Here's another great GOP idea: pay disabled worker below minimum wage

[mucifer]

LOUISVILLE, Ky. — WLKY.com
A group of disabled workers gathered outside of the federal building Tuesday to protest what they call "slave labor."
They said thanks to a law that is expected to be re-issued next month, the disabled can legally be paid less than the minimum wage.
Others say it's actually a needed law.
The legislation is called the Workforce Investment Act, or WIA. It allows businesses the flexibility to create a wage-scale for the mentally or physically disabled.

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/43902744/ns/local_news-louisville_ky/

The google is showing me that these protest are occurring in different places around the country. It's just not getting much press.


Disability Groups To Rally Against Sen. Kirk Today
On the 21st anniversary of the Americans With Disabilities Act, a coalition of disability groups is pulling together to protest sub-minimum wage jobs for those with disabilities, which they say U.S. Sen. Mark Kirk supports. Disabled Americans Want Work Now (DAWWN) and the National Federation of the Blind will team up at 1 p.m. this afternoon to protest legislation being considered by the Senate Committee on Health, Education, Labor and Pensions that would permit sub-minimum wage payments to people with disabilities. Sen. Kirk is part of the committee considering the legislation.

more at http://www.progressillinois.com/news/content/2011/07/26/disability-groups-rally-against-sen-kirk-today

[originalpckelly]

1. Are you fucking kidding me?

Although this may be a positive, after all John Boehner and most Republicans are morally challenged. How low can we pay them?

[no_hypocrisy]

2. It won't stand up to court challenge.

Minimum wage is a federal law. Federal law has supremacy over conflicting state law.

This is just to give a symbolic "something" to the business constiuency.

There will be a temporary restraining order which will make its way through the courts.

[mucifer]

4. This is new legislation being considered by the US senate.

to quote one of the articles: legislation being considered by the Senate Committee on Health, Education, Labor and Pensions that would permit sub-minimum wage payments to people with disabilities.

[lunatica]

3. the handicapped should shut up and be grateful anyone even gives them a job

That kind of thinking makes sense to these creeps. They feel the same way about women and minorities. No one knows their place anymore.

[Bunny]

5. You have to apply for and receive a certificate to pay sub-minimum wage,

and there are stringent requirements for documentation. In addition, a disabled worker is paid according to his ability as compared to a non-disabled worker, and there are extremely strict requirements for determining these wages and documenting such. If a disabled worker can perform at 25% the rate of a non-disabled worker, they're paid 25% of whatever the prevailing wage is in the community for that type of work. Prevailing wage in the community is determined and updated twice/year. All of this is administered and monitored by the Department of Labor and Industry.

You think it's an awful thing, but it allows people who could almost certainly never be employed in the community a chance to work and earn a paycheck. It doesn't have to be the heinous thing you're making it out to be.

[Angry Dragon]

7. What happens when the republicans slash the budget

for the Department of Labor and Industry??

The republicans are famous for saying that corporations will police and regulate themselves

[lumberjack_jeff]

18. +1

[saras]

20. It's been this way here for decades

I used to work for a shop that employed DD adults. This whole system was in place, and they got paid according to productivity. Because we were an honest business, though, a few of them consistently had %100 or better productivity, meaning that they made the same money as anyone else. Since they mostly lived at home or in group housing, their living expenses were much lower than other employees, and this meant regular vacations to Hawaii for at least one DD employee. It was great for morale for the whole company.

It's a system that works well with honest management (like most business systems - business is pretty simple when everyone's honest). The system died when the "prevailing wage" disappeared (not lowered, disappeared - the work moved to the Far East, and there was no more similar work to compare the pay to), and the business itself disappeared shortly afterwards.

Of course, corrupt management could make a hellhole of it in a hurry.

[iwishiwas]

6. That word -flexibility- is rearing its ugly head once again...

.....The legislation is called the Workforce Investment Act, or WIA. It allows businesses the flexibility to create a wage-scale for the mentally or physically disabled.

[myrna minx]

8. Ah - "flexibility".

:eyes:

[reformist2]

9. If they can't do the job, don't hire them.

This sounds like a way to get mentally disabled people off disability and turn them into (sub-minimum) wage slaves.

Isn't there an old axiom, you can evaluate a society by how it treats its weakest members?

[Bunny]

10. There are safeguards in place for that, too.

People have a long trial-work period (a minimum of three years) before there's any threat of gettting thrown off of SSI (at least right now they do - that could always change of course) and, from my experience, the most severely disabled people have difficulty keeping jobs for that length of time anyway.

And as far as saying "If they can't do the job, don't hire them", that attitude condemns people with disabilities to a life of isolation. There is meaning and dignity in work, even in non-traditional settings, and getting these folks in the workforce in some capacity should be a goal of all progressive people.

For everyone who's getting so worked up, you should know that this is already federal law, and has been for decades. None of this is new. And for most people, believe it or not, the system works.

[alc]

11. for some, the "job", not the paycheck is important

It's a tough choice. Allowing sub-minimum wage is a bad precedent that will hurt capable disabled workers. But it also could allow many disabled people to be in the work force when they couldn't otherwise because they really can't do the work. I've been to enough assisted living facilities and met enough people there to know that a lot of them want nothing more than to get out - if their paycheck does nothing more than cover the facility's van/driver cost it would still improve their lives. I also think it's good for the rest of society to see them in the workforce.


The assisted living facility near my house has a number of residents working at the local Kroger. A few are very capable - one is an above average cashier. 2 of them accomplish almost nothing - they work in pairs with someone else (bagging or shelving) and the other person does most of the work. I've talked to the facility director who says they LOVE having a job rather than staying at the facility all day with no "purpose". They certainly seem to enjoy being there and talking to me and other customers. Only Kroger is doing this in my area. I think others may if the cost was low enough (cost per employee is much more that wages - FICA, unemployment insurance, manager's time, etc)

[canoeist52]

15. So...If someone loves thier job and

would rather work than do nothing they should get paid 25% less.

This is why we have a federal minimum wage LAW.

[MattBaggins]

12. Does this mean we can pay Republicans in Congress

half of what we pay the Democrats?

Bachmann should get a nickel a week.

[Yavin4]

13. Slavery Is Just Around the Corner

Better start planning my escape route to Canada.

[canoeist52]

14. Gee, why not just pay them minimum wage?

Are they saying they don't work as hard as someone who isn't disabled? Cheap bastards. What's 25% of minimum wage as opposed to the huge income and bonuses of CEO's?

[demodonkey]

16. My late brother was disabled; he used to work under some of these rules...

...sometimes he would get a check for three cents.

Yes, literally three cents. And they would use a first-class stamp to send it.

[w4rma]

17. Slavery. That isn't enough to live on. (nt)

[lumberjack_jeff]

19. Sheltered workshops do more good than harm. n/t