# Disability Employment Awareness Month Program focuses on inclusion in the workplace

/ Published Nov. 2, 2021
COLUMBUS, Ohio, 
Listening to just the audio of then 12-year-old Christopher Duffley singing the National Anthem at a 2013 Boston Red Sox baseball game, you would think he was Harry Connick Jr., or a young Michael Jackson and not the small red-headed autistic and blind boy who was seen on the screen at the 2021 Defense Federal Community National Disability Employment Awareness Month hybrid program at the Defense Logistics Agency Land and Maritime Operations Center Auditorium on Oct. 20.

Duffley, now 20, hasn’t let his physical and mental limitations define him. He’s now an acclaimed soul singer, who’s spreading his message around the world that anything is possible.

DLA Land and Maritime Land Supplier Operations Deputy Director Don Schulze, who serves as the People With Disabilities Employment Program Executive Champion kicked off the panel discussion remarking on how amazing Duffley’s story is and how it’s one of many examples of people with disabilities doing amazing things if given the chance.

And DLA Land and Maritime is cultivating a culture of doing just that.

“Here at Land and Maritime, more than 20% of our workforce identify themselves as having a disability...that equals 541 associates, a net increase of 13 from last year,” Schulze said.

This year’s theme was "Inclusion: Not Just Employment and Accommodation.” The event was hosted by the Office of Equal Employment Opportunity and Diversity’s People With Disabilities Employment Program.

DLA Land Supplier Operations Contract Specialist and panelist Mindy Cook was well supported by many at DLA Land and Maritime in her quest to participate in Goalball in the Paralympic Games in Tokyo this past summer. Her team earned a silver medal and she attributes her success there to DLA.

“It was an absolute honor. Goalball is my passion and to be able to wear the stars and stripes while playing goalball on the world’s biggest stage brought me so much joy and to be able to earn a silver medal-...-and share that with DLA and our country has brought me so much pride,” Cook said.

Wearing her official U.S. Paralympic gear on stage, she noted she was in close contact with her supervisor and chain of command throughout the whole process and she not only met her job requirements but exceeded them.

“This (experience) only reinforced my knowledge that DLA is dedicated to people with disabilities and what’s really cool is DLA has set the groundwork for my story to grow. Because of DLA, Goalball has reached a whole new audience.”

“And I’m able to show others that anything is possible with a little bit of help,” she added.

DLA Land Supplier Operations Purchasing Agent Jeanie McGarvey stressed that it’s important to consider an individual with a disability’s needs ahead of time, acting in a proactive manner and, ensuring true inclusion. 

“Accommodation is they tell you what they need and you provide it because it was asked for. Inclusion is doing it without being asked,” McGarvey said. 

Anticipating an individual’s needs before they need it is key to their individual success in the workplace.

“Thinking ahead of time of what their needs are, anticipating them and not waiting for the ask but being prepared to be there to include them,” she added. 

An example would be providing gluten-free cake for someone at a party instead of an alternate food like fruit.

“Inclusion is making it so there’s hardly any difference,” McGarvey said. 

She advised that going the extra mile to make someone feel included has benefits for all.

“Stepping into someone else’s shoes will enhance their experience...but we better ourselves because we learn about other people’s lives and we gain the perspective we wouldn’t have otherwise,” she added.

DLA has been a leader in inclusion within the Department of Defense. The agency’s commitment to hiring, promoting, and supporting employees with disabilities earned it top honors at the 41st Annual Secretary of Defense Disability Awards Ceremony at the Pentagon Oct. 7.

Director of DLA Land and Maritime’s Office of Equal Employment Opportunity and Diversity Penny Copp said that DLA Land and Maritime makes routine use of Schedule A to hire and retain employees with disabilities and noted that her two fellow panelists were hired in that way. She noted that Schedule A is one of the most successful ways to include those with disabilities in the DLA Land and Maritime workforce.

“Statistics show that most employees who are hired under disability employment programs tend to be some of the most committed employees to the organization. They foster innovation because they’re bringing a different way of thinking about how to get something done and they tend to like to be challenged,” Copp said.

McGarvey remarked how without Schedule A, she wouldn’t have been able to obtain a position at DLA Land and Maritime but since being hired on a year ago, she has excelled at her position as a purchasing agent in Land Supplier Operations.

She added that people with disabilities do things differently but often move the needle further.

“It’s not a less than or something that’s wrong. It’s just that we’re doing things differently,” Cook said.

Copp said providing tailored supports and offering opportunities to those she calls differently abled is a win-win for the organization as well as the individual.

“To be able to extend opportunities to those differently abled has exponential benefits, not just for the organization but for the person,” she said.

She added that differently abled people want an opportunity to serve as much as anyone else.

“To give a person an opportunity to reach their maximum potential. That’s amazing and it’s something we want to extend to as many people as we can,” Copp said.

National Disability Employment Awareness Month has been observed continuously for more than 75 years. The awareness event began in 1945 when Congress declared the first week in October “National Employ the Physically Handicapped Week,” prompted by the return of service members with disabilities from World War II. In 1988, Congress passed a bill to recognize October as National Disability Employment Awareness Month.

DLA Land and Maritime Purchasing Agent Ron Gillespie served as the Master of Ceremony.

A sign-language interpreter was present throughout the event.

**Employment Legislation timeline**

**July 1990 -** President George H.W. Bush signed the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) into law. Its employment provisions prohibit discrimination in job application procedures, hiring, advancement, termination, compensation, job training, and other terms, conditions, and privileges of employment.

**October 1992 -** Amendments to the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 were passed. These amendments emphasized employment as the primary goal of vocational rehabilitation. They mandate presumptive employability, meaning applicants should be presumed to be employable unless proven otherwise.

**1998 -** The Workforce Investment Act of 1998 (WIA) integrated various federal education, training, and employment services for job seekers and employers. The Act had a number of disability-related provisions, among them Section 188, which specifically prohibited discrimination based on disability related to participation in or employment with WIA-funded activities and services. WIA also expanded Section 508 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 to ensure that federal departments and agencies procure, use, and maintain accessible technology.

**August 1998 -** Amendments to the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 created requirements for federal agencies to make their electronic and information technology accessible to people with disabilities. Under Section 508 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973, as amended, agencies must provide members of the public, as well as employees with disabilities, access to information comparable to that afforded those without disabilities. In 2017, the U.S. Access Board updated the standards for information and communication technology covered by Section 508, as well as the guidelines for telecommunications equipment under Section 255 of the Communications Act of 1934.

**July 2000-**To commemorate the 10th anniversary of the signing of the Americans with Disabilities Act, President Bill Clinton signed Executive Order 13163, "Increasing the Opportunity for Individuals With Disabilities To Be Employed in the Federal Government," directing agencies and departments to increase recruitment of people with disabilities and strengthen efforts to provide reasonable accommodations. A second directive signed the same day, Executive Order 13164, required departments and agencies to develop written procedures for processing reasonable accommodation requests.

**2001-**Following a 1999 recommendation from the Presidential Task Force on Employment of Adults with Disabilities, Congress established the Office of Disability Employment Policy (ODEP), a sub-cabinet level agency within the U.S. Department of Labor. This landmark occasion created, for the first time ever, a permanent entity to focus on disability within the context of federal labor policy.

**July 2010 -** On the 20th anniversary of the signing of the Americans with Disabilities Act, President Barack Obama signed Executive Order 13548, “Increasing Federal Employment of Individuals with Disabilities,” directing federal departments and agencies to increase the recruitment, hiring, and retention of people with disabilities.

**September 2010 -** The U.S. Department of Justice published revised regulations for Titles II and III of the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA). These regulations adopted enforceable accessibility standards called the 2010 ADA Standards for Accessible Design, which set minimum requirements (“both scoping and technical”) for newly designed and constructed or altered state and local government facilities, public accommodations and commercial facilities to be readily accessible to and usable by individuals with disabilities.

**August 2013 -** The U.S. Department of Labor’s Office of Federal Contract Compliance Programs updated regulations implementing Section 503 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973, which prohibits federal contractors and subcontractors from discriminating in employment against people with disabilities and requires them to take proactive steps to recruit, hire, promote, and retain people with disabilities. The updates strengthened the affirmative action provisions and conformed the regulations to the Americans with Disabilities Act Amendments Act.

**July 2014 -** The 2014 Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act (WIOA), which was the first update to the nation’s workforce development system since 1998, reauthorized and amended crucial programs to help job seekers access the services they need to succeed in employment and match employers with skilled workers. Section 188 of WIOA prohibits discrimination in the provision of services under the law as state vocational rehabilitation agencies, American Job Centers, and other service providers must ensure individuals with disabilities have equal opportunity to participate in services and receive appropriate accommodations. As added by WIOA, Section 511 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 ensures that individuals with disabilities have access to information and services that will enable them to achieve competitive integrated employment.

**December 2018 -** The 21st Century Integrated Digital Experience Act (IDEA) was passed, requiring federal agencies to modernize their websites and digital services, according to eight specific criteria, including accessibility for people with disabilities. Federal agencies must already meet the accessibility standards of Section 508 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973; however, IDEA emphasizes those requirements and sets a deadline for compliance. It also requires federal chief information officers to coordinate with other executives and ensure adequate funding and resources to execute its requirements.

*Source: Department of Labor Office of Disability Employment Policy*