Former model Sheri Melander-Smith on how “Disabilities don’t have to end your career”

By Tamar Asedo Sherman
It’s been a rough month. After more than two decades of working as an art director for a major daily newspaper, my husband Jack was nudged into early retirement some four years ahead of plans in keeping with changing times. People are not reading newspapers any more, or at least there […]

By Tamar Asedo Sherman

It isn’t easy for us out there. One in 5 workers with disabilities, or 22%, reported in a nationwide survey that their employers do not provide accommodations to enable them to access facilities at the work place. Even more, 29%, said their employers do not provide accommodations that are needed for them […]

By Tamar Asedo Sherman
Fatigue and lack of transportation are the biggest barriers to employment for many people with disabilities. If that is the case for you, then working at home might seem like the perfect solution. You won’t need to get dressed up; you can go to work in your jammies, no need to […]

By Tamar Asedo Sherman
Anyone who is looking for a job automatically searches the want ads in their local newspaper, but that is the least effective way to find a job. Employers list a job opening in the newspaper only as a last resort. They much prefer to hire someone who has been referred by […]

By Tamar Asedo Sherman
Finding a job isn’t easy. Most of us check the want ads in our local newspaper, searching for something we might be able to do. That is the easiest approach, but it is in fact the least likely way to obtain employment. How could that be? Ever since there have been […]

By Tamar Asedo Sherman
Despite the prohibition of discrimination against qualified people with disabilities in job application procedures, hiring, fi ring, advancement, compensation, and job training under ADA’s Title I, many of us have experienced subtle or overt discrimination. If you have been subject to discrimination in employment because of your disability (or for any […]

By Tamar Adsedo Sherman

Once you’ve got a basic résumé in order (see July 2007 Working World), you might be tempted to send it out, as is, to every conceivable job listing you find in the newspaper or on the Internet. It’s so easy these days just to click that button on careerbuilder.com or monster.com and […]

Compiled by Peggy Hathaway
Keeping the Promise to End Unfair Employment Discrimination
Four Congressional leaders have introduced a bill to restore the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) to its original intent.
The ADA Restoration Act was introduced in the House and the Senate on July 26, which was the seventeenth anniversary of the ADA with […]

By Tamar Asedo Sherman
Low unemployment rates offer more opportunities for people with disabilities to find rewarding jobs. And right now the national unemployment rate is at a historic low of 4.5 percent.
The gap between the percentage of people with disabilities who are employed and the percentage of those without disabilities who are employed […]

By Kelly Rouba

“I love the massage therapy profession and I wanted to bring high quality massage education to a community that did not yet have a massage school,” says Ruth Marion, who founded Health Works Institute after moving to Montana in 2000. “I chose Bozeman because it is a small city with a good university, […]

By Tamar Asedo Sherman
You never get a second chance to make a first impression, the old saying goes. That’s why you have to prepare for a job interview. Before you even open your mouth to say hello, the interviewer will size you up based on your appearance, so look your best.

By Tamar Asedo Sherman
Before you can apply for a job, even an entry level job, you need a résumé. A prospective employer wants to know right away what you can do to further the goals of her company. Keep in mind that you’ve only got about 20 seconds to capture her attention before […]

Who Can Help You Go Back to Work?
Last month in this space, we looked at programs the Social Security Administration (SSA) offers to make it easier for people who receive benefits to return to the labor force without imperiling their benefits. If you missed that article, you can find it here.
This month, we’ll take a […]

By Tamar Asedo Sherman
Waiting in line to make a purchase at a department store this morning, a woman asked if I was shopping alone. “No, I’m with my daughter,” I responded before realizing why she asked the question.
I use a manual wheelchair and had several items piled in my lap. She was surprised there was […]

No Need to Fear: Back to Work Incentives are Here!
Many people with disabilities are scared to go back to work because they fear that they will lose benefits such as Supplemental Security Income (SSI) and Social Security Disability Insurance (SSDI). People wonder if they can work and still receive Medicare and Medicaid. The truth […]

By Tamar Asedo Sherman

When we are injured or impaired, we tend to be so focused on what we can no longer do that we lose sight of what we still can do. We forget all about the skills, talents, and abilities we developed over the years that remain and which could be used in other […]

One thing I’m painfully aware of as editor of this magazine is that spinal cord disorders (SCD) are expensive. As much as I enjoy bringing readers information about new therapies and technologies to make living with SCD more bearable, I am often struck by the steep price tags these products and services carry. I am […]

By Tamar Asedo Sherman
Self-employment is an option worth considering if you want to get back to work but don’t think you can handle the stress of going to and from an office, having to arrange transportation, possibly getting a personal care attendant to help you get ready, and maintaining regular business hours.
If […]

Employment Discrimination: The ADA Needs You!
Many people with disabilities want to work and are able to work, but they find that the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) does not protect them in the workplace. While the ADA was intended to protect people from employment discrimination, the courts have eroded its employment protections. At press […]