Biden Proposes End To Sub-Minimum Wage For Workers With Disabilities | EUROtoday

The Labor Department stated Tuesday that it might be phasing out a long-running and controversial program that permits sure employers to pay staff with disabilities lower than the minimal wage.

The new rule eliminating this system follows years of strain from incapacity rights teams and is supposed to ship on a marketing campaign pledge from President Joe Biden. But its future is unsure resulting from probably authorized challenges in addition to the incoming Trump administration.

Kristin Garcia, deputy administrator of the Labor Department’s Wage and Hour Division, stated the reform is per the precept that staff deserve truthful pay for a tough day’s work.

“For too long, workers with disabilities have been left out of that promise,” Garcia instructed reporters Tuesday.

The federal authorities’s endorsement of a sub-minimum wage for staff with disabilities dates to 1938, when Congress created a wage flooring underneath the Fair Labor Standards Act. Eligible employers obtain certificates from the Labor Department permitting them to pay effectively beneath the federal minimal wage of $7.25 per hour.

A 2023 research from the Government Accountability Office discovered that round 120,000 staff have been employed underneath what are often known as 14(c) certificates, so named for the part of the legislation that permits them. Half of these staff have been incomes lower than $3.50 per hour.

Many of the employees are employed in group rehabilitation packages and nonprofits, together with Goodwill, and the overwhelming majority have an mental or developmental incapacity. It’s frequent for these staff to earn wages on “piece rate,” in order that they’re paid in accordance with what number of duties they full in a given time somewhat than an ordinary hourly charge.

While backers of this system argue many workers will lose their jobs with out it, critics say it’s an antiquated follow that discriminates in opposition to a complete workforce and furthers revenue inequality.

Taryn Williams, assistant secretary of labor for incapacity employment coverage, stated Tuesday that the expectations for staff with disabilities have “evolved” over the many years and now not match the legislation because it was written through the Great Depression.

“Employers today have more resources and training available to recruit, hire, retain and advance workers with disabilities in employment at or above the full minimum wage, and this proposed rule aligns with that reality,” she stated.

Under the proposed rule, the federal government would now not problem new certificates permitting a sub-minimum wage for staff with disabilities. Existing certificates could be phased out three years after the rule goes into impact.

Workers employed underneath present certificates might stay of their jobs, however the employer must pay them at the least the federal minimal wage of $7.25 per hour.

That would “lead to greater financial stability, increased purchasing power and independence” for these staff,” Garcia stated.

The rule should endure a public remark interval and wouldn’t be finalized till after Biden has left the White House. The new Trump administration might select to ditch the rule and maintain the present system intact.