3 Things You Can Do to Celebrate 25 Years of the ADA
July marks the 25th anniversary of the Americans with Disabilities Act, one of our nation’s proudest civil rights triumphs. By prohibiting discrimination against people with disabilities in the...
View ArticleA Day in the Life: Sam from Virginia
Editor’s note: Leading up to the 25th anniversary of the Americans with Disabilities Act on July 26, Secretary Tom Perez and Deputy Secretary Chris Lu are traveling across the country to talk with...
View ArticleBuilding Evidence to Support Disability Rights
Twenty-one-year old Natacha Rodriquez suffered a traumatic brain injury in an accident. Upon returning to work after sustaining her injury, Natacha was unable to retain the security patrol officer...
View ArticleSeizing the Opportunities of Employment First
When I was a young man in graduate school, I, and a fellow student, Tom, were asked to help a transitioning student with a disability find a job. His name was Tracy and he was about to leave high...
View ArticleEmployers: Putting Internships to Work for You
The end of summer is here and many interns are making decisions about their future employment and so are the employers who recruited them. Given that 92% of employers surveyed this year hosted...
View ArticleMy Job Search: A Story of Solidarity in the Disability Community
Editor’s note: This was originally published on the Disability.gov blog. If you asked me about my future career plans when I was younger, I would have told you I wanted to be a sociology professor....
View ArticleAmerica Needs ALL of Us
Editor’s Note: This post has been cross-posted from USA Today. You can view the original here. October is the nation’s 70th National Disability Employment Awareness Month, a time for us to celebrate...
View Article“Ban the Box”: Good for People with Disabilities
Over the past few years, a growing list of city, state and local governments; organizations; and private companies have come forward to support “Ban the Box.” It’s an initiative to persuade employers...
View ArticleThe Invitation that Moved Me
“Come to D.C. for a girl’s weekend.” Sounds fun – right? For me, this was a liberating moment. On March 8, 2012, my best friend invited me to fly from Illinois to Washington, D.C., for the weekend. She...
View ArticleSmall Business and Disability Employment: Steps to Success
For the past five years, I have had the pleasure of managing the Office of Disability Employment Policy’s Add Us In initiative. Through this grant program, eight consortia across the country have...
View ArticleThe Interview that Changed My Life Forever
On a crisp fall day in 2011, I donned my best professional outfit, harnessed up my guide dog Railey, and headed off for another day of college classes. I had a special appointment between management...
View ArticleLooking Forward, Looking Back
There are some days you’ll never forget, and for me, today is one of them. It’s my last day as assistant secretary of labor for disability employment policy, and, as expected, I’m experiencing mixed...
View ArticleI’m a Federal Employee Thanks to Schedule A. You Can Be, Too!
We’ve all been through it. You submit a job application through USAJobs, and then don’t hear another word. You know you have the skills for that federal position, but you feel like the employment...
View ArticleImproving Mental Health for Workers, This Month and Every Month
May is National Mental Health Awareness Month, and this year I find myself viewing this issue through an international lens. That’s because in March, I had the distinct honor of travelling to The Hague...
View ArticleDiversify Your Workforce
At the Labor Department, we strive to ensure that the federal workforce reflects the diversity of America. After all, that is who we serve. This diversity includes more than 50 million Americans with...
View ArticleAccessible Workplace Technology: Signed, Sealed, Delivered
Last week, I had a brush with a bona fide music legend — the great Stevie Wonder. Was I starstruck? Of course. I’ve long admired his musical accomplishments and advocacy for people with disabilities....
View ArticleAutism and Access to the American Dream
Earlier this month, President Barack Obama issued a proclamation to recognize World Autism Awareness Day 2016. This proclamation noted the importance of making sure autistic Americans have a chance put...
View Article#InclusionWorks
I’ve worked in the disability employment policy arena for more than 20 years, and a lot has changed in this time. Looking back, the progress I’m most thrilled about isn’t just the policy action we’ve...
View ArticleBuilding a More Inclusive Workforce, Worldwide
Day to day, we aim to ensure that America’s workforce is inclusive of all people, including those of us with disabilities. However, disability is a much broader, international issue. For this reason,...
View ArticleJoin the Conversation on Twitter: #AccessJobs
In August, the Department of Labor announced two final rules to improve the hiring and employment of veterans and people with disabilities. One rule updates requirements under the Vietnam Era Veterans’...
View ArticleHelp Make Online Job Tools More Accessible to People With Intellectual...
People with disabilities have significant challenges in life, but those challenges don’t have to be insurmountable − and certainly shouldn’t be when it comes to performing basic job duties or seeking...
View ArticleStepping Up to the Plate
Last week I had the pleasure of speaking to members of the Professional Baseball Athletic Trainers Society during their annual meeting in Florida. Some might say that my work and America’s pastime...
View ArticleOur New Year’s Resolution
For most of us − myself included − this is the time of year for an honest self-evaluation. Maybe your New Year’s resolutions are the same as mine: spend time with family, exercise more, eat healthy....
View ArticlePlotting a Roadmap to Success
Now that we’ve rung in the New Year, many of us will be making resolutions and setting plans for the year ahead. This is an important first step toward success – after all, you can’t achieve a goal if...
View ArticleHelping the Federal Workforce Reflect the Citizenry It Serves
Last month, the U.S. Office of Personnel Management — the independent agency that manages the federal government workforce — released a report showing positive movement in the representation of people...
View ArticleA Powerful Message for Youth With Disabilities
On Sunday, people across the country will take part in an American tradition: watching the Super Bowl on television. This year, one player in particular has captured my interest: the Seattle Seahawks’...
View ArticleCivil Rights in America: We Rise Together
In honor of the 50th anniversary of the passage of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, this year’s Black History Month theme is “Civil Rights in America.” This theme has special resonance to us in the Office...
View ArticleThe Thrill of Being in the Game
This week, America’s Paralympians hit the snow and ice in Sochi, where they will compete in five different winter disciplines: alpine skiing, biathlon, cross-country skiing, sled hockey and wheelchair...
View ArticleShelly Saves the Future
Meet Shelly. Shelly is a senior in high school, and like 3.3 million seniors across the country, she will graduate this year. Congrats, Shelly! It can be difficult and scary for young people like...
View ArticleExpect. Employ. Empower.
As assistant secretary of labor for disability employment policy, I am often asked about the key to advancing disability employment. Is it accessible technology? Better transportation systems?...
View ArticleFostering an Expectation of Employment
May is National Foster Care Month, a time to celebrate the many people who play a role in enhancing the lives of youth in foster care, and of course those youth themselves. It is also an important time...
View ArticlePromoting Good Mental Health for Today’s Workforce – and Tomorrow’s
May is Mental Health Month, and although it is drawing to a close, it’s always worth considering the important role that mental health plays in our overall well-being. Mental Health Month is also...
View Article“Same Struggle, Different Difference” – Opportunities for Togetherness
Each June, the LGBTQ+ community and allies commemorate Pride Month, promoting self-affirmation, dignity, visibility, inclusion and diversity within the community. In July, the disability community and...
View ArticleEmployment First: A Key Component in Community Inclusion
This past weekend marked the 15th anniversary of a landmark event in disability rights history — the Supreme Court’s ruling in Olmstead v. L.C., commonly referred to as the “Olmstead decision.” This...
View ArticleOpening Doors for Students with Disabilities
Editor’s note: This article has been cross-posted from the disability.gov blog. The author, TaKeisha Bobbitt, is the managing director of the American Association of People with Disabilities....
View ArticleComing to Work Fully
I love coming to work each day. Why? Because I’m able to do so fully. What do I mean by that? I mean that my employer encourages employees to bring their “whole selves” to the job. This makes the...
View ArticleNumber Power
In my former career as a special education transition teacher, I was constantly measuring the change and growth of my students. I maintained a binder on each student that contained their individualized...
View ArticleWhat Does Advocacy Look Like to You?
We have made great progress towards equal opportunities for people with disabilities in the 26 years since the signing of the ADA, but we still have a lot of work to do in order to ensure all...
View ArticleBo Knows … the Importance of Inclusion
Those of a certain age may remember “Bo Knows,” a highly successful advertising campaign for cross-training athletic shoes that ran in the late 1980s and early 1990s. It was a series of television...
View ArticleCall to Action: Make Disability Visible in Everything We Do
July 26 is the anniversary of the signing in 1990 of the Americans with Disabilities Act. In recognition of the spirit of the Act, we are pleased to recommit to the important work of making our...
View ArticleMIND/GAME: My Unquiet Journey with a Mental Health Condition
Yesterday, I celebrated the 26th anniversary of the Americans with Disabilities Act at the Labor Department. The gathering was a special one, drawing scores of government officials, advocates and...
View ArticlePursuing a Degree While Working, Thanks to Flexible Options
After a grueling 22-month master’s degree program, I was relieved and excited when I stepped onto the stage to receive my diploma on May 13. The announcer called my name, and a few nervous steps and a...
View ArticleBack to School: Challenges and Opportunities for Students and their Families
The start of a new school year marks an exciting but somewhat stressful time for all students and their families. Students must juggle new schedules, class assignments, rules and relationships, and...
View ArticleInclusion Works for Business
Today, disability inclusion is something America’s businesses are committed to advancing. Smart companies understand that people with disabilities represent a large and growing market and, as with any...
View ArticleDialogue to Make #InclusionWork
October is a special time of year for us at the Department of Labor. If you’ve been following this blog in recent weeks, you may already know why; It’s National Disability Employment Awareness Month....
View ArticleAll Employers Need to Know About Inclusion Can be Learned from Kindergartners
Nearly 20 years ago, author Robert Fulghum catapulted to the top of the bestseller list with a simple credo: All I Really Need to Know I Learned in Kindergarten. In this collection of essays, he made a...
View Article#InclusionWorks for Employers
Last month I had the pleasure of attending the U.S. Business Leadership Network national conference, an annual gathering of companies committed to increasing disability inclusion. For three days,...
View Article#InclusionWorks: Diving into the Data
October is National Disability Employment Awareness Month. Here at the U.S. Department of Labor, this means an opportunity both to celebrate the countless contributions workers with disabilities make...
View Article#InclusionWorks for Innovation: How Microsoft is Opening Doors for Everyone
This year’s theme for National Disability Employment Awareness Month, #InclusionWorks, has special meaning for Microsoft, and for me. Most everyone at some point in their career will face moments where...
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