Op-Ed: A Good Business Strategy

A wonderful oped from Crain's New York Business from a great parent and business partner. We need more folks like Ellen Zimiles.

As the parent of a son on the autism spectrum, I think it's time more employers realized the vital role that our nation's special-needs population can play in the workforce. When I was in a position to make hiring decisions for my own firm, now part of Navigant, I decided to "walk the walk" and set a good example for other employers to follow by offering career opportunities to persons with developmental disabilities.

While this clearly is a deeply personal matter for me, I also strongly believe it is the right decision from a business perspective. It has proved to be a powerful way to build a culture of respect for all employees. I find that employees value a company that is accepting of people's differences and able to understand where employees' skill sets best fit within the business' needs.

Agencies Wary of $15/Hour Minimum

Gov. Andrew Cuomo’s push for a statewide $15 per hour minimum wage faces hurdles in the human services sector. Agencies serving mentally challenged or physically disabled populations are concerned in part about the competition they would face in the labor market. 

“I know my colleagues statewide are going crazy; how do we do this?” said Patrick Dollard, CEO of Center for Discovery in Harris. “The field is concerned because it’s tough to get people in the door now to work with very complex people … A lot of people might rather flip burgers at McDonald’s. The work we demand from people is so much more intense.”

Union Leader Worries for Colleagues Amid FEGS Collapse

Meant to post this yesterday -- more on the closing of FEGS in New York City. 

NEW YORK — Lorraine Guest hung up the phone in her office, staggered by the news. Her bosses had given her hope that her job would be safe, that her colleagues would be safe. But now? Now, it was clear that no one was safe.

The call, on Feb. 9, was from the human resources department at FEGS Health and Human Services, one of the largest social service agencies in New York City. Minutes later, Ms. Guest and other FEGS employees were summoned to an emergency meeting where management laid it all out: New agencies were taking over their programs. There were no guarantees that they would keep their jobs.

Budget Roundup: Fighting Planned Cuts

The message is coming from so many states that we decided to compile a roundup. First piece addresses New Jersey cut and is by Tom Toronto, president of United Way of Bergen County

We are deeply concerned about the position the state of New Jersey has recently taken with respect to housing opportunities for those with disabilities and special needs.

The state is contemplating a rule change that will limit housing choices for people with developmental disabilities to either four-bedroom group homes or set-aside units that are 25 percent or less of a large multifamily development. Bergen County's United Way believes that people with developmental disabilities have the right to choose from a full array of housing, lifestyle and support-service options.

Charlene Smith-Scott, an employee with The Arc Baltimore, responds to Maryland cuts.

Before Gov. Martin O'Malley left office, he cut funding that my colleagues and I were counting on to stay ahead of minimum wage. Now, Gov. Larry Hogan is doing the same thing with the new budget. People in my profession are not state employees, but we are doing work that is the responsibility of the state. Maryland doesn't seem to take that seriously because we are paid as the lowest of the low among our comparable peers in health care, elder care and the like.

NEWARK, Del. — The conflict among caretakers and community advocates for Delawareans with intellectual and development disabilities came out in full force during a public hearing Monday discussing how taxpayer-funded community housing and work placement funded is offered in the state.The hearing, held at Delaware State Police Troop 2 headquarters in Newark, provided a forum for the community to evaluate Delaware's preliminary transition plan to adapt a new federal rule that changes how subsidized home- and community-based services are funded.

DSPs Expected to Feel Md. Budget Cuts

Washington County providers of services for the developmentally disabled would feel the pinch of a 2 percent across-the-board budget reduction to Maryland state agencies that a state board approved this week.

The reduction is part of a plan to cover a $410 million budget shortfall. It would cut in half a 4 percent increase in funds for developmental disability community services  for this fiscal year that the Maryland General Assembly passed last year.