BATTLE CREEK, Mich. –
In recognition of Disability Employment Awareness Month, The Hart-Dole-Inouye Federal Center’s Equal Employment Opportunity & Diversity – Special Emphasis Programs introduced the event keynote speaker Max Hornick, Americans with Disabilities Act coordinator and communication education specialist with the Disability Network Southwest Michigan.
Hornick is a graduate of Western Michigan University and a nationally certified ADA coordinator.
Hornick delivered a program on Inclusive Employment Practices and the importance of including people with disabilities when it comes to hiring and the benefits of building a diverse workforce.
“Disabled people are the largest minority group in the country,” Hornick said. “With more than 40% being of working age. People with Disabilities make up 18.7% of the working age population.”
During the presentation, Hornick explained the benefits of hiring people with disabilities to include expanded talent pool, higher employee loyalty and a more diverse work force.
Then Hornick continued highlighting some barriers that keep people with disabilities from getting hired and in some cases even applying for a position.
One barrier discussed was the choice of words in a job description. They said it is very important, one misused word may make someone think they are not qualified for a job.
An example provided was job descriptions may state that the person to be hired my need to drive to multiple locations when in fact they only need to be able to travel to multiple locations. A person with a disability may be able to do the job and have someone else give them a ride to the locations.
The federal effort to recognize people with disabilities began in 1945, when Congress declared the first week in October to be “National Employ the Physically Handicapped Week.” The word “physically” was dropped in 1962 to include individuals with all types of disabilities. In 1988, Congress expanded the week and christened the month of October as National Disability Employment Awareness Month.