With the federal government reporting that tens of thousands of people with disabilities are being paid less than the minimum wage, a newly introduced bipartisan, bicameral bill proposed by U.S. Sen. Steve Daines (R-MT) and U.S. Rep. Cathy McMorris Rodgers (R-WA) would end the discriminatory practice.
“Montanans with disabilities contribute to our communities and their work is valuable — they should never be paid below minimum wage,” Sen. Daines said. “There is dignity and hope in work, so we should be doing all we can to expand opportunity and ensure fair pay to Montanans with disabilities in the workforce.”
“America is the land of opportunity where no one is defined by the conditions of their birth,” said Rep. McMorris Rodgers. “It’s in this spirit that we should be doing everything we can to bring people with disabilities off the sidelines and into the workforce.”
Their new bill comes on the heels of a Government Accountability Office (GAO) report released on Feb. 24 showing that employers holding a special certificate from the U.S. Department of Labor can pay people with disabilities wages below the federal minimum wage. GAO found that about 120,000 workers were employed under these certificates, with half earning less than $3.50 an hour.
The Transformation to Competitive Integrated Employment Act, S. 533, would assist employers providing employment under special certificates issued under section 14(c) of the Fair Labor Standards Act of 1938 in transforming their business and program models to those that support people with disabilities through competitive integrated employment, and to phase out the use of such special certificates, according to the text of the bills.
Sen. Daines on Feb. 27 signed on as the lead original cosponsor of S. 533 alongside bill sponsor U.S. Sen. Bob Casey (R-PA), while the companion bill, H.R. 1263, was introduced by Rep. McMorris Rodgers and U.S. Rep. Bobby Scott (D-VA).
“This work started with creating and expanding ABLE accounts, which are empowering individuals with disabilities to reach their full potential,” said Rep. McMorris Rodgers, referring to the tax-advantaged savings accounts for individuals with disabilities and their families that were created by passage of the Stephen Beck Jr. Achieving a Better Life Experience Act of 2014, better known as the ABLE Act.
“Today, with this bipartisan legislation, it continues on the next policy frontier: employment,” the congresswoman said. “Together, we can end the outdated practice of paying individuals with disabilities a subminimum wage and help them live more independent lives.”
The Transformation to Competitive Integrated Employment Act is supported by dozens of organizations, including the American Council of the Blind, the Association of University Centers on Disabilities, the Association of People Supporting Employment First (along with 38 state affiliates), the Autism Society of America, the Disability Rights Education & Defense Fund, the Muscular Dystrophy Association, the National Association of the Deaf, the National Council on Independent Living, the Spina Bifida Association, and the United Spinal Association, among many others.