National Disability Employment Awareness Month
Office: name: Civil Rights Division

Today, the Justice Department announces initiatives to commemorate National Disability Awareness month.

The Civil Rights Division will join the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) in holding town hall meetings in Philadelphia, Chicago, San Francisco and New Orleans, to share information about the proposed ADA Amendments Act regulations and to gather comments on them. These town hall’s will consist of two sessions - one for disability advocates and one for the employer community. These sessions will be completed by November 20th.

Additionally, the Civil Rights Division will release a video produced by its Disability Rights Section that will identify and respond to a number of common myths held by employers about workers with disabilities.

This announcement comes on the occasion of Thomas E. Perez’s return to the Justice Department as Assistant Attorney General of the Civil Rights Division. Here is AAG Perez's statement on the occasion:
“The Civil Rights Division is committed to ensuring that the millions of Americans with disabilities are able to live full, productive lives through access to employment and all aspects of civic life. Unfortunately, myths and falsehoods about disabilities make it far too difficult for many individuals with disabilities to secure a job. The Justice Department today renews its vigilance to fairly and judiciously enforcing federal civil rights laws that prohibit discrimination on the basis of a disability. By protecting the rights of all individuals so that they can contribute to our society, we strengthen our communities and our nation as a whole. I am honored to join President Obama to commemorate National Disability Employment Awareness Month on the occasion of my return to the Justice Department.”
For more information, visit the Department of Labor's National Disability Employment Awareness Month Web site.