Essential Skills
to Getting a Job
What Young People with Disabilities Need to Know
Soft Skills:
The Competitive Edge
What do employers look for in new
employees? According to the 2006 report
Are They Really Ready to Work? Employers’
Perspectives on the Basic Knowledge and
Applied Skills of New Entrants to the 21st
Century U.S. Workforce, it may not be what
some young job seekers expect. This in-
depth survey of 461 business leaders con-
ducted by the Conference Board, Corporate
Voices for Working Families, Partnership
for 21st Century Skills, and Society for
Human Resource Management reveals that
while the three ”R’s” (reading, writing, and
arithmetic) are still fundamental to every
employee’s ability to do the job, employers
view “soft” skills as even more important
to work readiness. The report also finds
that younger workers frequently lack these
skills, which include:
• Professionalism or work ethic
• Oral and written communication
• Teamwork and collaboration skills
• Critical thinking or problem-solving
skills
In 2007, the U.S. Department of Labor’s
Office of Disability Employment Policy
(ODEP) discussed the importance of such
skills with the Circle of Champions, a
distinguished group of U.S. businesses
that have received the Secretary of Labor’s
New Freedom Initiative Award for innova-
tive and proactive efforts to recruit, hire,
and promote people with disabilities.
As part of this dialogue, the companies
identified the following competencies as
key to the success of young workers in
the 21st Century workplace.
Work Ethic, Communication, & Problem-Solving
O F F I C E O F D I S A B I L I T Y E M P L O Y M E N T P O L I C Y
Networking
Simply put, networking involves talking with
friends, family members, and acquaintances
about your employment goals, interests, and
desires. It also involves reaching out beyond
people you already know in order to expand the
opportunities that may be available to you. When
it comes to finding a job, networking is esse