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<DIV><B>FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE<BR><BR></B><B>CONTACT:<BR><BR></B>Chris
Danielsen<BR><BR>Director of Public Relations<BR><BR>National Federation of the
Blind<BR><BR>(410) 659-9314, extension 2330<BR><BR>(410) 262-1281
(Cell)<BR><BR>cdanielsen@nfb.org<BR><BR></DIV>
<DIV align=center>
<H1><B>Blind Americans to Protest Subminimum Wages<BR><BR><BR></B></H1>
<H2><B>Members of National Federation of the Blind Plan<BR> Informational
Pickets Across United States</I></B></H2></DIV><B> <BR><BR>Baltimore,
Maryland (July 20, 2011):</B> The National Federation of the Blind, the oldest
and largest nationwide organization of blind people, announced today that its
members will conduct informational protests across the United States to raise
awareness about the practice of paying wages below the federal minimum wage to
Americans with disabilities. The protests will take place at the primary
district office locations of United States Senators serving on the Senate
Committee on Health, Education, Labor and Pensions (the HELP Committee).
The HELP Committee is currently considering legislationthe Workforce
Investment Actwhich would reauthorize the payment of subminimum wages to
disabled workers.<BR><BR> <BR><BR>Dr. Marc Maurer, President of the
National Federation of the Blind, said: “Unequal pay for equal work on the basis
of disability is unfair, discriminatory, and immoral. The senators who
serve on the HELP Committee must decide whether they stand for the outrageous
exploitation of disabled workers, or for true equality for Americans with
disabilities.”<BR><BR> <BR><BR>On Wednesday, August 3, the HELP Committee
is scheduled to vote on the Workforce Investment Act (WIA), which contains
language reauthorizing the Rehabilitation Act of 1973, as amended.
The Rehabilitation Act is supposed to provide services to disabled Americans so
that they can obtain competitive employment, but Title V, Section 511 of the
proposed Rehabilitation Act language references Section 14(c) of the 1938 Fair
Labor Standards Act (FLSA), which allows certain entities holding special wage
certificates to pay workers with disabilities less than the federal minimum
wage. <BR><BR> <BR><BR>For more information on the National
Federation of the Blind and fair wages for workers with disabilities, please
visit <A href="http://www.nfb.org/">www.nfb.org</A>. <BR><BR> <BR><BR>
<DIV align=center><BR><BR>###<BR><BR></DIV> <BR><BR> <BR><BR><B>About
the National Federation of the Blind<BR><BR></B> <BR><BR>With more than
50,000 members, the National Federation of the Blind is the largest and most
influential membership organization of blind people in the United States.
The NFB improves blind people’s lives through advocacy, education, research,
technology, and programs encouraging independence and self-confidence. It
is the leading force in the blindness field today and the voice of the nation's
blind. In January 2004 the NFB opened the National Federation of the Blind
Jernigan Institute, the first research and training center in the United States
for the blind led by the
blind.<BR><BR> <BR><BR> <BR><BR> <BR><BR> <BR><BR> <BR></BODY></HTML>