Governor Kathy Hochul today launched New York’s first annual Disability Rights and Employment Awareness Month Symposium, featuring both a full day event consisting of a vendor fair, workshops, entertainment and award presentations, and will also offer an online job fair aimed at highlighting the state’s commitment to supporting the rights of people with disabilities in the workplace next Tuesday, October 11. Governor Hochul also signed legislation (S.7578-C/A.8549-C) that will enable the Office for People with Developmental Disabilities to establish a voluntary training and certification program for employers that hire people with disabilities; and another law (A.8915-B/S.7746-B) that creates a new threshold for what percentage of a preferred source contract must be performed by New Yorkers with disabilities.
“For the New York Dream to be a reality, we must continue making our state inclusive, integrated and accessible for all,” Governor Hochul said. “Disability Rights and Employment Awareness Month recognizes how far we’ve come toward this end and a realization that there is more work to be done to expand the rights of people with disabilities and ensure they have the same opportunities in the workforce as all New Yorkers.”