[NFBV-Announce] Helping localities improve hiring of people with disabilities

[jackibruce6 at gmail.com]

>From Bonnie O'Day, Legislative Committee

 <mailto:bonnoday at gmail.com> bonnoday at gmail.com

Hi Virginia Federationists,

 

HB710, a law which promotes hiring of people with disabilities by localities
throughout Virginia, was signed into law by Governor Younkin and took effect
on July 1, 2022. Thanks to your advocacy, the bill passed unanimously in
both houses of the Virginia General Assembly. This is an outstanding
accomplishment for our affiliate which will positively impact individuals
across the Commonwealth. 

 

The new law gives people with disabilities applying for jobs in local
government the same hiring preference currently enjoyed by veterans. The new
law has no specifics as to how it should be implemented and no enforcement
mechanism. It is quite likely that local hiring officials will be unaware of
this legislation and that it will be implemented differently in each locale,
so your input will be very important. You may wish to contact your local
human resources department to inform them about the new legislation and ask
how it will be implemented. You might start by asking how the existing
veterans' preference is implemented and suggest modeling the disability
preference similarly. You might suggest including disability status in their
affirmative action plans, reviewing job descriptions to ensure they do not
inadvertently screen out people with disabilities, increasing their outreach
to disability organizations, and ensuring that qualified people with
disabilities are interviewed. 

 

You may want to contact other disability organizations in your area to
inform them about the new law. Many counties and cities have a Disability
Services Board, a Commission on Disability, or other similar body that
advises City or County leadership about policies impacting people with
disabilities.   

 

We encourage our chapters to add this to your agenda for discussion at Fall
meetings and define an organized outreach plan.

 

If you hear of any success stories such as people who have been hired
because of this law, please let us know. If you have questions, please feel
free to contact Bonnie O'Day, Virginia Legislative Chair   at
<mailto:bonnoday at gmail.com> bonnoday at gmail.com. You may also contact Michael
Beattie at  <mailto:michaelbeattie at yaho.com> michaelbeattie at yaho.com. 

 

 

 

 

 

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