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Employment First

Minnesota's plan for competitive, integrated employment

Minnesota is an Employment First state and is committed to the idea that all people, no matter the disability, have the right to fulfilling, competitive, integrated employment. Competitive, integrated employment is:

  • Full time, part time or self-employment with or without supports
  • In the competitive labor force
  • On the payroll of a competitive business or industry
  • Pays at least minimum wage, but not less than the customary wage and level of benefits paid by the employer for the same or similar work performed by workers without a disability.

The Minnesota Department of Human Services supports an Employment First approach where competitive, integrated employment is the first and expected service option.

During the 2020 first special session, the Minnesota Legislature added Employment First language to state law, writing, “It is the policy of this state that all working-age Minnesotans with disabilities can work, want to work, and can achieve competitive integrated employment, and that each working-age Minnesotan with a disability be offered the opportunity to work and earn a competitive wage before being offered other supports and services.”

For more information about Minnesota’s Employment First efforts, see Minnesota’s Employment First Policy webpage.

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