JAN Releases Updated Accommodation and Compliance Series: Employees with Mental Health Impairments

Posted by JAN Tech on November 30, 2009 under Accommodations, JAN News | 2 Comments to Read

JAN releases an updated version of its publication, Accommodation and Compliance Series: Employees with Mental Health Impairments. View updated statistics, accommodation ideas, situations and solutions, and resources.

Read more at http://www.jan.wvu.edu/media/Psychiatric.html

JAN Publication Update

Posted by JAN Tech on November 18, 2009 under JAN News | Be the First to Comment

JAN releases an updated version of its publication, Accommodation and Compliance Series: Medical Inquiry in Response to an Accommodation Request, in light of recent changes to the definition of disability in the ADA Amendments Act (ADAAA) of 2008. The publication will be updated again when the EEOC releases its final ADAAA regulation.

Read more at http://www.jan.wvu.edu/media/Medical.htm

JAN Releases Technical Series: Tips for Designing Accessible Websites

Posted by JAN Tech on November 12, 2009 under JAN News, Products / Technology | Be the First to Comment

This publication gives a brief overview of ten vital tips to consider when designing a Website, including quick, testing, and design tips for certain aspects of a Website to ensure that applications are accessible.

Read more at http://www.jan.wvu.edu/media/webpages.html

JAN Webcast on Nov 10, 2009 – Veterans Issues

Posted by JAN Tech on November 4, 2009 under Events, Veterans Issues, Webcasts | Be the First to Comment

The Job Accommodation Network (JAN) offers free Webcast on November 10, 2009, on Veterans Issues.

Speakers: Vicky Crawford, Senior EEO Specialist/Wounded Warrior Program, U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services, and Paul Cataldi, USCIS Immigration Services Assistant, U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services, with Anne Hirsh, M.S., JAN Co-Director.

This Webcast training session will inform Federal managers and HR personnel on how to effectively hire returning injured and wounded service members using Federal Veterans Hiring Authority programs. A representative from the U.S. Department of Homeland Security will talk about using the Veterans Hiring Authority to hire returning service members and veterans with disabilities. Participants will hear firsthand from a veteran with a disability who has recently transitioned from the military to a career in the federal government. Participants will also learn how to access programs like the America’s Heroes at Work and other federal programs that support the successful employment of returning service members with disabilities. Register here: http://www.jan.wvu.edu/webcast/

Common Measures of Central Tendency: Mean, Median, Mode and JAN’s Cost of Accommodation

Posted by JAN Tech on October 15, 2009 under Accommodations | Be the First to Comment

From JAN E-news Volume 7, Issue 4, Third Quarter 2009

Recently, JAN’s Workplace Accommodations: Low Cost, High Impact Fact Sheet, which provides new research findings addressing the costs and benefits of job accommodations for people with disabilities, was updated. These data indicated that the “typical” one-time cost of accommodation reported by employers was $600 (JAN, 2009). Because too few employers provided cost data on accommodations that are recurring, the results focused on those with one-time costs. What does this mean?

Let’s start by deciphering the term “typical” cost. All data sets have constructs that best represent the distribution of the data. When we have several elements of a data set, we want to find one measure of central tendency, if possible, that best represents these data. This gives us a clearer picture of what is happening and allows us to make inferences about the data. For some data sets either the mode, mean, or median may be the best choice. For others, all two or three may be reported to provide readers with additional information.

The mode, the most frequently occurring number in a data set, is often used with non-numerical data. Because of this, JAN rarely reports the mode as a measure of the one-time cost of accommodation reported by employers. If using the mode as the typical cost indicator in the most recent update, the typical one-time cost of accommodation, when including those that cost nothing, was $0. When using the mode as the typical cost indicator and excluding those that cost nothing, the typical cost of accommodation was $100. Using the mode as a representative measure of central tendency for these data is probably not a good representation of what employers report as the cost of accommodation.

The mean usually refers to the arithmetic mean, which is the average of a data set. Because the mean is primarily used for symmetrical distributions with no outliers, JAN rarely reports the mean cost of accommodation reported by employers. For example, say one employer reported to JAN that it modified a building to add an elevator and reported this cost of accommodation as $100,000. Reporting an average as the cost of accommodation, when most accommodations cost far less, would not represent the typical cost of accommodation. Because most accommodations are low cost, any high dollar outliers would pull the average cost of accommodation away from the typical cost of accommodation. If using the mean as the typical cost indicator in the most recent update, the typical one-time cost of accommodation, when including those that cost nothing, was $1,183. When using the mean as the typical cost indicator and excluding those that cost nothing, the typical cost of accommodation was $2,900. Although useful in some situations, using the mean as a representative measure of central tendency for these data is probably not the best representation of what employers report as the cost of accommodation.

The median, the middle number in a data set, is used when outliers exist in a data set. Because of outliers reported by a few employers, JAN reports the median one-time cost of accommodation as the typical cost of accommodation. If using the median as the typical cost indicator in the most recent update, the typical one-time cost of accommodation, when including those that cost nothing, was $0. JAN, however, excluded the 56% that cost nothing and reported the median of those accommodations that had a reported cost. This cost of accommodation was $600. Because of a few reported outliers, the median is a good representation of what employers report as the cost of accommodation.

Given that these three measures of central tendency have different meanings, researchers may certainly have reasons to choose one over the other when reporting JAN’s data on the cost of accommodation. Want to debate the best way to report the cost of accommodation? Post to JAN’s Blog and enjoy a community space to discuss the issue. Start blogging!

Job Accommodation Network. (2009). Workplace Accommodations: Low Cost, High Impact. Retrieved October 1, 2009, from http://www.jan.wvu.edu/media/LowCostHighImpact.doc

- Beth Loy, Ph.D., Principal Consultant

JAN E-News Volume 7, Issue 4, Third Quarter 2009

Posted by JAN Tech on under JAN News | Be the First to Comment

  • Train Your Supervisors and Managers on What Constitutes a Request for a Reasonable Accommodation under the Americans With Disabilities Act (ADA)
  • Campaign for Disability Employment Launches What Can YOU Do? Web Site and Outreach Videos
  • October is Breast Cancer Awareness Month
  • Mobility Enhancing Devices, Part 1 of a 3 Part Series
  • Small Business and the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 (ARRA)
  • Common Measures of Central Tendency: Mean, Median, Mode and JAN’s Cost of Accommodation
  • JAN Releases New Resources
  • E-vents
  • JAN Exhibit and Training Schedule

Read more at http://www.jan.wvu.edu/ENews/2009/Enews-V7-I4.htm

Subscription information is available at the bottom of the newsletter.

Resources mentioned in the Oct. 7-8 Job Corps Webcasts

Posted by JAN Tech on October 8, 2009 under Accommodations, Products / Technology, Webcasts | Be the First to Comment

Below are a list of the resources mentioned by JAN in webcasts on October 7 and 8.

Organizing and Decorating Bedrooms

Organization/Time Management

Money Management

Therapy Animals/Pet Partners

Stress Management for Teens

Read the Notice to Confirm ADA Regulations to the Amendments Act of 2008

Posted by JAN Blog Administrator on October 4, 2009 under ADAAA | Be the First to Comment

The Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) has voted to approve a Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (NPRM) to conform its ADA regulations to the Amendments Act of 2008. The NPRM was just published in the Federal Register on September 23, 2009. Relevant documents are available on the JAN Website at: www.jan.wvu.edu/links/adalinks.htm and the EEOC Website at: www.eeoc.gov/ada/amendments_notice.html.

Leading Disability Organizations Launch National Campaign for Disability Employment

Posted by JAN Tech on September 21, 2009 under Campaign for Disability Employment | 3 Comments to Read

During the U.S. Business Leadership Network’s (USBLN) Annual Conference and National Career Fair, several leading disability organizations launched the Campaign for Disability Employment, a new collaborative effort to promote positive employment outcomes for people with disabilities. Announcement of the nationwide campaign – built around the theme “What Can YOU Do?” – came during the conference’s keynote speech by Robert David Hall, actor and disability rights advocate.

To learn more about the campaign and to view the campaign’s “I Can” video public service announcement, please visit www.whatcanyoudocampaign.org.

The Campaign for Disability Employment and Best Buy Announce What Can YOU Do? Video Contest Winner at USBLN Youth Town Hall on Employment

Posted by JAN Tech on under Campaign for Disability Employment, Events, JAN News | Read the First Comment

Best Buy and the Campaign for Disability Employment, a newly-formed collaborative of leading disability organizations, announced the winner of the What Can YOU Do? Video Contest. The national competition, which attracted more than 130 videos promoting the talent and skills that people with disabilities bring to America’s workplaces and economy, was won by Mississippi native Blake Watson.

Mr. Watson’s innovative video, “Meet Sue,” is showcased on the Campaign’s Web site at www.whatcanyoudocampaign.org and was screened publicly for the first time at the U.S. Business Leadership Network’s (USBLN) Annual Conference and Career Fair held in Washington D.C.