State Government Employment
Learn about strategies to help state governments become model employers of people with disabilities.
State governments are often the largest employer in many communities. Ensuring that state governments maintain supportive practices in hiring and advancement has many benefits, including the ability to tap into a largely underutilized labor pool: people with disabilities. Additional benefits include addressing labor shortages, enhancing productivity, and improving efficiency.
Reflecting this, many states have adopted multifaceted workforce development approaches to support the recruitment, hiring, retention, and advancement of people with disabilities. These are often called State as a Model Employer (SAME) policies.
The State Exchange on Employment & Disability (SEED) is an initiative funded by the U.S. Department of Labor’s Office of Disability Employment Policy (ODEP) that assists states and localities in developing effective workforce policies that promote disability employment.