Feature Issue on Employment and IDD

Employers across the globe are beginning to include talent with disabilities in their recruitment and diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) planning. It’s smart business, accessing an often-overlooked talent pool with a variety of skills, strengths, interests, and a unique perspective that can inform marketing, product development, operations, and an inclusive workplace.

Navigating a world not always accessible or prepared to meet the needs of people with disabilities means that they often develop excellent problem-solving skills, utilize creative alternative measures to meet their goals or complete a task, and tap into unique tools and processes to be successful at school, at home, and in the workplace.

As people with disabilities seek their first job, or look for their next career opportunity, some may depend on support from direct support professionals (DSPs) for support with personal or physical care, for advocacy, transportation, finding a job, and even support on the job. That support is often a critical part of a network of people, tools, and approaches a person with a disability may rely on as they seek and navigate the world of work. The role of the DSP includes serving as a job coach, providing continuous training and support to the job seeker, as well as offering guidance and support to employers seeking to hire the job seeker. For many, being able to count on a stable, consistent and qualified DSP is essential, and increasingly challenging.

In fact, 77% of responding organizations who provide support to people with intellectual and developmental disabilities (IDD) indicated that they turned away referrals due to lack of staffing, while waiting lists continue to grow, according to ANCOR’s 2023 edition of the State of America’s Direct Support Workforce Crisis report.

At the same time, The National Core Indicators (NCI) Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities State of the Workforce Survey Report found an average turnover range from 21.3%-59.1%, with a state average turnover ratio of 40.9% in 2022. As national turnover ratios for DSPs continue to increase, the consistent and quality support people with disabilities count on to be in the community and on the job is at risk.

Without change, the instability of the direct support workforce will continue to contribute to the disproportionate workforce participation rate for people with disabilities, currently 24.2% compared to 68.7% for people without disabilities, according to 2024 data from the Office of Disability Employment Policy.

Source: National Core Indicators

At the University of Minnesota’s Institute on Community Integration, the Direct Support Workforce Solutions group has been working to address DSP workforce instability and the low workforce participation rates by working with organizations and systems who employ DSPs across the country to help them recruit, hire, train, and retain this important workforce. Applying evidence-based solutions and strategies, we take a multi-level approach to workforce issues, working with employers on a local-level and supporting change at a systems or state level. Working first to understand employer or systems-specific workforce challenges through a discovery process, we then support employers in the implementation and evaluation of strategies and best practices based on a proven 10-step process. Strategies may include:

• Career paths and credentialing based on nationally recognized competencies
• Competency-based training beyond initial mandated basics
• Structured behavioral interviewing and Realistic Job Previews
• Competency-based job descriptions, skills checklists and performance evaluation
• Employee engagement and recognition; and
• Consistent collection, analysis and monitoring of key workforce data for data-driven solutions.

We also work to support national and state efforts for change including advocating for:

• Wages and benefits in line with the increasingly complex and comprehensive role and expectations of DSPs;
• Recognition of the critical role of DSPs, including the establishment of a Standard Occupational Classification code; and
• Efforts to increase awareness and recognition of careers as DSPs with the emerging workforce.

As we continue to work with employers and leaders across the country to stabilize the DSP workforce, we rely on other crucial areas of work to support employment being done at ICI and many colleagues across the country. By shifting perceptions and reducing stigma, educating employers and the greater community about the value of people with disabilities, and stabilizing the direct support workforce, the number of people with disabilities in the workforce will grow. This will not only help the people employed, but will also help meet the growing need for workers across occupations, and across the world.

CareerOneStop

Learn about careers and job skills resources with this video library sponsored by the U.S. Department of Labor.