More Kansas City area companies, programs try to match people with disabilities with the right jobs

For some area employers, hiring people with physical and intellectual disabilities has always been less of a mandate and more about doing the right thing.

During October, which is National Disability Employment Awareness Month, doing the right thing still rings true. But employers will now be held accountable for meeting certain employment standards for the disabled if they want to do business with the federal government.

Specifically, federal contractors and subcontractors are subject to new hiring regulations established by Section 503 of the Rehabilitation Act. The ruling, which took effect in March, requires companies to meet a 7 percent hiring standard for every job group within the company, or for their entire workforce if the contractor has 100 or fewer employees.

The ruling also details specific actions contractors must take in recruitment, training, record keeping and policy dissemination. Companies working toward the 7 percent requirement are challenged by finding the good candidates who have disabilities, adapting their workplace culture and even keeping track of meeting the standards. In fact, the accountability piece of this ruling is so new, many companies such as Ferrellgas in Liberty don’t have the human resources tools to track that segment of its workforce.

“We never had to sell senior management on the practice of hiring individuals with disabilities. We’ve always done our best to that end, and it was always the right thing to do,” said Kelly Bosak, Ferrellgas’ director of employee development, staffing and human resource information systems. “But now it’s even more important because of this ruling, and yet, it’s still the right thing to do.”

Ferrellgas uses the human resource management system PeopleSoft, but the software doesn’t have a function for capturing employee disability data, she said. Under the new regulations, contractors must annually document and update several quantitative comparisons for the number of individuals with disabilities who apply for jobs, and the number that have been hired. Such data will help companies measure the effectiveness of their outreach and recruitment efforts. The data must be maintained for three years to be used to spot trends.

Ferrellgas looked into broadening its hiring after Bosak attended a Rotary meeting at which a speaker from Missouri Vocational Rehabilitation addressed the benefits of hiring people with disabilities — the people the agency serves.

“We wanted to open our doors and be one of those employers that makes a connection in this area,” Bosak said.

Ferrellgas interviewed several candidates with intellectual disabilities represented by the Missouri agency, but ultimately didn’t find a good match. It could have easily ended there, Bosak said, but Ferrellgas took the initiative to give Missouri Vocational Rehabilitation feedback about the candidates to help them better prepare for employment. Ferrellgas has since hired a full-time, entry-level analyst from Missouri Vocational Rehabilitation, and employs several other people who have become physically disabled since joining the company.

The unemployment line

Ferrellgas’ example may offer a glimmer of hope to families of people with physical or intellectual disabilities looking for employment. Physically and intellectually disabled individuals are largely unemployed, and the movement has a long way to go. In fact, 70 percent of people with disabilities are currently unemployed, according to Jim Atwater, founder of Kansas City-based Inreturn Strategies, a software technology company matching employers to people with disabilities looking for work.

Atwater, who is hearing impaired, is introducing a pilot program with area companies committed to hiring people with physical and intellectual disabilities. It’s an efficient, reliable way to access the talent pool, he said, through a central platform.

“Right now, there’s a splintered approach to hiring. Agencies are doing it individually, as are the parents of individuals looking for work. We’re trying to make it easier for employers and employees to connect based on supply and demand,” Atwater said. “Companies don’t care about the disability. They care about the value the employee can provide. “Kansas City is great in that we are a very innovative town. We can make it happen.”

For hesitant employers, Atwater says, statistics show that hiring people with a physical or intellectual disability can help a company’s bottom line through reduced turnover and time off and increased productivity. Additionally, depending upon disability type, companies that hire employees with a disability are eligible for a $4,000 to $6,000 tax incentive per hiring, he said.

Matching up

October’s National Disability Employment Awareness Month recognizes the contributions of people with disabilities, both to businesses and society. And year round, the Business Leadership Network of Kansas City helps business with the recruitment, hiring management and marketing practices needed to ensure the inclusion of people with disabilities in the workforce. Such practices, according to Executive Director Rob Hoffman, benefit employee retention, job performance and satisfaction, and they add significant gains to sales and customer loyalty.

The nonprofit Business Leadership Network mentors employers, provides resources to connect employers to an untapped pool of employees and talent, hosts workshops and seminars on the topic and even honors a Disability Champion each year – a local company that has made a difference in the employment of individuals with disabilities.

“In general, I’m seeing positive trends in the movement to hire more people with physical and intellectual disabilities,” Hoffman said. “Businesses are getting involved and are actively engaged in outreach efforts.”

Employees with disabilities, he said, “tend to be the best problem solvers because they’ve had to overcome their own challenges.”

Compliance for the new federal regulations may be driving some of the positive trends, Hoffman said, but he insisted many companies genuinely wanted to expand this area of their workforce.

One of the Business Leadership Network’s board members, Mary Beth Majors, is vice president and talent acquisition manager at UMB Financial Corp. in Kansas City. UMB “gets it,” Hoffman said, as the Kansas City bank has been hiring people with disabilities for two decades. Two of its employees have Down syndrome and have worked for the bank for 20 years. Another employee who relies on a wheelchair started out as a teller and is now a human resources recruiter.

“This is an untapped space. I think the stereotypes about people with intellectual disabilities go away once employees get to know that person,” Majors said. “When we hire a person with a disability of any kind, it’s pretty cool to see what happens. The other employees learn so much from the experience. It’s going to be a natural part of the workplace one day.”

Like UMB, Jack Henry & Associates, a software company for the financial services industry, is working with vocational rehabilitation agencies to hire people with disabilities.

According to the company’s compliance specialist, Jason Peters, bringing physically and intellectually disabled individuals into the workplace shines a spotlight on a strong work ethic. Peters is a disabled military veteran and his wife is legally blind. She, too, enjoys full-time employment with another area employer. Jack Henry & Associates’ Monet, Mo., office employs a young man with Down syndrome who started by making copies and is now employed full time in its finance department, having added new skills and more job responsibilities.

“I’ve seen how difficult it is for people with a disability to get a job. This is a hard-working segment of the workforce,” Peters said. “I’ve found that employees with physical or intellectual disabilities have a great work ethic, are always willing to take on added responsibilities and will stay late to get the job done.”

David Westbrook, senior vice president for strategy and innovation of Children’s Mercy Hospital, is president-elect of the Business Leadership Network of Kansas City. Like Peters, he knows the challenges of being physically disabled in the workplace. Westbrook, who is blind, is the first to say that it makes co-workers uncomfortable — in the beginning.

“I try cleverly, with humor, to make sure it’s out there,” he said. “I’m not happy until people are jealous that I’m blind! When I do that, I liberate my colleagues from bias.”

Children’s Mercy currently provides paid and volunteer opportunities to people with disabilities through its Project RISE (Reaching for Independent Successful Employment) program.

Paid employment has been available in the hospital’s Child Life, Guest Services, Human Resources, Pediatric Care Network, Education Department, Outpatient and Ambulatory Care and Internal Transport departments. Job candidates must be at least 18 years old for paid positions (15 years old for volunteer opportunities), demonstrate independence in self care during the work day and undergo all the same routine health screenings and drug tests to which any job candidate would have to submit.

Project RISE does give additional consideration to candidates who have a history of receiving care at the hospital. According to Westbrook, it’s the perfect setting in which to integrate people with disabilities.

“Our families and children are here because of a very serious health challenge. So while that health challenge is usually managed and patients recover, it can leave a lasting legacy of disability,” Westbrook said. “It’s inspiring for our patients and their families to see employees with disabilities who are employed and doing well.”

That uncomfortable feeling

Breaking down barriers begins with sorting out perceived obstacles, according to area employers and disability service providers. One such misconception is that people with disabilities will need expensive workplace accommodations. However, according to Hoffman and the Department of Labor, the majority of workers with disabilities do not need accommodations to perform their jobs, and for those who do, the cost is usually less than a one-time $500 investment. Moreover, tax incentives are available to help employers cover the costs of accommodations, as well as modifications required to make their businesses accessible to people with disabilities.

Another question on the minds of employers is, “What if it doesn’t work out?” To avoid that, an employee rarely enters a job without preparation from a disability service provider or that individual’s own family.

For example, the Community Employment Program through local disability service provider Johnson County Developmental Supports has employment specialists who navigate clients through the job process, from writing resumes to interviewing and on-the-job training. The agency has placed and trained adults with intellectual and developmental disabilities into jobs with hundreds of employers in the Kansas City area, according to Beth Johnson, the agency’s director of day and employment services.

“There are certainly misperceptions and stereotypes among even the most well-meaning employers that a person with a disability is not capable of the work,” she said. “Even though the owner or CEO of a company believes in hiring people with a disability, if it isn’t communicated throughout the company, particularly HR, it often gets stalled.”

If there’s an issue after a person begins work, Johnson County Development Supports works with the employer to find a successful resolution, and many times, Johnson said, it’s quick and simple.

Making a difference

Caroline Lobo, a 22-year-old Overland Park woman who has autism, works one afternoon a week at Shepherd Elder Law’s Overland Park location. The firm serves the elderly and individuals with special needs.

“I was surprised when I got the job,” Lobo said. “They said they had to interview a couple of other potential candidates, but then I got it! I went to dinner that night with my family to celebrate.”

Grace Carrubba, the firm’s director of marketing, said they’d like to extend Lobo’s work hours as its needs arise, and is delighted to count her among its employees.

“Caroline has worked out wonderfully,” Carrubba said. “As we got to know the families of our clients, we learned just how bad unemployment was among individuals with physical and intellectual disabilities. Frankly, we were a little shocked to hear that more conversations aren’t taking place about this.”

This story was originally published October 7, 2014 at 12:16 AM with the headline "More Kansas City area companies, programs try to match people with disabilities with the right jobs."