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The U.S. Department of Justice Civil Right Division Disability Rights Section has developed the Accessible Information Exchange – Meeting on a Level Playing Field.  It provides a great overview on presenting meetings that are accessible to people with disabilities.  It focuses on three main components – where the meeting is held, how the meeting room furniture is arranged, and how the meeting information is communicated. Even though the focus is people with disabilities, the suggestions will serve a wide range others, including experienced workers, baby boomers and people with temporary disabilities.

You can visit http://www.ada.gov/business/accessiblemtg.htm for more information.

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For more information about the Fair Employment Housing Act, please visit:
http://snipurl.com/u26q3

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If you’d like more detailed information about the enforcement and reasonable accommodation process according to the American’s with Disabilities Act, visit: http://snipurl.com/3ffs5.

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I recently did a training on job retention with my colleague Laura Ware from Corporation for Supportive Housing.  I was amazed to find out that so many people don’t know about the Job Accommodation Network – affectionately known as JAN.  The JAN website is your one-stop shop for reasonable accommodation solutions.  They have information for both individuals and employers.  If you haven’t already, I encourage you to check it out.  I’ve used both their website and their toll free number on a variety of occasions and have found both to be extremely helpful. 

You can visit JAN at: www.jan.wvu.edu or call them toll free at: (800)526-7234 (Voice), (877)781-9403 (TTY), or (304)293-7186 if you’re calling locally or outside the United States. 
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I’ve worked with a large number of One-Stop agencies across the state of California.  As part of my technical assistance and training, we often engage staff in a conversation around the agency’s Reasonable Accommodation Policy.  I’m often surprised at the number of staff that are either unaware of whether they actually have a policy (most do) or what exactly the policy says.  Now, we all know if you haven’t had to use certain information, what often happens is that you hear it once, you store the information away somewhere, and you move on to issues that are more pressing.  If you don’t use it, you lose it.  Right?

As a good rule of thumb, I’d like to suggest the following…and I’m saying this from the perspective of a consultant who has seen what can happen when you don’t do these things…First, locate your policy.  As I mentioned before, most of you will find that you DO have one.  If the policy is more than two years old, review it for accuracy and make sure that the contact information and instructions still make sense.  Next, get your staff together and share and discuss the policy with EVERYONE.  Interestingly, I’ve found that for some reason, the person who answers the phones or sits at the front desk isn’t included in the EVERYONE.  In a Secret Shopper survey we conducted, I can tell you that excluding administrative staff in this discussion led to a significant amount of misinformation going to the public.  These are your gatekeepers!  If anyone needs to be trained on your policies and procedures, it’s the person or persons who interact most with your customers.  Lastly, put a 20 minute placeholder for policy review on your staff meeting agenda every quarter.  With staff turnover and the many other things that fill our days, a review of the information will make sure that everyone is on the same page. 

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