Labor Department Program Places More Than 300 Students, Graduates with Disabilities in Summer Jobs

WASHINGTON—The U.S. Department of Labor's Workforce Recruitment Program has placed more than 300 qualified college students and recent graduates with disabilities in summer positions. The placements were made using a free database of more than 1,900 candidates seeking summer and full-time employment. The database was distributed on a CD-Rom beginning March 16.

President Bush's New Freedom Initiative recognizes the employment potential of Americans with disabilities and the need to increase opportunities for them to join the workforce, Secretary of Labor Elaine L. Chao said. The Workforce Recruitment Program is helping students with disabilities launch successful careers.

The U.S. Department of Labor's Office of Disability Employment Policy (ODEP) and the Department of Defense jointly sponsor the Workforce Recruitment Program. This year the program celebrates its tenth year of helping public and private sector employers meet their staffing needs and diversity goals.

Using the complimentary database, employers can search from a pool of pre-screened students and recent graduates who have skills in a broad range of areas including computer science, business, public relations, science, engineering, law and office administration. Searches generate candidate profiles, academic and demographic data and contact information for students from more than 200 colleges and universities in over 45 states, the District of Columbia and Puerto Rico. In addition to all federal agencies, ODEP has sent the CD-ROM to over 380 interested private sector companies.

The Workforce Recruitment Program offers employers a larger pool of skilled job candidates to choose from, while providing students and graduates with disabilities more opportunities to explore or begin careers, Roy Grizzard, assistant secretary of labor for disability employment policy said.

To request a copy of the CD-ROM, send your name, company name, address and phone number to wrp@dol.gov or call ODEP at (202) 693-7880.

# # #

_________________________________________________________________

Archived News Release — Caution: Information may be out of date.