Online Guide Answers Questions About Employing Disabled Federal Workers
The U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission issued a new question-and-answer guide aimed at promoting the hiring and advancement of individuals with disabilities in federal government employment. The publication is available on EEOC's Web site at www.eeoc.gov/federal/qanda-employment-with-disabilities.html.
According to EEOC, the percentage of federal employees with targeted disabilities, which are severe physical or mental disabilities that historically have resulted in barriers to employment, has declined each year since reaching a peak of 1.24 percent in Fiscal Years 1993 and 1994. In FY 2007, the participation rate of people with targeted disabilities declined to 0.92 percent of the federal government's total work force, the lowest participation rate in more than 20 years.
The question-and-answer guide responds to frequent questions EEOC receives about what the law allows and what it requires federal agencies to do with respect to affirmative hiring and employment of individuals with disabilities. It discusses special regulations that allow federal agencies to hire individuals with severe disabilities who are qualified for jobs without going through the usual competitive hiring process, as well as procedures that agencies are required to have for providing reasonable accommodations for applicants and employees with disabilities.