Are jobs job opportunities and basic skills in Affirmative Industries considered competitive employment in an integrated setting for VR Vocational Rehabilitation purposes?

(Opinion of DVR Policy Analyst) No.  The RSA Rehabilitation Services Administration Informal Policy Group has reviewed the "Affirmative Industry" question submitted by the Wisconsin Division of Vocational Rehabilitation. Specifically, the Wisconsin DVR queried, with regard to an "Affirmative Industry," whether an employee mix of 60% disabled and 40% non-disabled would meet the definition of "integrated setting" at 34 CFR Code of Federal Regulations 361.5(b)(33). The Wisconsin DVR expressed their belief that at least 51% of the employees should be non-disabled for an "Affirmative Industry" to meet the definition of an "integrated setting."

The Wisconsin DVR describes an "Affirmative Industry" as a an entity being established by a Community Rehabilitation Facility (CRF) in Wisconsin in which individuals with disabilities and non-disabled individuals will work together in similar positions. "Affirmative Industries" are typically located away from the CRF, in industrial settings. Individuals with disabilities receive the customary wages and benefits paid to non-disabled individuals performing similar work.

An "integrated setting," with respect to an employment outcome, means a setting typically found in the community in which applicants or eligible individuals interact with non-disabled individuals, other than non-disabled individuals who are providing services to those applicants or eligible individuals, to the same extent that non-disabled individuals in comparable positions interact with other persons. 34 CFR 361.5(b)(33)(ii), emphasis added.

The consensus of the Informal Policy Group is that an "Affirmative Industry," as described by the Wisconsin DVR, does not meet the definition of the term "integrated setting." The Group interprets the phrase "a setting typically found in the community" to refer to everyday work settings that exist without consideration of whether employed individuals are disabled. No specific number or percentage of disabled versus non-disabled employees is required, nor expected, for purposes of meeting the definition. Work settings that are purposely set up to employ a given number or percentage of persons with disabilities are not "typically found in the community."