Monster.com Assists People with Disabilities in Finding Employment

By Joan Leotta

Monsters are not simply the fluffy creatures that inhabit the world in the back of the closet, as the latest Disney/Pixar movie creation would have us believe. Monster.com is one of the nation's largest web-based employment sites. To support National Disability Employment Awareness Month, Monster.com launched a Virtual Job Fair to promote the employment of persons with disabilities. The seven-week long effort, ending in the third week of November 2001, expands Monster.com's offerings to highlight resources for persons with disabilities. The iFair, as it is known, is a forum helping Monster.com's clients recruit people with disabilities. By reaching out to the business community, Monster.com reminds employers of the talent pool of available employees with disabilities. During the iFair, the site offers a special feature section to help people with disabilities become more successful job applicants. The site offers tips on resume writing, job hunting, interview techniques and more.

How it Began

Monster.com began the Virtual Job Fair (iFair) as the next logical step in its work to assist in the employment of all job seekers, including those with disabilities, as a tool to help enhance the connection of the disabled community to employers and to support National Disability Employment Awareness Month.

To publicize the iFair outreach effort, Dodi Perkins, Monster.com's VP, Business Development says, "We issued a press release on launch date, September 27 and exchanged exposure with some disability-related organizations like the World Congress and Exposition on Disabilities. We created our own network out of state and local vocational rehabilitation agencies. Word-of-mouth has also been large part of our effort."

She notes that participation in the iFair helps employers target people with disabilities but adds, "We always provide resources to employers about accommodating and workplace law for those who want to recruit people with disabilities."

More than a Listing

The iFair is more than a simple listing of jobs geared to people with disabilities. The tips for this group and the background work Monster.com does to establish relationships with employers to make them more aware of people with disabilities in the job market is key. For employers, the relationship gives concrete voice to an interest in helping this group find employment in their firm. Perkins notes, "The iFair is open to all companies that want to recruit people with disabilities. Many of the companies, including some in the iFair already have great records in terms of employing people with disabilities. Chicago-based Bank One is a participating employer in the iFair and is also a lead company in the Business Leadership Network, (BLN), a group that helps companies learn about employment and retention of workers with disabilities." BLN is an employer-led venture of the U.S. Department of Labor, Office of Disability Employment Policy that promotes best practices to enhance employment opportunities for candidates with disabilities.

Other firms that are participating include Catholic Charities, Dole, CBS WorldWide, Honda, IBM, Lift, Inc., Mattel, Spherion, and Tyco. "Tens of thousands of employers use Monster.com on a daily basis. Monster actually has over 80,000 member companies," notes Perkins. So, the existence of the iFair on the Monster.com site has the effect of highlighting employment for people with disabilities, like an ad, for those firms who are not direct participants, whenever those other firms click on Monster.com to check on their own ads, etc.

Response to the iFair

Perkins reports that Monster.com received a great deal of response from job seekers with disabilities since opening the iFair. "Most of it is just to say thanks for having the fair, and some is to ask for advice on how to use the iFair or for information on employers. As of the end of November 13, 2001, Monster.com reports signing up more than 1,000 new members through the iFair site.

Relationships are the Key to Continued Help After the iFair

In addition to its relationship with firms, Monster.com has entered into agreements with agencies like the Resource Partnership and Hire Potential. The firm has also taken the lead role for BLN in its own home state of Massachusetts. The Equal Opportunity Community on Monster.com, a permanent feature on the site, is geared to helping people from diverse backgrounds find rewarding jobs. This includes people with disabilities.

Perkins concurs, "The disability community suffered a high unemployment, even when the economy was in high gear. Any negative effect on their employment rate could be catastrophic." The iFair and the year-round services offered at Monster.com are designed to boost employment.

Although Perkins says it is too early to know if Monster.com will have another iFair, she notes, "We will continue our efforts to help people with disabilities find jobs and create careers."