Customized employment: A review of the literature

BACKGROUND: Customized employment (CE) is a strategy that has shown promise in improving poor employment outcome for individuals with disabilities. The term customized employment was first used in 2001 and originated from efforts by the Department of Labor, Office of Disability Employment Policy to provide access to One-Stop centers and improve employment outcomes for people with disabilities. More recently, the Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act of 2014 (WIOA) contained a number of provisions and modifications to the Rehabilitation Act that more formally recognized CE as service delivery option. Specifically, WIOA modified the definition of supported employment to include CE and provided a formal definition in the statute. Given its recognition at the federal policy level, it is increasingly important to ensure that practitioners and adult service systems are implementing evidence-based practices associated with CE service delivery. OBJECTIVE: The purpose of this review, therefore, is to examine the existing literature to identify the underlying conceptual and empirical basis for CE and to make recommendations for future research. CONCLUSIONS: Findings from this review indicate that CE is contributing to positive integrated employment outcomes for individuals with disabilities. More research is needed to replicate, validate, and establish the evidence base for CE.