NEW YORK -- National Disability Employment Awareness Month is nearly over, but advocates in New York said there is more progress to be made beyond October.

People with disabilities across all age groups are far less likely to be employed than those living without a disability, according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics.

Dr. Sharon McLennon-Wier, executive director of the Center for Independence of the Disabled in New York (CIDNY), pointed out people with disabilities also have the highest poverty levels. She is blind, and said stigma is not the only barrier to break down.

"We first have to get trained, we have to get the educational assistance that we need to get trained for a profession," McLennon-Wier explained. "And then, we have to have a profession that actually has available jobs for people with disabilities."

Last year, a report by RespectAbility.org ranked New York 41st in the U.S. for the largest employment gap between workers with and without disabilities.

CIDNY and other advocacy groups support measures like a state bill to increase labor-force participation by mandating 7% of hires among state agencies, courts and the legislature courts be individuals with disabilities. The bill is in an Assembly committee.

Having unreliable transportation is another barrier to employment. In New York City, only one-quarter of more than 470 MTA train stations are accessible to people with disabilities.

McLennon-Wier noted the inaccessible stations are concentrated in the Bronx, Brooklyn and Queens.

"And the stations that really need the most access are typically in minority neighborhoods," McLennon-Wier emphasized. "And in those minority neighborhoods, you'll find a lot of people of color who have disabilities. And they're the ones that really need the elevators to get and use the train."

New Yorkers with disabilities can use Access-a-Ride to get to other boroughs, but she said the service frequently has delays, and long rides from making multiple stops. While the MTA is slated to make more stations accessible under its current capital plan, CIDNY and other advocates are pushing for Access-a-Ride to implement more direct routes and single rides.

Thirteen students, ranging in age from 14 to 21, have just graduated from the Iowa Developmental Disabilities Council Youth Leadership Academy.

The program's goal is to develop young leaders who learn skills that build their confidence.

A dozen students from Iowa welcomed one from Illinois who is attending school in Iowa. Together, they learned during the weeklong academy how to be more effective advocates for their communities.

That's exactly what 21-year-old Andrew Allen, who has been diagnosed with ADHD, autism and severe separation anxiety, was looking for when he applied.

"I got bullied a lot," said Allen. "When I was in school, I got pushed aside a lot and I thought, 'Enough is enough.' They taught me how to communicate, have conversation with special needs, and help our community."

The annual academy teaches students ways to advocate for themselves, become more civically engaged and to be of service in their communities.

19-year-old University of Iowa student Jackie Corless, who said she has an intellectual learning
disability, also took part in the Youth Leadership Academy.

She said the topics ranged from advocacy to communicating, and lots of useful skills in between.

"Leadership skills," said Corless. "I learned about networking, setting goals - you know, the difference between how to be an advocate and how to better strengthen your advocate goal. How networking really works within the disability world."

The Youth Leadership Academy is a partnership between the Iowa Developmental Disabilities Council, Disability Rights Iowa, ASK Resource Center, the University of Iowa Center for Excellence in Developmental Disabilities, and Access to Independence.



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New York disability-rights advocates are celebrating the 34th anniversary of the passage of the Americans with Disabilities Act.

The 1990 legislation prohibits discrimination against people with physical or mental disabilities. Along with becoming a standard part of employment law, it bolsters accessibility in the public environment.

As seminal as the ADA is, said Dr. Sharon McLennon Wier, executive director of the Center for Independence of the Disabled New York, more work must be done to achieve true accessibility.

"Even though ADA has been around for many, many years," she said, "there is still ignorance regarding what is true accessibility and how new construction at times can still be put up without following the principles of ADA universal access."

Downstate New York's transportation systems lack ADA compliance. Only 31% of New York City's Subway system is accessible to people with disabilities. Funding has been allocated to make the system 95% compliant. The work would have been done by 2055, but since Gov. Kathy Hochul paused congestion pricing, these plans have been put on hold indefinitely.

A New York City Comptroller report finds only 40% of the city's disabled population is employed. Statewide reports show post-pandemic employment for people with disabilities is recovering much slower than the nation.

To change this, said McLennon Wier, classroom instructional materials need to be more accessible, "having more raised line drawings, having more Braille available, having more assistive technology that can read various types of charts and diagrams."

She said she thinks certain industries are siloed, but once they open up to better comprehend universal accessibility, more people with disabilities will join them. One place this can work is in STEM fields, as only 3% of that workforce includes people with disabilities.

July is Disability Pride Month, and today is the 34th anniversary of the signing of the Americans with Disabilities Act.

Federal data show that more than 42 million Americans have a disability affecting their cognition, mobility, hearing, vision or ability to provide self-care or live independently.

"Studies over and over demonstrate that people with disabilities are a very solid
part of our workforce," said Joe Xavier, director of the California Department of Rehabilitation, which helps people with disabilities thrive at work. "They stay in their jobs, they're committed to the work that they do, and so there's much less turnover with people with disabilities, thereby reducing the cost and all the work associated with that."

Advocates have said companies are responsible for providing accommodation in the same way they provide chairs and technology for all their workers. They encourage companies to follow principles of universal design when building new spaces, so access is not an afterthought.

Britanny Comegna, a member of the State Rehabilitation Council, runs a company called Deaf and Disability Mediation Services and said people shouldn't be shy about direct communication with disabled people.

"When you meet a new disabled person," she said, "you have to ask, 'How do you want to identify? What do you need? And what can I learn from you?' Ask those questions because we really do appreciate that you're making that effort to connect with me and understand me as a person."

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention is working to reduce health disparities among adults with disabilities, who have higher rates of smoking, obesity, heart disease and diabetes.


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