Employment Services

As businesses and organizations seek quality workers, they continue to find that hiring and retaining individuals with disabilities strengthens their company with an array of experience, talent and skill while showing a commitment to diversity in the workplace.

WVU CED Employment Services connects job-seeking clients with disabilities to the businesses that hire them in order to find the perfect match. We work one-on-one with individuals to help them prepare for employment and find the right job. Employment Services also strives to refer great candidates to employers and offer technical assistance on disability-related labor issues.

Services offered include:

• Employment counseling.
• Skill assessments.
• Career exploration/interests.
• Resume writing.
• Interview preparation and mock interviews.
• Assistance with job-seeking and applications.
• Information on disabilities in the workplace and Equal Opportunity.

The WVU CED would like to thank and honor those who have served and sacrificed for the freedoms that we enjoy in this country.

While we value their service in protecting the nation, we must also remember the value of our veterans, with or without disabilities, who continue to strengthen our country and its economy as essential members of the workforce.

Disabled American Veteran facts:

• There are over 21 million veterans living in the United States. Over 6 million have a disability.
• West Virginia has a veteran population of 159,448, with 39,489 reporting a disability. Approximately 99,000 West Virginia veterans served during the Vietnam War and the Gulf War.
• In 2022, data showed that 8.5% of West Virginia’s adult population were veterans, which is significantly higher than the national average of 6.8%.
• The West Virginia counties of Monroe, Ritchie, Wirt, Berkeley, Morgan, Hampshire, Hardy, Mineral, Taylor, Hancock and Lewis have the highest percentage of veterans living in the state, with 8.80 – 9.62% of the adult population identifying as veterans.
• Two federal laws vital to veterans in the workplace are the Uniformed Services Employment and Reemployment Rights Act (USERRA) and the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA).

Statistics provided by the Center for Research on Disability.

Veteran spotlights

This Veterans Day, the WVU CED would like to spotlight two U.S. veterans with service-connected disabilities who continued their service to the nation with accomplished careers in the political world.

Tammy Duckworth

U.S. Senator Tammy Duckworth served as a U.S. Army helicopter pilot during the Iraq War. In 2004, her Black Hawk helicopter was hit by a rocket-propelled grenade, resulting in the loss of both of her legs and injuries to an arm. Despite her injuries, she continued her military service for ten more years in the Illinois Army National Guard, retiring in 2014 with the rank of Lieutenant Colonel.

Senator Duckworth served as Assistant Secretary of the Department of Veterans Affairs and is known for being the first female veteran with disabilities elected to the House of Representatives and the U.S. Senate.

Maxwell Cleland

Vietnam veteran Joseph Maxwell Cleland (1942-2021) was a U.S. Senator, Administrator of Veteran Affairs, and Secretary of the American Battle Monuments Commission. He served as Battalion Signal Offer 1st Calvary Division during the Battle of Khe Sanh. It was there that 25-year-old Cleland received a blast from a grenade that required the amputation of both of his legs and his right forearm.

His valorous actions in combat earned him both the Silver Star and the Bronze Star. Senator Cleland continued his service to his country and various veteran-related associations and organizations until his passing in 2021.

Rehabilitation Act at 50: Advancing Access & Equity for People with Disabilities—Then, Now & Next

*Source: U.S. Department of Labor