Work Toolkit:
To get insight into your agency's views on employment for people with disabilities, read the statements below and then click the most appropriate response.
Awesome! Your agency's attitude matters. Encouraging competitive integrated employment can set the stage for developing and reaching employment goals. People with disabilities are more likely to succeed in competitive integrated employment if the professionals who support them believe they can work. Use the information in this toolkit to learn more about opening conversations about employment, addressing concerns and barriers, and helping people move along the path to employment.
Employment is a normal part of life. People with disabilities are more likely to succeed in competitive integrated employment if the professionals who support them believe they can work. Review these best practices in employment and create an action plan (PDF) to help change your agency's attitude toward competitive integrated employment.
Encouraging competitive integrated employment can set the stage for developing and reaching employment goals. People with disabilities are more likely to succeed in competitive integrated employment if the professionals who support them believe they can work. Review these best practices in employment. Then, use the information in this toolkit to learn more about creating an encouraging atmosphere, opening conversations about employment, addressing concerns and barriers, and helping people move along the path to employment.
That's fantastic! Every message we give can help make competitive integrated employment a natural part of life for people with disabilities. You can share the It’s your right to work in the community (PDF) document with people and find more ideas in the Supporting people > Not working, has concerns section of this toolkit.
Every message we give can help make competitive integrated employment a natural part of life for people with disabilities. Maybe your agency can include the Employment First messaging — real jobs, real wages: the first and preferred option — on your application forms, or you can have information about how to disclose a disability (PDF) on hand to share when the time is right.
There are many ways to encourage competitive integrated employment. You can share the It’s your right to work in the community (PDF) document with people and find more ideas in the Supporting people > Not working, has concerns section of this toolkit.
Look around your agency to find out. Do you have materials that promote competitive integrated employment?
Every message we give can help make competitive integrated employment a natural part of life for people with disabilities. Maybe your agency includes the Employment First messaging — real jobs, real wages: the first and preferred option — on your application forms, or you have information about how to disclose a disability (PDF) on hand to share when the time is right.
There are many ways to encourage competitive integrated employment. You can share the It’s your right to work in the community (PDF) document with people and find more ideas in the Supporting people > Not working, has concerns section of this toolkit.
Fantastic! Check the services and supports pages of this toolkit for more ideas about common services and supports, plus potential funding sources.
The right supports can help people succeed in employment. While some people may prefer to pursue employment on their own, others can benefit from extra help — whether through their own informal networks or more formal programs. Find common services and supports, plus potential funding sources, on the services and supports pages of this toolkit.
While some people may prefer to pursue employment on their own, others can benefit from extra help — whether through their own informal networks or more formal programs. Find common services and supports, plus potential funding sources, on the services and supports pages of this toolkit.
That's great! Person-centered tools — like the 4 + 1 worksheet (PDF), communication charts (PDF) and Charting the LifeCourse materials — can help people move toward their employment goals. Find even more person-centered planning tools in the hands-on tools area of this toolkit.
It's important to help people identify work goals that match their interests and strengths. Person-centered tools — like the 4 + 1 worksheet (PDF), communication charts (PDF) and Charting the LifeCourse materials — can help you do that with the people you support. Find even more person-centered planning tools in the hands-on tools area of this toolkit.
Person-centered planning tools help people with disabilities move toward their goals and live their best lives. Person-centered planning tools focus on the person's skills and abilities, or what they can do — rather than what they can't do. The hands-on tools section of this toolkit has person-centered planning tools you can use in your agency to help people identify work goals that match a person's skills and interests.
Great! We all fail sometimes. You can help people see failures as learning opportunities rather than reasons to quit. It's equally important to celebrate and share successes. The Hub makes it easy with our share your story feature. Encourage the people you support to share their stories!
We all fail sometimes. By helping people see failures as learning opportunities rather than reasons to quit, we can help them reach their goals. Use the job exploration tools in the hands-on tools area of this toolkit — like the 4+1 worksheet or a learning log — to turn failure into success. It's also helpful to share and learn from other peoples' stories.
We all fail sometimes. By helping people see failures as learning opportunities rather than reasons to quit, we can help them reach their goals. Use the job exploration tools in the hands-on tools area of this toolkit — like the 4+1 worksheet or a learning log — to turn failure into success. It's also helpful to share and learn from other peoples' stories.
Great! A plan will help you prioritize employment and organize your efforts to improve employment outcomes. Incorporate best practices for success in employment (PDF) in your plan, and use data to track your progress.
Developing a plan to increase employment outcomes will help your agency prioritize employment and organize your efforts to improve employment outcomes. Ground your efforts in best practices for success in employment (PDF). Then:
Developing a plan to increase employment outcomes will help your agency prioritize employment and organize your efforts to improve employment outcomes. Ground your efforts in best practices for success in employment (PDF). Then:
That's great! Using data will allow your agency to track progress and organize your efforts to increase employment outcomes. For dashboards, indicators and more, check the data and reports section under professional resources.
Using data can help your agency track progress, identify areas of improvement and communicate your employment success. If you have a goal to improve employment outcomes, for example, you'll need some type of data to know if you're reaching the goal. You can start by documenting the number of people you're supporting in competitive integrated employment and then monitoring the number over time. If you're a lead agency, consider using the Employment First dashboards to review outcomes in your county or tribe. For other sources of data, check the data and reports section under professional resources.
Using data can help your agency track progress, identify areas of improvement and communicate your employment success. If you have a goal to improve employment outcomes, for example, you'll need some type of data to know if you're reaching the goal. You can start by documenting the number of people you're supporting in competitive integrated employment and then monitoring the number over time. If you're a lead agency, consider using the Employment First dashboards to review outcomes in your county or tribe. For other sources of data, check the data and reports section under professional resources.
That's terrific! For additional training opportunities, check out the training section under professional resources.
That's OK — we can help! To ignite a culture of competitive integrated employment for people with disabilities within your organization, use the training opportunities listed under professional resources. You can access these trainings yourself, incorporate them into your new employee training plans or share them with your colleagues.
It's time to find out! Ask colleagues, supervisors or managers about training related to competitive integrated employment for people with disabilities. You can also check the training section under professional resources. You can access these trainings yourself, incorporate them into your new employee training plans or share them with your colleagues.
Your agency is outstanding! Setting aside time in staff meetings to talk about competitive integrated employment outcomes and overcoming barriers to employment is a huge step in helping the people you serve have better employment outcomes.
Now's the time to start! Setting aside time in staff meetings to talk about competitive integrated employment outcomes and overcoming barriers to employment can help the people you serve have better employment outcomes. Even if you're not a supervisor or a manager, you can request time for these discussions in your staff meetings.
Even if you're not a supervisor or a manager, you can request time for these discussions in your staff meetings. Talking about competitive integrated employment outcomes and overcoming barriers to employment can help the people you serve have better employment outcomes.
Great! It takes all of us working together to improve employment outcomes for people with disabilities.
It will take all of us working together to improve employment outcomes for people with disabilities. Connect with local schools, counties and service providers to build a coordinated system and teams of support. Check the directories under professional resources for ideas about how to connect.
It will take all of us working together to improve employment outcomes for people with disabilities. Connect with local schools, counties and service providers to build a coordinated system and teams of support. Check the directories under professional resources for ideas about how to connect.
Now you can move on to strategize: work is a solution.