policy, Secretary of Labor Elaine L. Chao announced today.

WASHINGTON—More than 260 college students and recent graduates with disabilities have been placed in summer and permanent jobs since the Labor Department’s Workforce Recruitment Program (WRP) was announced in April, U.S. Labor Secretary Elaine L. Chao said today.

WASHINGTON—Secretary of Labor Elaine L. Chao has selected “America Works Best When All Americans Work” as the official theme for October’s National Disability Employment Awareness Month.

“The theme, America Works Best When All Americans Work, emphasizes the Bush Administration’s position of economic opportunity through job creation,” said Chao. “It also builds upon the accomplishments of the President’s New Freedom Initiative which has created opportunities for persons with disabilities to be fully integrated into the 21st Century workforce.”

WASHINGTON—Secretary of Labor Elaine L. Chao today urged an international audience of disability experts to “continue to bring focus and awareness to solutions that insure the full inclusion of persons with disabilities into the 21st century workforce.”

WASHINGTON—Government and private sector employers may take advantage of a free resource to identify college students and recent graduates with disabilities for their summer and permanent job openings, U.S. Labor Secretary Elaine L. Chao announced today. The department’s Office of Disability Employment Policy (ODEP), in cooperation with the Department of Defense, now offers a database of more than 1,600 job seekers with disabilities through its Workforce Recruitment Program (WRP).

WASHINGTON—Secretary of Labor Elaine L. Chao and her Office of Disability Employment Policy (ODEP) today reminded businesses that they can “do well” and “do good” by taking advantage of tax breaks offered to companies that hire people with disabilities.