Commission for Citizens with Disabilities Partnering to Promote Message

The Arlington Heights Commission for Citizens with Disabilities is working to promote the message about employing people with disabilities in Arlington Heights.

“We’ve reached out to the Arlington Heights Chamber of Commerce, and they have been an amazing help,” said Ryan Danzinger, co-chair of the commission for disabilities. “The chamber has helped us to better understand the perspective of businesses, and what questions or concerns they may have.”

Jim Platt, the director of business development at the Arlington Heights Chamber, said the initiative is in part, an outgrowth of a project started at Miner School years ago.

“I took on as a project, the rebuilding of a greenhouse at the school; we were able to get full funding and get volunteers from their teens to 21 years of age to help,” Platt said.

The goal was to grow marketable skills in the participants that could someday lead to future employment.

Once a participant hit the age of 21, Platt said, there were substantially less opportunities for these people to develop skills. 

“We were approached, and wanted the chamber to be a better partner, to break down fears [about employing disabled people] while educating businesses on how to become ADA compliant, in addition to federal grant programs employers could take advantage of.

Danzinger said there are a number of federal tax incentives employers can receive if they hire people with disabilities.

They include a barrier/architectural/transportation grants worth up to $15,000, a work opportunity tax credit program which reimburses as much as $2,400 - and a grant through the Vow to Hire Heroes Act of 2011. That grant touches the population of war veterans who became disabled while serving our country.

“The big incentive to hire people with disabilities, beyond tax credits, is that customers with disabilities and their friends and family make up a $1 trillion market annually; they make a point of buying products and services from businesses that employ people with disabilities,” Danzinger said.

The organization continues to work with the chamber of commerce to grow partnerships, and went before the Arlington Heights Economic Alliance in late June to appeal for their support, which they received.

The more groups and organizations we get involved with, the more resources we will have access to, to help reach out about hiring people with disabilities, Danzinger said.

Currently, businesses in that village that employ people with disabilities include Jewel, Target, Dominick’s and XSport Fitness.

Danzinger hopes that once the economy strengthens and more businesses are hiring, they will consider looking into the group of people with disabilities who are ready and waiting to work.

Nominations are currently being sought until Friday, August 30 for the Business Employment Awareness Award. To download a nomination form, visit the Village of Arlington Heights website.   

The winner will be announced during Disability Employment Awareness month in October.