University of Minnesota - UMN Executive Leadership Insights
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Dive In

Springboard into the Profitability, Productivity, and Potential of the Special Needs Workforce

Nadine O. Vogel and Cindy Brown
Paramount Market Publishing, 2009
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Editorial Rating

8

Qualities

  • Innovative
  • Applicable

Recommendation

A recent Northeastern University study reports that by 2018 companies will have more jobs than people to fill them. In fact, some 36 million U.S. employees will retire by 2014, leaving a huge gap in the labor pool. Nadine O. Vogel, a consultant on special-needs workforce issues and the mother of two daughters with special needs, suggests that employers can address this gap by hiring more people with disabilities. That category includes older workers, as well as the disabled and their caregivers, particularly parents of special-needs children. Writing with Cindy Brown, Vogel provides an abundant, well-rounded resource of valuable information to help employers develop and support a special-needs workforce. She starts by explaining the benefits of hiring special-needs employees and works through the entire process, from recruiting and training to accommodating individual needs. getAbstract finds that she does a thorough job of presenting the practical steps companies should take to create an inclusive culture. Her conversational, if not polished, style invites you to, well, dive in and make waves with your special-needs workforce.

Summary

The Benefits of Hiring Special-Needs Workers

Workers with disabilities include those with physical challenges, such as deafness and blindness, and those with cognitive differences, from dyslexia to brain injuries. In all, some 54 million U.S. adults identify themselves as disabled. The umbrella term “special-needs workforce” also encompasses those with age-related conditions and people whose dependents have special needs. Firms that hire from this labor pool achieve diversity and reap many other benefits. For instance, companies that employ special-needs workers find that their retention rates increase. This saves the cost of turnovers, which can be as much as 150% of each lost employee’s yearly salary. When Carolina Fine Snacks hired people with disabilities, its turnover fell from “80% every six months to less than 5%.” Productivity went up from 70% to 95%, absences sank to less than 5% from 20% and tardiness hit zero from 30%.

Your special-needs workforce matters to potential employees and customers. Hiring special-needs employees builds a more stable, loyal staff and makes your company more attractive to the next generation of workers (10% of Americans...

About the Authors

Nadine O. Vogel is the founder and president of Springboard Consulting.

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