The What Can YOU Do? Campaign for Disability Employment

The National Business & Disability council (NBDC) is a partner in the Campaign for Disability Employment (CDE), an initiative that promotes positive employment outcomes for people with disabilities by encouraging employers, and others, to recognize the value and talent that people with disabilities bring to the workplace. The mission of The Campaign for Disability Employment is to promote positive employment outcomes for people with disabilities. Through outreach and public education, the Campaign aims to encourage employers and others to recognize the value and talent that people with disabilities bring to the workplace, as well as the dividend to be realized by fully including people with disabilities at work.

The Campaign began as a collaborative effort between the American Association of People with Disabilities (AAPD), National Business and Disability Council (NBDC), Special Olympics (SO), and U.S. Business Leadership Network (USBLN).  Most recently, ODEP expanded the initiative to include non-disability focused, diverse organizations, in order to advance the national disability employment dialogue.  New partners include:   American Federation of Labor and Congress of Industrial Organizations (AFL-CIO), National Gay & Lesbian Chamber of Commerce (NGLCC), Society for Human Resource Management (SHRM), and U.S. National Council of La Raza (NCLR).

The Campaign is supported by West Virginia University and receives technical assistance from the Job Accommodation Network (JAN) and is funded by the U.S. Department of Labor's Office of Disability Employment (ODEP).  The Campaign mission is to raise awareness and change attitudes through public education efforts reinforcing that people with

disabilities want to work and that their abilities have a positive impact on businesses.

The Campaign offers a range of education and outreach tools, all designed to engage employers, people with disabilities, family and educators, and the general public. These include:

·       Web site:  www.whatcanyoudocampaign.org  web site, which offers users the chance to learn, express their commitment to disability employment efforts and share what they can do

·       Outreach Toolkit http://www.whatcanyoudocampaign.org/blog/index.php/what-can-you-do-outreach-toolkit/ 

·       A Library of video public service announcements (PSAs) made up of creative videos that challenge assumptions about people with disabilities and employment. http://www.whatcanyoudocampaign.org/blog/index.php/video/