As National Disability Employment Awareness Month comes to an end, many disability leaders have pointed out how much progress disabled workers have made since the Americans with Disabilities Act passed in 1990. Despite advancements, disabled workers still face barriers to success and employers can do more.

Employment. The current unemployment rate of disabled workers is 7.2%, a record low since the Bureau of Labor Statistics started tracking the figure in 2009 and down from a high of 15% in 2012, according to the Center for American Progress. These record gains in recent years are thanks to assistive technologies and the increased availability of remote work, HR Brew previously reported.

However, even at its lowest rate, the unemployment rate for disabled people is still double the rate for the non-disabled population, and disabled people are twice as likely to work part-time. Disabled workers also report discrimination in the interview process, and job applicants frequently aren’t sure if employers will offer accommodations.

Looking ahead. Despite the various gains made by disabled workers, there’s a lot of room for progress so they are included, equal members of the workforce. Reports show they remain less happy at work, have fewer opportunities for career advancement, and earn less than their non-disabled peers.

Keep reading here.—KP

People people are people people. It’s a weird sentence, but anyone who has spent time in the HR space knows how much it rings true. HR pros are people people; learning specialists are people people; recruiters are people people.

Bringing HR pros back to the people is why product developers at LinkedIn worked to design an AI tool that helps LinkedIn Recruiter customers get back to the people work by aiding in the “tedious, repetitive tasks that end up not necessarily being that thing that leads to the hire,” LinkedIn’s VP of Product, Hari Srinivasan, told HR Brew.

This week, from its Talent Connect event in Phoenix, Arizona, LinkedIn launched its first AI agent: Hiring Assistant. The new AI-powered assistant will take on mundane tasks associated with hiring, so recruiters can spend more time networking with candidates, advising hiring managers, and designing a better hiring process and candidate experience.

The product launch comes as recruiters and TA pros wade through changes and challenges in the hiring landscape, both as a wave of new AI tools flood the market and the labor market continues to fluctuate.

Keep reading here.—AD

Employee loyalty is only getting rarer and rarer these days.

The median tenure for US workers is currently 3.9 years, down from an average of 4.6 years in 2014, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics. But Sara Morales, an SVP and people partner of sales & marketing, country, and employee relations at Cisco, has been at the telecommunications tech company for the majority of her career.

In her current role, Morales oversees a team of 150 people who support multiple HR functions at Cisco. Morales is an HR business partner for the company’s go-to-market organization, which helps sell and market Cisco’s products. She also oversees a team that assists VPs and directors who do not have dedicated HR business partners with talent management projects and provides non-payroll and administrative HR support to sales leaders in other countries. Morales also leads Cisco’s employee relations team.

If you’re thinking, “That’s a lot of hats to wear,” you’re not alone. Morales says she relies on a global team to manage the work, adding that she finds juggling multiple responsibilities fulfilling. She said that drive, and a circle of mentors who’ve encouraged her to take on big projects, helped her grow in her career.

Keep reading here.—PM