2 \ H i f i / <*kl This is the President's Commi on 1^ i Employment of the* A n Physically Handicapped 1/ c «c «< «o <« ■ <« ■ <« ■ «< ■ « ; g« ;« «< ■ «< ■ «< ■ «c - «< ■ «< ■ c« - <« • « c ;« «< ■ ;« ■ «< ■ «< • <« ■ «< «c «c « g ccc « < « ■ ■m- ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ^AVLOYAf^. * (tt^ Committee Member's Creed I BELIEVE that the handicapped should be given equal opportunity to choose and prepare for occupations commensurate with their abilities and their potentialities for learning and acquiring skills; that the handicapped should be given equal opportunity with others simi- larly qualified, in selection, appointment, and advancement in employment. I PLEDGE my best efforts in following these principles in my own employ- ment practices; my support of practical programs designed to translate the foregoing princi- ples into action ; my assistance in every feasible way to acquaint the public generally and employers specifically with these principles. The President's Committee on Employment of the Physically Handicapped Washington 25, D.C. Committee Operations ORIGIN Every President of the United States since 1947 has given his personal and active support to the hire-the-handicapped movement. In fact, the Committee itself resulted from a Presidential suggestion. In the fall of 1947, the President suggested to the Secretary of Labor that he call a meeting of interested persons to study ways to promote jobs for the handicapped. Thus was born the President's Committee. A small staff was recruited. At first, modest funds were provided by the Bureau of Employment Security. By 1949, the Committee had obtained its own Congressional authorization. First Chairman was the late Vice Adm. Ross T Mclntire (MC), USN Ret. In 1954, Maj. Gen. Melvin J. Maas, USMCR Ret., was named the second Chairman. MEMBERSHIP Today, the President's Committee is composed of more than 500 public spirited citizen organizations and individuals representing business, civic, handicapped, industry, labor, medical, professional, rehabilitation, religious, veterans', women's, and other groups, as well as Associate Members who are the major Cabinet and Federal Agency officials. Appointments to 'the President's Committee are made by the Chairman in the name of the President. Invitations to accept membership are issued to individuals, organizations, and groups on recommendation of the Executive Committee of the President's Committee. PURPOSE The Committee's purpose is to promote employment of the handicapped "by creating nationwide interest in rehabilitation and employment" of these citizens, and "by obtaining and maintaining cooperation from all public and private groups in the field." Its purpose can be stated briefly: (1) To provide for a continuing program of public information and education for the employment of handicapped citizens, and (2) To cooperate with all groups interested in the employment of the handicapped, including Government agencies, private groups, and individuals. The Committee does not provide rehabilitation or job placement services. These services are assigned by law to appropriate Federal and State govern- ment agencies or provided by many private and voluntary organizations. ORGANIZATION The President's Committee staff is located for housekeeping purposes in the Office of the Secretary of Labor. The Chairman and Vice Chairmen are appointed by the President and serve without compensation. The profes- sional staff is under the direction of the Chairman. The Chairman reports directly to the President of the United States, on the same basis as any Cabinet member. Committee policy is determined by a 43-member Executive Committee. The President's Committee meets annually in Washington, D.C., and holds four regional meetings annually in various parts of the country. An Advisory Council which includes the Secretaries of Commerce, Labor, and Health, Education, and Welfare, the Administrator of Veterans Affairs, and the Chairman of the U.S. Civil Service Commission meets annually at the White House to advise the Committee "with respect to the responsibili- ties of the Committee." Ad Hoc Committees of the Council have rendered distinguished service each year. The many facets of the general program of the President's Committee are each made the special responsibility of a subcommittee — all working toward the common goal of gaining greater acceptance of the handicapped. They are the Awards, Disabled Veterans, Employer, Essay Contest, Labor, Library, Medical, Membership, Mentally Handicapped, Public Information, Public Service, Women's, Workmen's Compensation, and Workshops Committees. Subcommittee Activities Awards: Arranges for public acknowledgment of exceptional contributions by employers, employees, and other persons or groups in the program of rehabilitation and employment of the handicapped. This public recognition is aimed at encouraging broader job opportunities for the handicapped, and at creating wider public understanding and employer acceptance of handi- capped workers. Disabled Veterans: National representatives of veterans' organizations and others with a special interest in employment of disabled veterans study their special employment problems and recommend, develop, and implement special educational and promotional projects for disabled veterans. Employer: Assigned special responsibility of developing greater acceptance of the handicapped by the Nation's employers in business and industry. Membership includes representatives from top-level management in many of the major industrial, trade, and business organizations and associations. Essay Contest: Conducts annual essay contest for 11th and 12th grade students in public and private schools. The contest instills in the minds of young men and women the proper concept of the handicapped and their wide range of employability. As participating students will be employers and community leaders, the program is aimed toward the future. Labor: Representatives of major labor organizations provide a point of organized contact with all labor groups and develop plans and projects which enlist interest and support among labor officials and union membership. Library: The Library Committee places the full support of the Nation's libraries behind the national program of promoting greater job opportunity for the handicapped. It coordinates efforts by libraries in every State in observances of National Employ the Physically Handicapped Week, and stimulates creation of special displays and other activities aimed at assisting students doing research in the annual National Essay Contest. Medical: Conducts educational and informational programs to impress employers and examining physicians with the concept of the whole worker, his physical environment, and the worker's ability to perform occupational tasks in business and industry despite his handicaps. Preemployment physi- cal evaluation is placed in its proper perspective — as a medical device to ac- complish selective placement, not as an instrument for rejecting handicapped applicants. Membership : A subcommittee of the Executive Committee reviews all nom- inations for membership and makes periodic study of potential membership for purpose of strengthening and broadening President's Committee's membership. Mentally Handicapped: Made up of nationally-recognized leaders in the fields of mental restoration and mental retardation, this group is concerned with the promotion of job opportunities for the mentally handicapped. Public Information: An overall group composed of smaller committees on Television and Radio, Magazine, Business Publications, Motion Pictures, and Cartoonists obtains the cooperation of various media for the promo- tional, informational, and educational programs of the President's Committee. Public Service: Composed of representatives from organizations concerned with or interested in personnel administration in tax-supported establish- ments (Federal departments, State administrations, municipal and county governments, judicial and public school systems), its purpose is to promote the adoption of policies and practices which accord equal opportunity to the handicapped. Women's Organizations: Purpose is to amass the vast resources of women's groups and organizations at all levels— national, State and local — to help create a proper "climate" of acceptance of the handicapped in this country, which is a basic first step toward equal employment opportunity. Workmen's Compensation : Purpose is to encourage employers to hire the handicapped by acquainting them with the facts as they relate to work- men's compensation and the employment of handicapped workers. Workshops: To determine the role of the workshop in the overall national program of rehabilitation and employment of the severely handicapped, and to function as a medium of exchange of experiences and ideas on workshops for the handicapped. Cooperating Groups PRIVATE GROUP COOPERATION One major objective of the President's Committee is to get — and keep — the active interest and support of private groups and organizations. Success of the hire-the-handicapped program depends to a great extent on the cooperation of these private nongovernmental organizations having a direct interest in rehabilitation and employment of the handicapped, or hav- ing the facilities for promoting jobs for the handicapped. The facilities of these organizations — their contacts, their publications, their meetings — are used as fully as possible in accomplishing the objectives of the President's Committee. STATE COOPERATION A strong, effective hire-the-handicapped movement must have its roots not only in Washington, D.C., but in every State and every community in the U.S.A. Strong State and local programs are what reach and convince employers. State committees, composed of public-spirited citizens with a real concern for the welfare of their handicapped fellow-citizens, are a vital link in the chain of action leading to greater opportunity for the handicapped. The Governor's Committee, then, becomes the chief point of contact for the President's Committee in implementing many of its national programs and in bringing them to the grassroots of America. Also, the President's Committee encourages and assists the States in organ- izing community committees to carry the movement to every corner of America. AGENCY COOPERATION The program of the President's Committee supplements and supports the activities of cooperating rehabilitation and job placement agencies which are authorized by law to provide employment counseling, job development, selec- tive placement, and preparatory services designed to fit handicapped persons for suitable employment. The Committee restricts its activities to general promotion of employment opportunities for qualified handicapped job seekers, and utilizes the facilities of cooperating agencies to help achieve this objective. It consults with designated representatives of Federal agencies on all major Committee projects and actions prior to execution. To this end, an Advisory Council advises the Committee on all matters of Committee policy relating to agency-Committee cooperation. Also, the Council helps to expedite the objective of Public Law 565, which provides for developing and recommending methods which will assure maxi- mum utilization of services which the Committee and cooperating State and local organizations are able to render in promoting job opportunities for the handicapped. Programs and Problems PROGRAMS The basic mission of the President's Committee is to encourage a climate in America in which the handicapped will find equal opportunity in their quest for jobs. The informational and educational program of the President's Committee has this as its goal. To serve as a clearing house of ideas, information, and developments in the area of jobs for the handicapped, the Committee publishes a monthly magazine, "Performance," containing a variety of types of articles on em- ployment and rehabilitation of the handicapped. "Performance" is mailed to members of Congress, Governors, State Com- mittees, President's Committee members, Federal agency affiliates and field offices, local public employment and vocational rehabilitation offices and other interested persons. The Committee prepares handbooks and guides for the use of State and com- munity committees in planning local-level promotional and educational activities. The Committee also makes wide and effective use of the mass media in tell- ing America the story of the handicapped. It prepares and distributes public service spots and programs to the Nation's radio and TV stations. It issues press stories for newspaper use. It prepares posters of all sizes from several inches to the huge 24-sheeters you see on the highways. It produces pam- phlets and leaflets for various publics; films; recordings. In sum, it uses every means possible to reach employers, labor, management, personnel people, and men and women in all walks of life. The Committee gives national leadership in the observance of National Employ the Physically Handicapped Week and assists the States and com- munities in their observances. The Week was designated by a joint resolu- tion of Congress, approved August 11, 1945, as the first full week in October of each year, and a Presidential Proclamation is accordingly issued each year. SIZE OF THE PROBLEM According to the National Health Survey, more than 40 percent of the men, women, and children in the United States have some chronic illness or im- pairment. This adds up to nearly 70 million people, not counting an esti- mated 1.3 million in institutions. Not all, of course, are seriously handicapped to the point of being limited in what they can do. But many are. Some 13.5 million of them are limited in the amount or kind of activity they are able to perform. An additional 3.5 million are totally unable to carry on their major activity — whether it is working, keeping house, or going to school — because of their disability. About one-third of this latter group are homebound. In all, then, some 17 million Americans have limitations in their activity due to chronic illness or handicap. Taking a closer look at the 17 million, we find that . . . • 88 percent are disabled by disease ; • 5 percent are disabled by work accidents; • 5 percent are disabled by home, traffic, or other accidents ; • 2 percent have congenital conditions. We find, further, that two-thirds of this group, or some 12 million men and women, are of employable age. Many are working, but not all. Many are using their full remaining abilities on the job, but many consider them- selves lucky to find marginal employment beneath their full capabilities. The problem is to create the kind of climate in America that would assure equal opportunity (no more than that; the handicapped don't seek more than that) to every handicapped person. Some other figures adding to our total understanding of the size of the problem : • The Office of Vocational Rehabilitation estimates that there are some 2.15 million disabled persons in need of vocational rehabilitation services or a job opportunity. To this must be added 270,000 more who become disabled each year. • To make an inroad on this problem, OVR estimates we must rehabili- tate 250,000 a year. This compares with 88,000 rehabilitated through the State-Federal program in fiscal year 1960. • The Veterans Employment Service reports that on June 30, 1961 there were approximately 80,000 disabled veterans registered for work at the 1800 public employment offices throughout the United States. This compares with about 66,000 registered for employment a year earlier — a 20-percent increase in the number of unemployed disabled veterans registered for work. The numbers are sizeable. But it isn't the numbers that count. It is the individuals. The ones. They are the persons served by the President's Committee and by the vast army of public-spirited groups and citizens across the land. 8 THE PRESIDENT'S COMMITTEE Maj. Gen. Melvin J. Maas, USMCR Ret., Chairman. Gordon M. Freeman and Victor Riesel, Vice Chairmen. EXECUTIVE COMMITTEE Clarence W. Bird, Director, National Economic Commission, The American Legion. Earl Bunting, Bunting International Geonomics. Ralph Collins, M.D., Consultant in Neurology and Psychiatry, Eastman Kodak Co. John M. Convery, National Association of Manufacturers. Edward L. Cushman, Vice President, American Motors Corp. Clinton M. Fair, Assistant Director, Social Security Department, AFL-CIO. Dr. G. R. Fugal, Manager of Employment Practices, General Electric Co. Walter D. Fuller, President, Walter D. Fuller Co. Earl H. Gammons, Consultant. Emerson Greenaway, Director, Free Library of Philadelphia. Rear Adm. B. W. Hogan (MC) USN Ret., Assistant Medical Director, American Psychiatric Association. Edward C. Holmblad, M.D., Past President, Industrial Medical Association. W. D. Johnson, Vice President, Order of Railway Conductors & Brakemen. Col. Henry E. Kendall, Interstate Conference of Employment Security Agencies. A. L. Kirkpatrick, Manager, Insurance Department, Chamber of Commerce of U.S.A. Robert B. Lea, Former Vice President, Sperry Gyroscope Co. Walter J. Mason, Legislative Representative, AFL-CIO. Arch A. Mercey, Vice President, Merkle Press, Inc. George Nelson, International Association of Machinists. James M. Newmyer, Executive Vice President, Newmyer Associates. Mrs. Stephen J. Nicholas, Administrative Assistant to President, General Federation of Women's Clubs. Kenneth E. Pohlmann, Health, Welfare and Retirement Fund, United Mine Workers of America. Millard W. Rice, Consultant. Dean W. Roberts, M.D., Executive Director, National Society for Crippled Children and Adults. Harold Russell, National Commander, AMVETS of World War II. Aaron N. Solomon, President, Ace Electronics Associates, Inc. Miss Sylvia Spencer, Public Relations Counsel. R. C. Thompson, States Vocational Rehabilitation Council. P. J. Trevethan, Executive Vice President, Goodwill Industries of America, Inc. Mrs. Esther Van Wagoner Tufty, Tufty News Service. Henry Viscardi, Jr., President, Abilities, Inc. E. B. Whitten, Executive Director, National Rehabilitation Association. Frank G. Wood, National Director of Employment Relations, Disabled American Veterans. Louie E. Woodbury, Jr., Past President, National Association of Insurance Agents. STAFF William P. McCahill, Executive Secretary; K. Vernon Banta, Deputy Executive Secre- tary; Bernard Posner, Special Assistant to the Chairman; Vincent P. Hippolitus, Director of Field Operations; Mrs. Sylvia P. Howard, Liaison Officer; Lawrence T. Burdick, Director of Information; Edmond J. Leonard, Assistant Director of Informa- tion; Miss Dorothy Dunnigan, Administrative Officer; Miss Leah Smuckler, Publica- tions Editor; and Larry K. Volin, Information Officer. UNIVERSITY OF FLORIDA 3 1262 08859 0269 A Recommended Policy for Employment of the Handicapped It is the policy of this firm that handicapped workers be assured full consideration in employment, promotion, reassignment, and retention. 1. Physical standards will be fair, reasonable, and adapted to the realistic requirements of jobs. Job reengineering or modification of machines, machine controls and duty as- signments consistent with sound management will be practiced. Such standards will be based on complete, factual information regarding working conditions, hazards, and essential physical requirements of each job, ascertained by investigation and examination of the duties of the jobs as performed. The preemploy- ment physical examination will be used only to insure suitable employment of the handi- capped worker. 2. Physical abilities of handicapped persons being considered for employment or reas- signment will be appraised in relation to the essential physical requirements of jobs. Proper break-in, induction, and orientation of newly hired handicapped employees will be provided in plant procedures; and follow-up at appropriate intervals after placement will be made to insure suitability of the job and satisfactory progress of the handicapped worker. Particular attention will be given to the degree to which handicapped applicants or employees have compensated for their impairments by the development of special skills or methods, by the sharpening of unimpaired senses, or by the use of prosthetic devices. 3. Employees who acquire disabilities as the result of work injuries, off-the-job accidents or disease conditions, will be given full opportunity in reemployment or in transferring to other more suitable jobs. If necessary for reemployment or reassignment, vocational rehabilitation services of public or private agencies including counseling and guidance, medical and surgical serv- ices, retraining or other preparatory services should be recommended to the handicapped employee to prepare him for another more suitable job. 4. Wage rates paid to handicapped workers will be comparable to rates paid to other workers of like seniority in the same or comparable occupational classifications in the plant and in the labor market area. ALL LEVELS of management and supervision will participate in carrying out this policy. Management will: (a) take such action as is necessary to bring about an understanding and application of the policy by all hiring officials and others who participate in the hiring or reassignment of employees; and (b) make periodic review of the manner in which the policy is being observed. U.S. GOVERNMENT PRINTING OFFICE: 1961 O — 604285