Senate Co-Sponsorship Memoranda

MEMORANDUM

TO: All Senators

FROM: Senator Christine Tartaglione

DATE: ​1/14/2019

SUBJECT: State Civil Service Hiring Preference for People with Disabilities

In the near future, I plan to re-introduce legislation that would amend Title 71 and give people with disabilities additional points on the State Civil Service Exam. This legislation was previously SB 157 in the 2017-18 session.

According to the U.S. Census Bureau, it is estimated that almost one in ten Pennsylvanians have some level of disability. The PA Department of Labor & Industry Center for Workforce Information & Analysis reported that the unemployment rate for disabled Pennsylvanians in October of 2018 was at 8.4% as compared to the total unemployment rate which is 4.3%. Furthermore, only about 36% of working-age people with disabilities were in the labor force.

People with disabilities offer a wide-variety of skills and abilities to employers. This legislation provides the Commonwealth with the opportunity to become a leader in disability hiring and set the example for all employers in Pennsylvania. Please join me in sponsoring this legislation and give all Pennsylvanians the opportunity to be a part of our workforce.