Theses and Dissertations Collection

Employment is a significant way that people achieve social interaction, financial stability and an increased sense of self-worth. However, for many individuals with intellectual or developmental disabilities, employment may also mean earning less than minimum wage, interacting only with coworkers that also have disabilities and oftentimes working at job sites separated or secluded from the public.

State and federal guidelines permitting segregated employment for people with disabilities are coming under increasing scrutiny. In January 2012, self-advocates and supporters of people with disabilities formally challenged this form of segregation in an Oregon US District Court. In October of 2015, the State of Oregon agreed to stop these unfair employment practices and help approximately 4,900 individual’s transition from segregated work settings to jobs in competitive settings within local communities.

To help evaluate and determine what services, training and educational experiences were most likely to lead to successful competitive employment outcomes for individuals leaving sheltered work settings; this study followed those individuals impacted by this court decision as they progressed from segregated work through their transition into community employment.

This study found past services that had taken place in true community settings, provided exposure to real employment and working conditions, and provided the individual with a means of securing transportation within their communities had the highest direct impact on successful transitions. Equally, it was found services that took place in artificially controlled, group or predominantly social settings tended to increase the difficulties that an individual faced when trying to gain employment in the real world.