~~D. COORDINATION, ALIGNMENT AND PROVISION OF SERVICES TO EMPLOYERS:
One-Stop Center staff provide direct outreach services to businesses to develop job opportunities for all customers. One-Stop Center staff collaborate with the Chamber of Commerce in their communities to connect with employers in their communities. Through Employment First and the Division of Vocational Rehabilitation, One-Stop Center staff collaborate and provide resources and training to employers in regards to hiring people with disabilities. The Department of Workforce Services offers Employer Seminars for employers in local communities on a rotating basis. One-Stop Center staff assist in coordinating local job fairs and hiring events for employers. One-Stop Center staff utilize social media and Wyoming at Work to promote open jobs to job seekers. (Page 104) Title 1
G. COORDINATION WITH EMPLOYERS:
1. VR SERVICES:
The Wyoming Employment First Task Force was established by the State Legislature in 2014 (Statute HEA 0053) and finished work in October 2017. During that time the task force developed a Strategic Plan that included FY 2016, 2017 and 2018. The task force developed a dashboard that included disability information and statistics from Department of Workforce Services, Behavioral Health Division, Wyoming Department of Education, Department of Family Services and Mental Health.
Members of the task force chose to continue as a workgroup that meets every two months. The Division of Vocational Rehabilitation Employment First Consultant volunteered to take the lead in this effort.
The Employment First Consultant is responsible for coordinating these meetings, maintaining the Employment First web page with support from DWS, facilitating internship placements at the state level through collaboration with A&I, and supporting the establishment of community employer groups that have hired individuals with disabilities. The purpose of these groups is to educate other employers on the benefits of hiring individuals with disabilities. The Employment First Consultant contacts businesses to learn about hiring needs, provides information about the division and its services and offers support, ascertains the potential for future job placements, and encourages businesses to participate in employer groups being set up around the state. Such groups will provide avenues for businesses to share their successes and challenges in hiring individuals with disabilities.
The goal of the workgroup is to continue to promote competitive employment as the first option for people with significant disabilities, versus options such as sheltered work settings or day habilitation programs. The initiative aims to make disability employment part of the state workforce development strategy, find and support businesses that employ people with disabilities, ensure the State of Wyoming becomes a model employer of people with disabilities, prepare youth with disabilities for careers that utilize their potential, provide employers with skilled workers, and utilize existing limited resources to advance employment opportunities for people with disabilities.
The Division also has VR counselors and regional managers in communities working with local employers to educate them about vocational rehabilitation services, the benefits of hiring individuals with disabilities, and establishing sites for employment opportunities and or trial work experiences. The Division makes an effort to partner with other divisions within The Department of Workforce Services and other community organizations in an effort to connect with employers. Some of these organizations are the Uinta County Business Leadership Network, Wyoming Independent Living, and various Community Rehabilitation Programs. In most circumstances, the division provides information to employers on a one-on-one basis but will present information at professional conferences, chamber events, and other community gatherings where the staff is invited to participate. (Page 236) Title I