| The Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) became law on July 26, 1990. Highlights of the new law include civil-rights protections for persons with disabilities in the key areas of employment, public accommodations, transportation, and telecommunications.;The McMahan Survey identified 334 working-age persons with disabilities. Of the 190 who were unemployed, 96 responded affirmatively to the screening question about wanting a job. Among these 96 persons, 83 expressed an interest in finding out about MCP job openings. Subsequently, 35 of those 83 persons actually scheduled an appointment to learn about MCP services.;One striking finding of the McMahan Follow-Up Survey is that the demographic differences among employed and unemployed persons with disabilities are not understood. The most interesting finding is that persons who pursued the opportunity for employment were more likely to feel that they were prepared for the job market. One implication is that among persons with disabilities who are not employed, the ADA will help those with greater education and more recent employment experience. The problem of unemployment among the majority of persons with disabilities will continue after the ADA takes effect unless additional measures are taken to target education and job-skills preparedness. (Abstract shortened by UMI.).;This study examines the extent to which survey-based measures of interest in employment indicate the actual follow-through upon a concrete offer of employment assistance. The foundation of the study is the McMahan Survey of almost 3,000 households in Baltimore City and Baltimore County, Maryland. The first phase of the survey identified unemployed persons with disabilities who expressed an interest in having a job. The survey screening question used to identify these persons was identical to that used in the 1986 SDA. We asked persons who provided an affirmative response to the specific screener question about wanting a job whether they would be interested in the services of the Maryland Corporate Partnership (MCP), a nonprofit agency that had hundreds of job openings with local firms. The heart of this work is an examination of the extent to which an affirmative response to the 1986 Harris screener question about interest in working could be translated into actual follow-through on a concrete offer of employment assistance. The jobs available through the MCP were open to any qualified candidate, including persons who might have a disability. These employers agreed to make reasonable accommodations and give preference to qualified candidates with disabilities. |
