Monday, September 29, 2008 

(315)  798-5800

Picente Brings Top-Ranking Federal Disability Employment Expert To Speak at Workforce Board Event Oct. 14^th in Utica
 

Oneida County Executive Anthony J. Picente, Jr. today announced that Neil Romano, the Assistant Secretary for Disability Employment Policy at the United States Department of Labor’s Office of Disability Employment Policy (ODEP), will be the featured speaker at an October 14^th luncheon sponsored by the Workforce Investment Board (WIB) of Herkimer, Madison and Oneida Counties .

Workforce Investment Board Executive Director Alice Savino said the luncheon is part of the WIB’s annual celebration of National Disabilities Employment Awareness Month. The theme for this year’s celebration is, “ America ’s People , America ’s Talent ... America ’s Strength!” The event will be held Tuesday, Oct. 14^th at noon at the Hotel Utica and costs $10 per participant.  Reservations are required, and may be made by contacting Tanya Flihan of the WIB at 798-6462.

            Picente said his friendship with Romano, who took office as Assistant Secretary for Disability Employment Policy in June, aided in bringing the high-level federal official to Oneida County . “Neil Romano has an extremely strong commitment to helping communities, companies and people work together to broaden the opportunities that are available to people with disabilities,” Picente said. “When he took his current position, I became interested in bringing him to Oneida County so that he could help us build on our past efforts and increase the opportunities for workers with disabilities. I believe that the inspiration Neil can provide, as well as his practical experience, will help create new partnerships and energize existing ones.”
   

“We are very honored to have Assistant Secretary Romano in our area to speak to the many agencies and employers who have been part of our efforts to help people with disabilities,” Savino said. “I want to thank County Executive Picente for using his contacts to bring the Assistant Secretary here, so that we can build upon the efforts we have in place and help people with disabilities achieve their dreams.”

             Upon taking office in June, Romano said, “I believe that within a generation, people with disabilities in the workplace will trigger one of the greatest advancements in American society since the industrial revolution. People with disabilities in the workplace are the next great wave of diversity in this country. Their diversity will foster innovations that will produce new products, procedures and systems that will be the exports of tomorrow and will drive our economy and our nation into the future. But working to employ people with disabilities is not just important to America 's economy — it is at the very core of who we are as a people.”

As Assistant Secretary for Disability Employment Policy, Romano advises Secretary of Labor Elaine Chao and works with all DOL agencies to lead a comprehensive and coordinated national policy regarding the employment of people with disabilities. Romano’s extensive professional background includes tenure as director of communications for the White House Office of Drug Abuse Policy.
            Savino noted that the WIB operates a Disability Services Navigator Program at all four local Working Solutions One-Stop Career Centers, and that the WIB has operated Customized Employment and Work Incentive projects that helped bring partners together to increase employment opportunities for people with disabilities.

“We have made a start, but there is always more to be done,” Savino said. “Individuals with disabilities are a tremendously powerful part of our potential workforce. Increasing job opportunities for every individual is critical to economic development. We believe that every resident of our tri-county region should have access to opportunities for full and productive employment. As our economy grows new jobs, we want individuals with untapped talents to have the ability to share in that growth. Through this annual focus on employment for individuals with disabilities, we can attract the employers of the region to understand the tremendous benefits that accompany hiring an individual with a disability.”

            For more information about the benefits of hiring individuals with disabilities, please contact Alice Savino of the Workforce Investment Board at (315) 793-6037.