THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Saturday, April 29, 1995 TAG: 9504290330
SECTION: LOCAL PAGE: B3 EDITION: FINAL
SOURCE: BY TONYA WOODS, STAFF WRITER
DATELINE: NORFOLK LENGTH: Medium: 67 lines
When Thomas Byrness was in the eighth grade, his life was changed forever when a car accident left him with brain damage.
Byrness, now 26, said people often seem intimidated by his slow speech and awkward movements. But he doesn't let his disability keep him from holding a job as a janitor in Richmond.
``I'm somewhat limited in my coordination,'' he said Thursday at a conference on employment for people with disabilities. ``I shock most people because they think I can't do a lot of things. But when I'm able to do the work, it really blows their minds.''
The three-day conference, which ended Friday, was titled ``No Detours: Dignity and Self-Esteem Through Supported Employment.'' The program at the Norfolk Waterside Marriott featured 50 sessions on ways to help incorporate the disabled into the work force. It drew nearly 650 people, many of them employers and teachers.
``We're discussing ways of helping those with severe disabilities get real jobs that they're qualified to do,'' said Paul Wehman, director of the Rehabilitation Research and Training Center of Virginia Commonwealth University, which sponsored the conference. ``We try to at least get them a job that pays minimum wage instead of having them work at a day program or a special workshop.''
Keynote speaker Judith E. Heumann, assistant secretary of special education and rehabilitation services for the U.S. Department of Education, stressed the importance of cooperation at the state and local levels to ensure that people with disabilities get an equal shot at jobs.
``The unemployment rate among disabled Americans is 69 percent,'' she said. ``But studies show a little more then 50 percent of those individuals want to work.''
Heumann said work-force problems such as a lack of adequate health insurance lead many disabled people to choose unemployment.
During one session, John Kregel, associate director of the VCU center, said most employers who have hired disabled workers have been satisfied with their performance.
About 120 employers from Hampton Roads, Richmond, Northern Virginia and West Virginia were surveyed about their overall satisfaction with disabled employees and with the specialists who help them adjust to the workplace.
``Of those questioned, most of them thought everyone should get a fair shot,'' Kregel said.
According to the training center's research division, the number of disabled people the center helped enter the work force increased from 9,882 in 1986 to 105,380 in 1993, the most recent year for which figures are available.
Carol Faella, an employment specialist and teacher at the Madison Career Center in Norfolk, said one of the best aspects of an employment support program is the on-the-job training.
Students are trained in different areas, including food service, nursing, carpentry and computers. They are encouraged to continue their education at colleges and trade schools, Faella said.
The students get a tremendous feeling of independence and satisfaction from having regular jobs, she said.
``I'm known as the job lady. Students come in my office every day to see what's available, and sometimes they even bring their own job lists.''
KEYWORDS: DISABILITY EMPLOYMENT by CNB