Welcome to the AbilityWorks Center:
A Job-Search & Skill Development Resource for Jobseekers with Disabilities

New Haven, CT - April 5, 2010 - Workforce Alliance and the CTWorks Career Center in New Haven cut the ribbon on The AbilityWorks Center, a central resource for both jobseekers with disabilities and employers. The Center features an array of individual computer workstations and resource materials with the latest in assistive technology for people with:

• Blindness or visual impairment
• Deafness or hearing impairment
• Learning disabilities, and more

Tommy Edison, the beloved traffic reporter who has been a star on STAR 99 for 17 years, was on hand to officially launch the opening of the AbilityWorks Center in New Haven. Tommy, who happens to be blind, has made a wonderful career for himself in a field where people might have said it couldn’t be done. They didn’t know Tommy. He greeted more than a hundred individuals who heard his radio pitch for AbilityWorks, including his signature line, “I wish they had a CTWorks to help when I was starting in the job market.

”Last year, the services of CTWorks Career Centers were accessed by nearly 16,000 people seeking jobs. More than 1,000 people received direct services from our Disability Navigator. That doesn’t include the scores of others we have engaged with at transition fairs, trade shows and special events. The new AbilityWorks Center is a natural extension of our outreach to the workplace, aimed at both employees and employers. We want to let employers realize how convenient and inexpensive it is to integrate people with disabilities into your workforce.

Many employers already have employees with disabilities on the payroll, as well as new hires, who often have hidden disabilities.  The AbilityWorks Center can help employers learn to optimize the work place for all employees. People with disabilities represent an important, untapped pool of hard-working, qualified, reliable talent that Connecticut business will benefit from tapping. Laura Micklus and all of our CTWorks staff can help employers in accessing tax credits, and innovative incentives for new hires.

Whether an employer or an employee, the AbilityWorks Center can help you discover the latest breakthroughs in assistive technology that enable people with all kinds of disabilities to function smoothly and independently in your workplace.

In addition, the Center has a good library of magazines, books, DVDs and other video and audio material which highlight success stories from jobseekers and employers. This material will provide valuable assistance to individuals who need to obtain additional skills to become more employable, as well as to employers who can gauge the positive impact employees with disabilities can have on a workplace.

The Center also provides a showcase for new and emerging assistive technologies. Employers and educators who are interested in learning more about the latest in technology – both high and low tech – can call and arrange for a personal demonstration and tour of the facility. Just call Laura Micklus at 203-624-1493 x258.

People to speak with, places to visit

• The AbilityWorks Center, where staff and outside professionals are available to assist you in planning your job path
• We are familiar with all community resources targeted to the disabled
• Expert guidance on state and federal work incentive programs to help you understand your benefits
• Get help in deciding the services and/or training programs that best fit your needs, and where to find the services