Having an Accommodation Mind-Set! It’s that Simple!

The average unemployment rate in the U.S for those without a disability has been around 3.7% versus 8% for people with a disability.

If you are in HR, remember that you have a magic wand in your hands and can make magic, magic to positively impact the lives of those workers with disabilities. It is not about providing them “special treatment”., it’s about removing the barriers and obstacles preventing them from performing the essential functions of the job so they can enjoy equal employment opportunities.

If you would like to learn more about the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) as well as laws that that do or could impact you as an HR Professional while earning continuing education credits towards your SHRM or HRCI certification please join me at one of my upcoming Certificate Program Trainings on topics such as FMLA, ADA, Pregnancy Descrimination, Employment Laws, Interviewing Skills, OSHA and Sexual Harassment Law and Investigation Techniques.

If you would like to learn more about our SHRM-CP®, SHRM-SCP®, aPHR™, PHR®, SPHR® Exam Prep Courses and Boot Camps please check out our upcoming Exam Prep Trainings and check out our Student Testimonials and Success Stories.

When we talk about disabilities, we immediately think about a physical disability but there are so many mental disabilities that are invisible to the naked eye. Disabilities such as anxiety, depression, schizophrenia, bipolar disorder, obsessive-compulsive disorder, personality disorders and many more. We have an OBLIGATION to stop the discrimination that this vulnerable segment of the population has been facing for so long.

Some of my clients or training participants when they contact me with questions about providing reasonable accommodations, they think it is too confusing. But it is not, it is very simple. We just need to have an “accommodation mindset”. Instead of saying “no we can’t accommodate this or that restriction”, we need to say “YES WE CAN”. Let’s not wait until we have a child, grandchild or a loved one with a disability to realize, acknowledge and understand our OBLIGATION!

If you would like to learn more about the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) as well as laws that that do or could impact you as an HR Professional while earning continuing education credits towards your SHRM or HRCI certification please join me at one of my upcoming Certificate Program Trainings on topics such as FMLA, ADA, Pregnancy Descrimination, Employment Laws, Interviewing Skills, OSHA and Sexual Harassment Law and Investigation Techniques.

If you would like to learn more about our SHRM-CP®, SHRM-SCP®, aPHR™, PHR®, SPHR® Exam Prep Courses and Boot Camps please check out our upcoming Exam Prep Trainings and check out our Student Testimonials and Success Stories.

Elga Lejarza-Penn, aPHR, PHR, SPHR, SHRM-CP, SHRM-SCP

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Human Resources professionals can help laid off workers by providing a prepared list of resources such as unemployment compensation, eviction protection, credit card debt and loans. Compassion and empathy can also go a long way to ease the difficult transition for employees. Employers may face rising tax rates for unemployment compensation during this period as their rates are determined partially by how many employees are claiming unemployment benefits.

In this blog we posed the following question, do you know what the answer is? Read on to test your knowledge and see if you know the correct answer:

Which of the following is not true about unemployment compensation?

a) It was established as part of the Social Security Act of 1935.

b) Employees are eligible for unemployment compensation from their first day of hire.
c) Employees terminated for misconduct are not eligible for unemployment.

d) Fraud is a serious problem for unemployment insurance programs.

Responses