Orange County-based nonprofit founded in 1977 successfully matches local employers and motivated employees with developmental disabilities
Throughout the month Project Independence will be engaging in a variety of activities to educate employers and prospective employees on disability employment issues and its commitment to an accessible and equitable work culture. (U.S. Department of Labor)
Nonprofit Project Independence (PI) today announced it is joining with the U.S. Department of Labor’s Office of Disability Employment Policy in recognizing National Disability Employment Awareness Month, an annual awareness campaign that takes place each October.
The purpose of National Disability Employment Awareness Month is to educate about disability employment issues and celebrate the many and varied contributions of America’s workers with disabilities. This year’s theme is “Access to Good Jobs for All.”
“We are proud to be a part of this year’s National Disability Employment Awareness Month,” said PI’s CEO Robert Watson. “We want to spread the important message that we value all perspectives, including those of individuals with disabilities.”
Reflecting this year’s theme, throughout the month PI will be engaging in a variety of activities to educate employers and prospective employees on disability employment issues and its commitment to an accessible and equitable work culture. As a 501(c)3 nonprofit it provides comprehensive services in Orange County to over 750 people with developmental disabilities in their homes, at work, and in the community.
Watson said the PI Supported Employment program creates a successful job match with employers and people with developmental disabilities knowing they can do the jobs they are hired to do. “Our job is to provide whatever they need to be successful, from assistance with the job application process, extra skills training, establishing priorities and creating task schedules, to educating employees at the job site and building natural supports,” he added.
Project Independence provides flexible on-site assistance that varies depending on the needs of the client. Some clients have job coaches who are with them 20% of their work time while others have coaches who check in monthly. Since 1977 it has placed over one thousand people who on average keep their jobs for more than five years.
The history of NDEAM traces back to 1945, when it started as a week and focused only on people with physical disabilities. Later, it expanded to a full month, and its name and scope evolved to acknowledge the importance of increasing the workforce inclusion of people with all nature of disabilities.
“Our communities and economy are strengthened by the inclusion of all people, including people with disabilities,” said Assistant Secretary of Labor for Disability Employment Policy Taryn M. Williams. “Their contributions have historically been vital to our nation’s success and are more important today than ever. We must build an accessible, equitable economy that fully includes the talent and drive of those with disabilities.”
Employers and employees in all industries can learn more about how to participate in National Disability Employment Awareness Month and ways they can promote its messages—during October and throughout the year—by visiting https://www.dol.gov/agencies/o…
Now for more than four decades, PI has been a lifeline for one of the county’s most challenged populations. Eighty-seven cents of every dollar raised by the Costa Mesa-based organization goes directly to support vital programs for people with developmental disabilities.
