On April 20, 2010, I blogged about the US Marshal Service’s decision to allow for testing of hearing loss with hearing aids on. (http://hlaa-advocacy.blogspot.com) That was terrific! We are pleased that our work contributed to the US Marshal Service revisiting this issue.
But we cannot stop there. We have heard from consumers that there are other employers who do not understand that if there is a need for a hearing test, that test should be done with hearing aids or the cochlear implant on.
HLAA met with senior attorneys at the EEOC to explore ways to let employers know about best practices for testing for hearing loss. The meeting was positive and the staff clearly had a good handle on the issues we brought before them. However, they made it clear that there was still work to be done to complete the writing of the regulations for the new ADA Amendments Act of 2008. (HLAA submitted comments to the EEOC with NAD and AG Bell in November, 2009). They also noted that it would be some time before the new rules would be available: just this month the Commission has resumed a full complement of Commissioners. The Commission has not met since July 15, 2009, because they did not have a quorum. The good news is that new Commissioners have finally been worn in. According to the EEOC news release of April 7, 2010:
"Chai Feldblum, a former Georgetown University law professor, was sworn in today as a Commissioner of the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC). Jacqueline A. Berrien, who became Chair of the EEOC earlier that morning, administered the oath of office . . .
Feldblum and Berrien join Commissioners Stuart J. Ishimaru and Constance S. Barker. With the addition of nominee Victoria Lipnic, who was also given a recess appointment and will be sworn in later in April, the EEOC returns to its full complement of five Commissioners. General Counsel nominee P. David Lopez, who was given a recess appointment, will be sworn in to his post tomorrow."
http://www.eeoc.gov/eeoc/newsroom/release/4-7-10a.cfm
HLAA congratulates the new Commissioners and looks forward to working with the EEOC staff. We see this as the first of several meetings on issues impacting the ability of people who are hard of hearing or deaf to find, land, and maintain a job in this very competitive economy.
NIOSH Seeks Input on Workplace Hearing Loss
December 11, 2009
The National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health's Science Blog on Workplace Hearing Loss (NIOSH) has a posting dated November 24, 2009, that describes a new surveillance system and seeks input from readers on a series of issues to help inform future prevention efforts. To review the posting and provide input, visit http://www.cdc.gov/niosh/blog/nsb112409_hearingloss.html
October is National Disability Employment Month!
October 16, 2009
President Obama Announces New Initiatives During National Disability Employment
Awareness Month
Washington, D.C. – President Obama announced that his Administration is taking several steps to ensure that there is fair and equal access to employment for all Americans, particularly the 54 million people in this country living with disabilities. The announcement comes during National Disability Employment Awareness Month.
“My Administration is committed to ensuring that all Americans have the chance to fulfill their potential and contribute to our nation,” said President Obama. “Across this country, millions of people with disabilities are working or want to work, and they should have access to the support and services they need to succeed. As the nation’s largest employer, the Federal Government and its contractors can lead the way by implementing effective employment policies and practices that increase opportunities and help workers achieve their full potential. We must also rededicate ourselves to fostering an inclusive work culture that welcomes the skills and talents of all qualified employees. That’s why I’ve asked the responsible agencies to develop new plans and policies to help increase employment across America for people with disabilities.”
The following are some of the steps the Obama Administration will take:
The Office of Personnel Management (OPM) and Department of Labor's Office of Disability Employment Policy (ODEP) will collaborate to sponsor and organize a day long Federal Government-wide job fair for people with disabilities. The Fair will take place in early spring 2010. In addition to the Job Fair, OPM, ODEP, the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) and the Department of Defense's office on Computer and Electronic Accommodations Program (CAP) will provide workshops throughout the day on a variety of topics including the Schedule A hiring waiver and the right to the provision of reasonable accommodations including information on assistive and communications technology
OPM will develop training on Schedule A for federal Human Resources specialists, hiring managers and selective placement coordinators that will be easily accessible and includes on line training.
EEOC and the Department of Justice's Civil Rights Division will hold four Town Hall meetings throughout the nation to share information about the ADA Amendments Act proposed regulations and to gather comments on them. All Town Hall meetings will consist of two sessions - one for disability advocates and one for the employer community. These sessions will be completed by November 20th. The four locations are Philadelphia, Chicago, San Francisco, and New Orleans.
The Department of Justice will release a video that will identify and respond to a number of common myths held by employers about workers with disabilities.
OPM will create and lead a task force comprised of representatives from key Federal Departments and Agencies that have developed and implemented model practices for recruiting, retaining and advancing employees with disabilities. The task force will report on the innovative practices agencies use to encourage the employment of individuals with disabilities. The report will identify and promote successful practices for conducting outreach, recruiting, hiring qualified candidates, successful accommodations, and providing opportunities for career advancement at all levels.
U.S. Department of Labor steps up efforts to serve workers with disabilities
WASHINGTON — The U.S. Department of Labor's Office of Disability Employment Policy (ODEP) joined President Obama today in underscoring the administration's commitment to serving every American worker, including the 54 million people across the nation living with disabilities.
"No artificial barriers should prevent individuals from reaching their potential in the workplace and contributing their skills to our nation," said Secretary of Labor Hilda L. Solis.
As part of its efforts, in early 2010, ODEP will collaborate with other agencies to sponsor and organize a day-long federal government-wide job fair for people with disabilities. At this event, ODEP, the Office of Personnel Management, the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission and the Department of Defense's Computer and Electronic Accommodations Program will provide workshops on the Schedule A hiring authority, the right to the provision of reasonable accommodations, and information on assistive and communications technology.
"At the Department of Labor, our goal is good jobs for everyone, and we mean people with disabilities too," said Assistant Secretary of Labor for Disability Employment Policy Kathy Martinez.
U.S. Labor Department announces agreement on national technical assistance center for employers on people with disabilities
WASHINGTON — The U.S. Department of Labor’s Office of Disability Employment Policy (ODEP) has awarded a cooperative agreement to Cornell University’s Employment and Disability Institute, School of Industrial and Labor Relations in Ithaca, N.Y., to establish a national technical assistance center for employers on employment of people with disabilities. The purpose of the center will be to conduct innovative research, assist ODEP in developing demand-side policy, and share best practices with employers on the recruitment, hiring, retention and advancement of people with disabilities.
“Employers must create workplace cultures in which employees with disabilities are as fully integrated and valued as those without disabilities,” said Assistant Secretary for Labor for Disability Employment Policy Kathy Martinez. “The national technical assistance center will be designed to identify how employers can change expectations and open the path to good jobs for people with disabilities.”
For more information about the Office of Disability Employment Policy, see
http://www.dol.gov/odep
HLAA Joins JFA AN for a Meeting with ODEP Assistant Secretary Martinez
October 2, 2009
Justice for All Action Network (JFA AN) is a cross disability coalition of national organizations by and for people with disabilities. HLAA has joined and now serves on the steering committee and the employment committee.
Last Friday, we joined others from JFA AN to meet with Assistant Secretary of the Office of Disability Employment Policy (ODEP) Kathy Martinez, at the U.S. Department of Labor to discuss a number of issues impacting people with disabilities:
Federal government and contractors as employer;
Navigator Program;
Sub-minimum wage - 14 c; and,
Interagency Commission.
Ms. Martinez and staff were most welcoming and invited us to continue the dialog in quarterly meetings. We expect to engage in conversation on these and other important employment issues in the coming months and years.
HLAA Employment Toolkit
June 15, 2009
Looking for work, landing a job, and keeping your job can be difficult under the best of circumstances, but it can seem to be minefield if you have a hearing loss. There are ways to be successful at the workplace with a hearing loss. But you need the right tools, do your homework, find out what’s right for you and for your employer, and find ways to successfully advocate for yourself.
HLAA has developed an “Employment Toolkit” to provide information about the workplace for people with hearing loss. We intend to bring more resources, more information to this kit as time goes on. If you have a success story you’d like to send in, contact us. We want to share good experiences so that others can be encouraged that they too will be successful in the workplace.
The Hearing Loss Association of America Employment Toolkit would not have happened without the generous support of Hearing Loss Association of America-Manhattan Chapter. We thank them for bringing this to you.
Download the complete Employment Toolkit or select from each section below:
Looking for a job in the new administration?
December 1, 2008
The website http://www.change.gov/page/s/application is designed to provide prospective applicants with information to help them apply for positions in the Obama-Biden Administration. President-Elect Obama will make appointments throughout the federal government. Some positions will require Senate confirmation while others will not. Some appointments will be made during the transition process and others during the early part of the new Administration.
Applicants for any of these non-career positions - whether in the White House or in any Federal Department, Agency or Commission - should use this website, as applying on-line is the fastest and most accurate way to get your information to us. (If you are interested instead in a career, civil service position with the federal government, you should proceed to the Office of Personnel Management website at http://www.usajobs.gov.)
Court Cases
Guard with Hearing Loss Wins His Day in Court
October 3, 2008
Ramundo Ruiz worked as a guard at the federal courthouse in Victoria Texas until 2006, when he was fired after failing a hearing test. He was not, however, allowed to use his hearing aids during that test. Mr. Ruiz and others were allowed to wear glasses or contacts during vision tests, but a 2001 rule barred them from wearing hearing aids during the hearing test. Mr. Ruiz filed a federal suit in 2007.
Although the rule has caused dozens of other guards to be fired, this is the first time a jury has decided the matter, according to John Griffin, who represents Mr. Ruiz If the jury’s verdict is upheld, the case could set a precedent for federal court guards around the country, according to Mr. Griffin.
The Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990 (ADA) was intended to level the playing field for people with disabilities, but a series of recent court rulings have made it difficult to achieve equal opportunity in the workplace. This case, which may well set precedent, together with the new ADA Amendments Act recently signed into law by President Bush, could reverse years of bad court rulings for people with disabilities.
According to the Texas Victoria Advocate, Mr. Ruiz plans to re-apply for his job later this week. “I’m not ready to be put out to pasture,” he told the Advocate, “I loved the people that I worked with.”
Federal Court Case Deals With Employment
Discrimination Based on Hearing Loss
Law Enforcement Officer, A Hearing
Aid User, Fired from His Job May 19, 2008
A federal judge in Columbus, Georgia ruled that it was lawful
to fire a man from his job as a court security guard because
he could not pass a hearing test without the use of hearing
aids. The employee, Wilbur Allmond has appealed the
decision. If it is upheld, the decision could affect
the status of people with hearing loss working in law enforcement
positions across the country.
Wilbur Allmond was a 55 year old law enforcement officer
with 36 years of experience when he applied for a position
as a Court Security Officer at the federal courthouse in
Columbus, Georgia. He was hired subject to passing
a medical examination. This examination included a
hearing test that had to be passed without the use of
hearing aids, although hearing aids could be used on the
job. Mr. Allmond did poorly on the hearing test. Nevertheless,
he was permitted to begin work while he consulted a physician
and an audiologist. The U.S. Marshal’s Service,
responsible for courthouse security, reviewed the results
of his medical reports, determined that he was medically
unqualified for the job, but allowed him to continue to work.
After he had been working successfully for 10 months, Mr.
Allmond was required to take a routine annual fitness examination
that included the same hearing test, without the use
of hearing aids. After the test showed the same
poor results, Mr. Allmond was fired as being medically unqualified. He
sued alleging discrimination in violation of the Americans
with Disabilities Act. He argued that the requirement
to take a hearing test without using hearing aids screened
out qualified people with disabilities.
A major issue is whether hearing loss qualifies as a disability
under the law. Judge Hugh Lawson explained that a determination
of disability is made on a case-by-case basis, and Mr. Allmond
had enough evidence to prove that he was disabled and that
he was otherwise qualified to perform the work of a security
officer.
Judge Lawson, however, concluded that when the health and
safety of the public is involved, discrimination on the basis
of disability may be permitted. He ruled that requiring
security guards to pass hearing tests without using hearing
aids was job-related and necessary for this type of work.
The HLAA joined an amicus (friend of the court)
brief submitted by AARP supporting reversal of the decision. This
brief is pending consideration by the court. It was
pointed out that evidence about current hearing aid technology
was not considered. Furthermore, there is no evidence
that court security officers’ use of hearing aids in
the past has posed any safety risks. Testing people
while using hearing aids would deal with possible risks. The
testing requirement reflects false stereotypes about hearing
aid users in general and specifically those in safety-related
jobs. A decision on the appeal is not expected for
several months.
For more information, contact Lise Hamlin, director of public policy and state development.
