Recruitment and Retention

The goal of the hiring process should be to attract and identify the person who has the best mix of skills and attributes for the job available. Ensuring that all qualified candidates — including people with disabilities — can participate in the process is key to achieving this goal. Similarly, employers and employees both benefit from a work environment that facilitates the retention of all skilled, qualified workers through effective job accommodations for employees with disabilities.

The following resources provide more information about recruitment and retention of people with disabilities:

• Stay at Work/Return to Work — Information to help employers and employees understand the return-to-work process and resources to assist in getting employees back on the job quickly and smoothly.
• Job Accommodation Network (JAN) — ODEP-funded service that provides free, expert and confidential guidance on workplace accommodations and other disability employment matters.
• Employer Assistance and Resource Network on Disability Inclusion (EARN) — ODEP-funded technical assistance center that offers information and resources to help employers recruit, hire, retain and advance people with disabilities; build inclusive workplace cultures; and meet diversity, equity, inclusion and accessibility (DEIA) goals. A sample of resources includes:
  • Planning for Inclusive Hiring
  • Inclusive Branding and Messaging
  • Finding Candidates with Disabilities
  • Working Together: Ensuring People with Disabilities Feel Welcome and Included in the Workplace
• Opening Doors to All Candidates: Tips for Ensuring Access for Applicants with Disabilities — Information on how to ensure an accessible hiring process.
• Focus on Ability: Interviewing Applicants with Disabilities — Information on interviews when an applicant happens to have a disability.
• State Vocational Rehabilitation (VR) Agencies — VR agencies help disabled people obtain and maintain employment and help businesses hire people with disabilities to meet their workforce needs.
• Centers for Independent Living (CILs) — CILs promote independent living and equal access for people of all ages with all types of disabilities. CILs often work with local employers interested in hiring qualified disabled workers.
• Workforce Recruitment Program (WRP) — A program managed by ODEP and the U.S. Department of Defense's Diversity Management Operations Center (DMOC) that connects federal employers nationwide with highly motivated college students and recent graduates with disabilities seeking summer internships or permanent employment.
• Federal Employment of People with Disabilities — Information from the U.S. Office of Personnel Management (OPM) about federal disability hiring programs, reasonable accommodations in the federal workplaces, related laws and executive orders, and other resources.
• The ABCs of Schedule A — Factsheets from the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) that provide information on using the Schedule A hiring authority for a variety of audiences.
• Special Hiring Authorities for Veterans — Information from the U.S. Office of Personnel Management (OPM) about special hiring authorities that federal agencies can use to hire veterans, including disabled veterans.
• Computer/Electronic Accommodations Program (CAP) — Managed by the U.S. Department of Defense (DoD), CAP provides guidance with assistive technology (AT) and reasonable accommodations for both DoD and non-DoD employees with disabilities and wounded service members.