Career Development and Transition for Exceptional Individuals 1–12 © Hammill Institute on Disabilities 2016 Reprints and permissions: sagepub.com/journalsPermissions.nav DOI: 10.1177/2165143416629366 cdtei.sagepub.com Article The Rehabilitation Act was passed in 1973 to “ . . . empower individuals with disabilities to maximize employment, eco- nomic self-sufficiency, independence and inclusion and integration into society, and to ensure that the federal gov- ernment plays a leadership role in promoting employment of individuals with disabilities” (29 U.S.C. §701). Since 1973, millions of individuals with disabilities have received vocational rehabilitation (VR) services designed to help them achieve and retain employment. Other legislative mandates have also addressed employment-related issues for individuals with disabilities of all ages (e.g., School-to- Work Opportunities Act of 1994; Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act of 2014). Research has consistently documented poor employment for young adults with autism spectrum disorder (ASD; Hendricks & Wehman, 2009; Taylor & Seltzer, 2011). The National Longitudinal Transition Study–2 (NLTS2) found that at the time of interview, 45.2% of youth with autism had a paid job outside the home compared with 71% of same-age peers in the general population (Sanford et al., 2011). Taylor and Seltzer (2011) found 18% (n = 12) of the 66 individuals with ASD were employed either with or without supports. To date, little research has investigated the relationship between VR services and employment outcomes of clients with ASD by analyzing VR data. Since 1990, when ASD was first federally recognized as a disability category, only three studies analyzed VR data on individuals with ASD (Burgess & Cimera, 2014; Cimera, Burgess, & Wiley, 2013; Schaller & Yang, 2005) and one focused on developmental disabilities (DD), including ASD (Wehman, Chan, Ditchman, & Kang, 2014). Burgess and Cimera (2014) ana- lyzed Rehabilitation Services Administration (RSA) data from 2002 to 2011 and found that while the number of ASD clients increased, their employment outcomes—percent achieving employment closure, wages earned, and hours worked—did not improve over that time. Those with ASD were significantly more likely than the general VR popula- tion to achieve employment closure; however, the latter worked more hours and earned higher wages on average. Cimera et al. (2013) analyzed RSA data from 2006 to 2009 and found young adults with ASD who received transition services at age 14 were significantly more likely to achieve employment than those who received transition services at age 16. Schaller and Yang (2005) analyzed RSA data for 2001 and found clients with ASD had significantly higher closure rates in supported employment (SE) than in com- petitive employment. Clients’ average weekly earnings were significantly higher in competitive employment, but the average cost of VR services were significantly higher 629366 1 University of Oregon, Eugene, USA Corresponding Author: Charlotte Y. Alverson, University of Oregon, 205 Clinical Services Building, 5260 University of Oregon, Eugene, OR 97403, USA. Email: calverso@uoregon.edu Employment Outcomes of Vocational Rehabilitation Clients With Autism Spectrum Disorders Charlotte Y. Alverson, PhD 1 and Scott H. Yamamoto, PhD 1 Abstract Research has consistently documented poor employment outcomes for young adults with autism spectrum disorder (ASD). Vocational rehabilitation (VR) services provide substantial federal and state commitments to individuals with disabilities to obtain and maintain employment. To date, little research has examined the relationship between VR services and employment outcomes of clients with ASD. The purpose of this descriptive study was to better understand employment outcomes of individuals with ASD. Data spanning 10 years from the Rehabilitation Services Administration (RSA) 911 database were analyzed to identify characteristics of VR clients with ASD and the services they received. The percent of individuals who achieved competitive employment averaged 37% across the 10 years. Those who achieved an employment outcome participated in twice as many services as those who did not achieve an employment outcome. Keywords employment, vocational rehabilitation, autism spectrum disorder, adult services by guest on February 17, 2016 cde.sagepub.com Downloaded from