Chesapeake Energy Corporation receives commendation from Governor

Oklahoma City – Chesapeake Energy Corporation received a commendation from Governor Mary Fallin on October 10 during the Governor’s Disability Employment Awards at the Governor’s Mansion in Oklahoma City.

As the first Oklahoma corporation to be a host site for Project SEARCH, Chesapeake Energy Corporation has set the example for other private industry businesses through hiring people with disabilities and including them in the full range of benefits and perks associated with working for such a large corporation. Chesapeake has not only committed management and resources to support Project Search they have also hired eight individuals with disabilities. Employees hired by Chesapeake not only receive good paying jobs with benefits, including stock options, paid leave, insurance and retirement, they also have the opportunity to participate in all employee functions including on campus sporting events, fitness center activities’ and free concerts in the evenings.

The Governor’s Disability Employment Awards are co-sponsored by the Office of the Governor, the Developmental Disabilities Services Division of the Oklahoma Department of Human Services (OKDHS), the Department of Rehabilitation Services, and the Oklahoma Association of Persons in Supported Employment.

Rep. Jason Nelson of Oklahoma City offered welcoming remarks at the awards ceremony and announced that October is national Disability Employment  Awareness Month. “It is employees and businesses like these that have put Oklahoma at the forefront in the nation for helping people with disabilities find jobs and become working taxpayers,” said Nelson who serves as chairman of the House Human Services Sub-Committee on Appropriations and Budget.

“In Oklahoma, 60% of individuals with developmental disabilities served by the OKDHS Developmental Disabilities Services Division participate in supported employment services as compared to the national average of 20.1%.”

Rep. Nelson added that it was important to recognize the skills that people with disabilities bring to our workforce. “Their talents and contributions are vital to the strength of our state, our nation's workforce and our future prosperity,” said Nelson.

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Editors Note: Go to http://www.statedata.info/ (Link opens in new window) to see Oklahoma’s ranking as compared to other states in regard to the numbers of persons with developmental disabilities in competitive jobs (supported employment). This website is a project of the Institute for Community Inclusion at UMass Boston, supported in part by the Administration on Developmental Disabilities, U.S. Department of Health and Human Services under cooperative agreement with additional support from the National Institute on Disability and Rehabilitation Research of the U.S. Department of Education.

Amanda Pinard (left) receives a Governor’s Commendation on behalf of Chesapeake Energy Corporation for hiring people with disabilities and enabling them to succeed. The award was presented by Rep. Jason Nelson during the Governor’s Disability Employment Awards of Excellence at the Governor’s Mansion on October 10.