AAPD Commends DOL Step to Improve Hiring People with Disabilities by Federal Contractors

WASHINGTON, DC – July 22, 2010 – The American Association of People with Disabilities (AAPD), the country’s largest cross-disability membership organization, applauds the U.S. Labor Department’s decision to seek input on ways to strengthen its regulations requiring federal contractors to employ qualified individuals with disabilities, which was announced Thursday.

“This is an important step in making sure more people with disabilities are employed by federal contractors, and it’s one I’ve been waiting for for more than 15 years,” said Tony Coelho, AAPD’s board chair. “We want to thank Secretary of Labor Hilda Solis and OFCCP Director Patricia A. Shiu for moving federal contractors closer to complying with the law that requires our community to be fairly represented in the workforce. It’s time to get this done.”

The U.S. Labor Department is requesting public input on its regulations requiring federal contractors to take affirmative action to employ and advance in employment qualified individuals with disabilities and an Advance Notice of Proposed Rulemaking will be published in the Federal Register July 23.

Unemployment and underemployment are two of the biggest issues facing people with disabilities in the United States even as we celebrate the 20th anniversary of the landmark Americans with Disabilities Act, which was signed into law on July 26, 1990. According to statistics, almost two thirds of people with significant disabilities in the U.S. are not currently employed.

For additional information about AAPD, visit our Web site at www.AAPD.com

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The American Association of People with Disabilities (AAPD), the country's largest cross-disability membership organization, organizes the disability community to be a powerful voice for change – politically, economically, and socially.  AAPD was founded in 1995 to help unite the diverse community of people with disabilities, including their family, friends and supporters, and to be a national voice for change in implementing the goals of the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA). To learn more, visit the AAPD Web site:  www.aapd.com