Supported Employment: 2007 Walk and Roll Parade

In honor of National Disability Employment Awareness month, the annual Walk and Roll parade was held in Huntington, WV on October 24, 2007.

The parade, sponsored by the Mayor's Committee for Persons with Disabilities, celebrates the independence of people with disabilities and promotes awareness of people with disabilities in the workplace.

Our own Tina Smith, Supported Employment Coordinator at Mountain State Centers for Independent Living, was quoted in the Huntington Herald-Dispatch as saying: "I place people with disabilities into jobs to let them know they can work. You just have to give them a chance."

Awards

Employee of the Year Award

Three people with disabilities who have benefited from the Supported Employment service at Mountain State Centers for Independent Living, received Employee of the Year Award:

Stacie Waggoner employed as a Dining Room Attendant for Sodexho since August 2007.
John Knowlton employed at Wendy's Restaurant, 18th and Adams Avenue in Huntington, as a Dining room Attendant for over a year.
Dick Brown employed by Sodexho as a Dining Room Attendant for more than two years.

Employer of the Year Award

The Employer of the Year award was presented to Sodexho located in Harless Hall at Marshall University and Sonic Drive-in Restaurant.

How does Supported Employment work?

When an employer hires a person with a disability through our Supported Employment program, MTSTCIL provides support for the employee to assist in on-the-job training to a new employee. Experience with supported employment through the years shows that additional benefits to the employer are:

a consistently lower rate of absenteeism in supported employees
a lower rate of on-the-job accidents
a lower rate of turnover
a higher rate of loyalty and job satisfaction
continual follow-up services from the supported employment coordinator

Creating independence through employment

The employee benefits by having an opportunity to work that before may not have been an option. In addition, the employee may no longer have to rely on public assistance or his/her family for income and may, for the first time, be able to think about living independently.