March 2022 Advocacy Update
United Spinal Association, the national organization to which the Greater Boston Chapter belongs, is strong on advocacy. United Spinal has launched a Pathways to Employment job portal to help connect those with SCI/D with employers eager to recruit them. They’re also recruiting testers for inclusive technologies under a new Tech Access Initiative. Look out for more news on the 2022 launch of United Spinal’’s “Strong Wheeled Together” campaign at the Action Center.
Transportation
Earn $ as an MBTA Secret Shopper for Accessibility!
The MBTA Department of Systemwide Accessibility is re-booting its “Internal Access Monitoring Program,” which pairs a tester with an observer to go out onto the fixed route system (bus, subway, rail) to see whether personnel are adhering to MBTA policies related to accessibility accommodations. Also, monitoring teams check to make sure that all accessibility equipment is in working order.
The MBTA is particularly keen on hiring testers who use wheeled mobility devices, and are hiring observers as well. Pay is $15/hour, and monitors generally work 4-10 hours per week. Each assignment takes 3-5 hours, and when you apply you can specify what day and time bands are good for you. Find out more and apply! The MBTA really appreciates the feedback that Greater Boston Chapter members have provided to date, so please consider helping their quest to make the system safer and more useful for those with SCI/D.
What’s (still) up with The RIDE??
If you read last month’s update, you know that several months ago the MBTA ditched its poorly performing new Routematch scheduling software, and reverted to its old Adept system. Ever since, they’ve been clawing their way back toward high on-time pickup averages and low call waiting times. At the February 24 meeting of the Riders’ Transportation Access Group (R-TAG), the new MBTA Chief of Paratransit Services, Michele Stiehler, reported great progress on those metrics, but said they won’t be satisfied until nobody suffers a missed or substantially late pickup. If you have a bad experience, speak up! Using the complaint form helps the MBTA sort out the details and figure out what to do.
Ms. Stiehler also reported that a new contract for The RIDE Flex program is in place, and the MBTA is meeting weekly with Uber and Lyft to review performance. More Wheelchair Accessible Vehicles (WAVs) have been placed into service, and more will be added to better meet demand.
Please consider attending R-TAG virtual meetings to hear updates by the MBTA's Department of Systemwide Accessibility on paratransit as well as fixed-route (bus, subway, rail) services, ask questions, and share YOUR experiences and suggestions. The next general meeting will be April 28 at 2 pm, but you can also participate in topic-specific meetings, including one in May on The RIDE. Click on the “Fill our interest form” on the R-TAG page to receive the R-TAG email newsletter.
Employment
Work for the Feds!
Thanks to advocacy by groups like United Spinal Association, the federal government is redoubling its efforts to meet targets for hiring and retaining workers with disabilities, including “severe” and “targeted” disabilities like full and partial paralysis. Managers are being encouraged to post jobs under the “Schedule A” authority, which essentially fast-tracks disabled applicants, in hopes of filling their numerous vacancies more quickly.
As you can probably guess, federal employment benefits are excellent, buildings are accessible, and now (thanks to COVID-era accommodations) much “desk” work can be done remotely and on flexible schedules. Many agencies have offices in the Boston area. Explore the USAJobs landing page for all job seekers with disabilities, or the federal Workforce Recruitment Program if you’re in college or a recent graduate. And don’t forget about United Spinal’s own Pathways to Employment resource center!
Help Pass Accessible Housing and Workplaces Legislation
Please join the ongoing advocacy to pass legislation to address the need for safe, accessible housing in our communities for older adults and people with disabilities as well as legislation to remove barriers to employment for people with disabilities.
It’s always good to email and call your state senator and representative. You can get the contact information by putting your address into Find My Legislator.
Ask your Senator to cosponsor and support S.1629 ACCESSIBLE MA ACT that deals with housing and workplace accessibility.
Ask your Representative to cosponsor and support H.2420 ADAPTABLE HOUSING MA that focuses on housing. And H.2419 ACCESSIBLE WORKPLACES MA that focuses on making workplaces accessible.
More details about each piece of legislation can be found on these fact sheets:
ACCESSIBLE MA ACT (Senate) fact sheet
ADAPTABLE HOUSING MA (House) fact sheet
ACCESSIBLE WORKPLACES MA (House) fact sheet
From United Spinal National
Congress has taken action, hopefully for the last time this cycle, to extend the previous year’s funding levels across all federal agencies through March 11, 2022 – the initial deadline was February 18 – and Congress is now working on a framework for funding every agency for Fiscal Year 2022 - that gives us more time to push for increased funding for Spinal Cord Injury Model Systems.
Urge your Members of Congress to Support Increased Funding for Spinal Cord Injury Model Systems.
For over 50 years, the Spinal Cord Injury (SCI) Model Systems program, sponsored by the National Institute on Disability, Independent Living, and Rehabilitation Research (NIDILRR) at the Administration of Community Living within the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, has been the backbone of a comprehensive, multidisciplinary system of care, research, and resources for people with SCI.
Please contact your members of Congress and ask them to support this funding request.
United Spinal Appoints Rebecca MacTaggart as Government Relations Coordinator
United Spinal’s Government Relations Dept is pleased to welcome Rebecca MacTaggart as a Part-Time Government Relations Coordinator. Rebecca joined us last month.
Rebecca also serves as the Advocacy Co-chair and Secretary for United Spinal Association Western Pennsylvania Chapter. She also works directly with children who have received an autism diagnosis and their caregivers as a Behavioral Health Technician for Family and Behavioral Resources, as well as mentoring BHTs who are new in the field.
In 2016, her son, Jackson, sustained a C-5 spinal cord injury and is currently a junior at Penn State University.
Rebecca is extremely passionate about helping others advocate for themselves and we are excited to have her join the United Spinal team! Thank you Rebecca, and welcome!
You can reach Rebecca at rmactaggart@unitedspinal.org
Advocacy Live - Tuesday, March 15, 5pm ET
The next Advocacy LIVE event will be Tuesday, March 15, at 5:00PM ET. Don’t miss out on this great opportunity to meet advocates from across the country. It is your time to collaborate with other advocates, share what you have been working on, listen to what others have experienced, and ask questions. Please register for the event at: https://unitedspinal.org/events/advocacy-live-at-5pm/
United Spinal currently has 1,242 registered advocates in 394 Congressional districts across all 50 states and DC. If you have not yet registered as a United Spinal advocate, please do so here.
The goal of United Spinal's District Mobilization program is to register enough advocates in all 435 Congressional districts to ensure that whenever United Spinal needs to reach out to Congress, every single Representative and Senator knows that we have broad support in the communities they represent. Our grassroots advocates are at the center of everything we do, and we are looking for as many people as possible to get engaged as we push for policies that help our community on issues like caregiving, transportation, rehab, telehealth, employment, and more. Please sign up as a registered advocate today!