This handbook is intended to assist claims examiners in the identification and development of survivor claims that involve potential common-law marriages (these are informal relationships that can sometimes be legally recognized as valid marriages) filed under the Energy Employees Occupational Illness Compensation Program Act of 2000 (EEOICPA). EEOICPA provides that when a covered employee is deceased at the time benefits are to be paid, payment is to be made to the employee's eligible survivors. Thus, in order for a survivor to be entitled to EEOICPA benefits, he/she must provide evidence...

Transitioning into adulthood can be awkward for nearly every young person. Some youth with disabilities may need extra supports throughout their transition period in order to make informed choices and become self-sufficient adults. For transition-age youth who use personal assistance services (PAS), issues surrounding managing PAS can be intensified by normal developmental concerns such as striking out on your own, refining your self-identity, and navigating the road into adulthood. Having someone assist you in doing anything-whether it's help with homework, learning to drive, getting...

For many years individuals with disabilities have been less likely to be employed than their working age nondisabled peers. The demographic profile for disability cuts across race, gender, age, and geography. Individuals with disabilities are more likely to be unbanked (30%) and to underutilize tax provisions because of a lack of knowledge about the Earned Income Tax Credit, or due to fear of losing important benefits such as health care. They are almost three times as likely to live in poverty as any other group. The Workforce Investment Act, which became effective on July 1, 2000, has...

Federal agencies need talented workers to meet new challenges and complete new missions in the 21st century. Currently, there is an underutilized community of talented individuals who want to work and specifically want to work for the Federal Government. In order to better utilize this untapped pool of talent, on July 26, 2010, President Obama signed Executive Order (EO) 13548 on Increasing Federal Employment of Individuals with Disabilities to mark the 20th anniversary of the signing of the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA). The EO works to establish the Federal Government as a model...

As technology continues to transform the workplace, demand is growing for the development, purchase, maintenance and use of information and communication technology (ICT)1 that is accessible to and usable by all applicants and employees, including individuals with disabilities. Leading companies recognize that fostering an accessible workplace is the smart thing to do, both from a business standpoint and a legal perspective. This paper provides a framework that can be used to develop technical assistance tools to help employers (including government contractors) design, purchase, lease,...

Today, a confluence of events is compelling the health care industry to closely examine its employment and training practices. Health care reform, the aging of the "baby boomer" population and advances in technology have all triggered a need for a paradigm shift relative to workforce planning. Health care occupations dominate the list of jobs predicted to be in most demand in coming years, and there is simply not enough talent in the pipeline. People with disabilities have an important role to play in meeting the demands of a rapidly changing health care landscape. Not only can this...

This book focused on five Federal systems1 that play key and inter-related roles in preparing youth with disabilities as they transition into adulthood - vocational rehabilitation, social security, juvenile justice, behavioral health, and workforce investment. The book was limited to these five systems, rather than examining all of the systems that serve this population, due to financial constraints. This document summarizes each system's role, the extent of its use by the population, and central programs and authorizing legislation. In addition, challenges and recommendations for each system...

Many Americans are the descendants of people who came to the United States from across the globe to realize opportunity and exercise freedom. Steeped in the spirit of independence, the earliest Americans were self-employed, primarily in agriculture. However, as the nation's economic base shifted from farming to manufacturing and then on to the "Information Age," the nature of employment in America did as well, with wage employment replacing self-employment as the primary means of livelihood. Yet, America continues to be associated the world over with the spirit of self-determination that...

This book offers new evidence on the effects of plan provisions on 401(k) participation rates, exploiting microdata from the National Compensation Survey, a large, nationally representative, establishment dataset. In particular, it closely considers the observed effects of the matching contributions made by employers to plan accounts, and makes direct comparisons between these effects and those of other plan provisions thought to affect participation: the availability of participant control over plan investment allocations; the option of drawing loans from plan accounts; and, especially, the...