Key Facts:
Fact 1:
Customized employment is competitive integrated employment for an individual with a significant disability. This means a position is designed specifically to each person with a significant disability based on their strengths, interests, and needs (see also 34 C.F.R § 361.5(c)(11)).Fact 2:
Customized employment is a multi-step process that begins with discovery where information is gathered from the individual with a disability to learn more about their skills, interests, and job preferences.Fact 3:
Customized employment consists of working with the job seeker to identify specific businesses to learn more about their needs. This exploration with the employer is done through the use of informational interviewing.Fact 4:
During the informational interviewing process various job duties or employer/business needs are identified and then negotiated and targeted to meet the needs of a specific job seeker.Fact 5:
A customized position could be developed through job carving, self-employment, or job restructuring of an existing position where duties are negotiated to fit the needs of the individual with a disability.Fact 6:
Customized employment assumes the provision of reasonable accommodations and supports necessary for the individual to perform the functions of the negotiated job.Collaborate and create employment opportunities customized to the individuals that you serve!
Additional Resources:
Recommended Readings:
- Customized Employment: Practical Solutions for Employment Success (pdf)
- Office of Disability Employment Policy: Customized Employment Q and A (pdf)
WINTAC and the Youth Technical Assistance Center, funded by RSA, entered into a partnership with Griffin-Hammis Associates, TransCen, Inc., Marc Gold & Associates, and Virginia Commonwealth University to develop a document to identify the essential elements of customized employment (CE) as a guide for the universal application of these elements across service delivery and training providers: