Report Sharply Critical of Government Hiring of Disabled

Uncle Sam likes to think of himself as a model employer, but when it comes to hiring people with disabilities he doesn't set a very good example.

The National Council on Disability said today that "current efforts to employ people with disabilities in the federal government have not worked well."

NCD is an independent federal agency that recommends policies and programs designed to "ensure the full inclusion of people with disabilities into all aspects of society."

According to a report the agency released this morning, the federal government has a long way to go before people with disabilities are fully included in the federal workforce.

“NCD has determined that despite laws, regulations, policy guidance, and excepted service hiring authorities designed to promote federal employment opportunities for people with disabilities, barriers to federal employment remains, and the number of employees with disabilities in the federal workforce is still low,” said NCD Chairperson John R. Vaughn.

In fiscal year 2007, people with disabilities made up less than 1 percent of the federal workforce, according to the report. And it's tough to keep those who are working in the government.

"Increasing the number of employees with disabilities in the Federal Government is made more difficult by the fact that employees with targeted disabilities leave the Federal Government at nearly twice their rate of hire," the report says.

NCD breaks down its list of 10 recommendations this way: "Five recommendations address the need for the Office of Personnel Management to examine personnel practices that continue to be barriers to hiring and advancing qualified people with disabilities. Four recommendations call on Congress to request the Government Accountability Office to conduct studies....One recommendation is for job seekers, encouraging people with disabilities to take advantage of the information available on opportunities in the Federal Government."

For more information, go here

By Eric Pianin  |  March 31, 2009; 10:55 AM ET
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