The Office of Personnel Management announced in a recent report that hiring of federal workers with disabilities by the government is at a 20 year high.
“People with disabilities are welcome in the federal family,” said OPM Director John Berry. “We need the talents and creativity of all people—including people with disabilities—to help do the work of the American people. We are doing anything possible to remove barriers to their employment, and the good news is that we’re moving in the right direction, and you can see it in the numbers.”
In FY 2011, federal employees with disabilities accounted for 7.41% of the federal workforce and 11% including veterans who are 30% or more disabled. More than 200,000 people with disabilities now work for the government.
Also in FY 2011, people with disabilities represent 7.96% of all new hires and 14.7% of all new hires when including veterans who are 30% or more disabled which is the highest percentage in 20 years.
President Obama signed Executive Order 13458 in July 2010 which set a goal of hiring 100,000 additional people with disabilities by 2015.
OPM says that quota has not yet been met but that efforts are well underway. Berry said, “I’m confident that we’ll not only meet that goal, but that we will also add talented individuals to our team along the way.”
The full report on disability employment is available on the OPM web site.
