[Federal Register Volume 72, Number 42 (Monday, March 5, 2007)]
[Notices]
[Pages 9779-9780]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: E7-3648]


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DEPARTMENT OF LABOR

Office of Disability Employment Policy

[OMB Number 1230-0NEW]


Notice of Proposed Data Collection

SUMMARY: The U.S. Department of Labor, as part of its continuing effort 
to reduce paperwork and respondent burden, conducts a pre-clearance 
consultation process to provide the general public and Federal agencies 
with an opportunity to comment on proposed and/or continuing 
collections of information in accordance with the Paperwork Reduction 
Act of 1995 (PRA95) [44 U.S.C. 3506(c)(2)(A)]. This process helps 
ensure that requested data can be provided in the desired format, 
reporting burdens are minimized, collection instruments are clearly 
understood, and the impact of collection requirements on respondents 
can be properly assessed. Currently the Office of Disability Employment 
Policy (ODEP) is soliciting comments concerning a proposed data 
collection for the following Employer Assistance Referral Network 
(EARN) survey: Survey of Employer Perspectives on the Employment of 
People with Disabilities. A copy of the proposed information collection 
request (ICR) can be obtained by contacting the office listed below in 
the address section of this notice.

DATES: Written comments must be submitted to the office shown in the 
address section below on or before May 4, 2007.

ADDRESSES: Richard Horne, U.S. Department of Labor, Office of 
Disability Employment Policy, 200 Constitution Avenue, NW., Suite S-
1303, Washington, DC 20210. Telephone: (202) 693-7880. This is not a 
toll-free number.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Richard Horne, telephone: (202) 693-
7880, e-mail: [email protected].

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

I. Background

    The Employer Assistance Referral Network (EARN) is a nationwide 
service designed to provide employers with a technical, educational, 
and informational resource to simplify and encourage the hiring of 
qualified workers. Historically, disability programs required employers 
to do much of the work in the finding and hiring of people with 
disabilities. The Office of Disability Employment Policy (ODEP) of the 
Department of Labor has designed EARN to alleviate these barriers and 
do much of the work for the employer.
    EARN is a service from the Office of Disability Employment Policy 
(ODEP) of the Department of Labor. This referral service links 
employers with providers who refer appropriate candidates with 
disabilities. The service is provided by means of a nationwide toll-
free Call Center.
    EARN is a service of the Office of Disability Employment Policy 
which was established pursuant to section 1(a)(1) of the Consolidated 
Appropriations Act, 2001 (Pub. L. 106-554) H.R. 5656, see Title I, 
``Departmental Management'') 29 U.S.C. 551 et seq.; 5 U.S.C. 301.
    This service, and the data collection component is authorized 
pursuant to Pub. L. 106-554 which direct the Office

[[Page 9780]]

of Disability Policy to provide initiatives such as EARN to ``further 
the objective of eliminating employment barriers to the training and 
employment of people with disabilities''.

II. Desired Focus of Comments

    The Department is particularly interested in comments which:
     Evaluate whether the collection of information is 
necessary for the proper performance of the functions of the agency, 
including whether the information will have practical utility;
     Evaluate the accuracy of the agency's estimate of the 
burden of the collection of information, including the validity of the 
methodology and assumptions used;
     Enhance the quality, utility, and clarity of the 
information to be collected; and
     Minimize the burden of the collection of information on 
those who are to respond, including through the use of appropriate 
automated, electronic, mechanical, or other technological collection 
techniques or other forms of information technology, e.g., permitting 
electronic submissions of responses.

III. Current Action

    This proposed collection ICR covers: The Survey of Employer 
Perspectives on the Employment of People With Disabilities. The survey 
will build on the findings of previous employer surveys, with an 
emphasis on current attitudes and practices of employers in 12 industry 
sectors, including some high growth industries as projected by the 
Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS). ODEP is also interested in 
understanding employers' perspectives about disability employment by 
company size and the particular type of the employer (e.g. Executive, 
Human Resources, Equal Employment Opportunity, front line supervisor or 
manager). The survey will be conducted by telephone by a survey firm 
utilizing computer assisted telephone interviewing (CATI) capability. 
The survey will also solicit free-text comments from employers 
regarding the employment of people with disabilities.
    Agency: Office of Disability Employment Policy.
    Titles: Survey of Employer Perspectives in the Employment of People 
With Disabilities.
    OMB Number: [1230-0NEW].
    Frequency: On occasion.
    Type of Response: Reporting.
    Affected Public: Businesses or other for-profit; Not-for-profit 
institutions; Farms; Federal Government; and State, Local, or Tribal 
Government.
    Number of Respondents: 3,600.

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
                                                                     Estimated
                                                                     number of        Average        Estimated
                             Survey                                   annual       response time   burden hours
                                                                     responses        (hours)
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Survey of Employer Perspectives on the Employment of People With           3,600             .25             900
 Disabilities...................................................
                                                                 -----------------------------------------------
    Total.......................................................           3,600  ..............  ..............
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

    Total Burden Cost (capital/startup): $54,270.
    Total Burden Cost (operating/maintaining): $575,254.
    Description: The survey is designed to collect data on employers' 
perspectives on the employment of people with disabilities. ODEP plans 
to use the data to formulate targeted strategies and policies for 
increasing the employment of persons with disabilities. Various 
industry sectors provide opportunities to increase the employment of 
persons with disabilities. ODEP would like to be able to make 
comparisons among the industry sectors, including high growth 
industries. This survey entails conducting a 20-minute telephone survey 
of a representative sample of senior executives representing 12 
industries by company size [small (5-249 employees), medium (250-499 
employees), and large companies (500 or more employees)]. Westat will 
conduct interviews with 3,600 respondents. The survey will utilize a 
stratified random sample design. Larger companies will be over sampled, 
but all companies will be selected with equal probability within each 
stratum. The domains of the population of interest for the survey are 
based on company size classes within the major industry sectors. The 
size classes are small, medium, and large. The size classes will be 
based on the number of employees of the company. A uniform set of size 
class boundaries can be used for all industry sectors, e.g., small (5-
249 employees), medium (250-499 employees), and large companies (500 or 
more employees). However, size distribution of the companies may vary 
considerably across the major industry sectors. Consequently, optimal 
size strata boundaries can differ across the industries substantially. 
There are a total of 36 (three size classes within 12 sectors) domains 
of interest.
    The research team will describe the concerns employers have about 
the employment of persons with disabilities, and how ODEP's policies 
can help employers address those concerns. The survey will also provide 
information on steps employers have taken to recruit and hire persons 
with disabilities, as well as retain and promote those employees. The 
survey will inform disability employment policy and practice by 
comparing perspectives of senior executives in firms of varying size 
and industry sectors, including some of the fastest growing industries 
in the United States. In addition, the results will also inform the 
development of ODEP's programs and policies.

John R. Davey,
Director.
[FR Doc. E7-3648 Filed 3-2-07; 8:45 am]
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