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Welcome back to our next segment
on disability and employment
with our Perspectives on Disability MOOC.
In this segment, we're going to talk about legislation,
specifically the Americans with Disabilities Act.
I have found certainly that in teaching
and in talking to other colleagues,
as well as administrators and so forth,
there's a vast lack of knowledge with regard to the ADA
and what its impact is on employment.
And so from my standpoint,
even just a little bit of introduction to this
is hopefully going to be helpful.
And, again, would encourage you to look at our resources
to find more information on this.
As a starting point, I would say that
the Americans with Disabilities Act
applies to lots of companies,
but that company has to have at least 15 employees.
Not full-time, but just if you have 15 employees or more,
the ADA is something that you have to abide by.
The employment title associated with this law is one
of the more controversial aspects of the ADA.
Unfortunately, many employers
have little knowledge or awareness regarding it.
As such, employment myths abound.
The U.S. Department of Labor
has a particularly interesting document about this topic.
A link is provided in your weekly readings.
Some of the more prevalent myths include the belief
that the ADA forces employers to hire
unqualified individuals with disabilities.
This is incorrect.
Potential employees must be qualified.
They must be able to meet the essential functions
of the job with or without an accommodation.
A second common myth is the belief
that when there are several qualified applicants for a job
and one has a disability, that the employer
is required to hire the one with a disability.
Again, this is not true.
The employer always has the option
to choose among qualified candidates.
He or she cannot, however, base the decision
on the applicant's disability.
And a third myth is that
the ADA places a financial burden on small businesses
that cannot afford to make accommodations.
Again, this is not correct.
Businesses with fewer than 15 employees
are not required to abide by the ADA.
In addition, businesses are not required to provide
accommodations that result in undue hardship.
In the previous slide, there were three concepts
that I would like to briefly explain.
Specifically, I want to mention the ideas
of essential function,
reasonable accommodations, and undue hardship.
Essential functions pertain to the nature of the job.
That is, what are the specific skills,
knowledge, and abilities required to perform the task.
For example, imagine a taxi company is hiring drivers.
Certainly an essential function associated
with driving a taxi is the ability to see.
Suppose someone who is blind applies to be a taxi driver.
When they were not hired could they subsequently
file a lawsuit claiming discrimination?
Based on the idea of "essential functions," they could not.
There is no accommodation available
that would allow someone who is blind to safely drive a cab.
Alternatively, though, if that same company were hiring
dispatchers, receptionists, or a business manager,
there would be a different interpretation.
Because with appropriate accommodations,
someone who is blind could most certainly meet
the essential functions associated with those jobs.
We also mentioned the idea of reasonable accommodations.
By definition, a reasonable accommodation
is any change in the work environment or in the way a job
is performed that enables a person with a disability
to enjoy equal employment opportunities.
These changes tend to fall in three categories:
changes to the application process,
changes to the work environment
or the way a job is usually done,
and changes that enable an employee with a disability
to participate in training
so as to have equal benefits and privileges.
The one thing though --
and this is a very, very critical point,
because I think a lot of people don't know this
or misunderstand this --
to be protected by the ADA, okay,
the individual must be able to perform
the tasks with accommodation.
The idea being that you as an employer are not ever
obligated to hire an unqualified worker.
I would also mention when we talk about
this idea of getting accommodations
that the individual has to disclose.
If you have a disability
and anticipate the need for a job-related accommodation,
when do you describe your disability?
As with most of our topics,
there are additional resources available for you.
>>Alex: When I apply for a job, would I disclose?
Yes, I think I would disclose.
Because my disability is visible.
And so I kind of want to --
a lot of people know that to begin with.
And that way they're not shocked when they see me.
That way I can kind of limit the really good
chances of getting a job
from the people that, you know, might not want to hire me
just because I have a disability.
It kind of saves me some time.
And it makes me feel a lot less nervous
when I am interviewing,
because even though I am seen in this wheelchair
or with crutches,
a lot of time people don't know what my disability is.
So I think it's good for me to disclose.
But I can understand if someone had a hidden disability
that they wouldn't want to disclose.
>>Alex: I usually disclose my disability
beforehand before the interview because of
the need for the interpreter.
Sometimes I don't disclose until the moment
because I bring the interpreter myself.
It all depends on how I feel, the attitude.
Usually employers often if they look at the ear,
they don't look at me.
They just kind of look at my broken ear, if you would.
That's why, that's why that exposure is necessary.
>>Professor Long: Someone else, on the other hand,
who may have a mental illness or learning disability,
whatever it might be, not necessarily. Right?
You're not going to know that.
So the issue of disclosure is a really big one.
Because as an employer, think about this, again,
would you be more willing -- just gut level here.
Not talking laws.
But if somebody came in and had an invisible disability
and you had another applicant who had no disability,
and this person who had that invisible disability,
let's say it's a mental illness
and they disclosed at the outset of that interview,
which of those two people
would you be more likely to hire?
So in summary, the ADA does provide employment access,
but it doesn't mean that everybody
is going to be hired simply because they have a disability.
You have to meet the essential functions.
And accommodations have to be reasonable
and not pose an undue hardship.
We've got that notion of thinking
about the importance of disclosure.
Do you or do you not?
Because unless you disclose,
you are in no way entitled to a disability.
And then, finally, those myths about the ADA
that it's going to be incredibly expensive
or that you've got to accommodate everyone.
Again, that's not accurate.
So we'll close this section.
And as we move on to our next segment,
we'll be talking about
supports, strategies and solutions.