LITTLE ROCK, Ark. (KTHV) - It's an under-utilized job program in Arkansas that is aimed to help people find jobs. The federal government has a database made of skilled workers and each living with a disability.
Olivia Hobbs is hearing impaired and said she plans to look at this program.
"I would like to be a pediatric nurse or a hospital administrator one day," saidOlivia Hobbs.
The federal Workforce Recruitment Program is a job database of nearly 3,000 people with disabilities. Most of the jobs are for the federal government.
"A lot of people with disabilities one, don't know about the program," said Leonard Boyle, executive director of the Arkansas Governor's Commission on People with Disabilities.
In 2011, Federal job recruiters interviewed 15 people in Arkansas. The government hired two of them, less than one percent of the entire database. Boyle said it's a great opportunity, but job seekers need to be vigilant.
"They have to be realistic with their skills and their experience," said Boyle.
The government has accommodations for people who are blind and hard of hearing, as well as those who have dexterity issues and need adjustable keyboards and headsets.
"I would need accommodations for using a stethoscope or anything that deals with ears," said Hobbs.
Job seekers must be a college student or college graduate and then contact one of the coordinators for a face to face interview. Their names then go into the database.
The Workforce Recruitment Program started in 1995. Private employers can fill out a form to search the database.