[Nfbmo] Letters to the President about Including Peoplewith Disabilities in Minimum Wage Increase

Thu Feb 13 15:34:19 UTC 2014

wonde4rful

Jim Moynihan

----- Original Message ----- 
From: "Gary Wunder" <gwunder at earthlink.net>
To: "'NFB of Missouri Mailing List'" <nfbmo at nfbnet.org>
Sent: Wednesday, February 12, 2014 5:44 PM
Subject: Re: [Nfbmo] Letters to the President about Including Peoplewith 
Disabilities in Minimum Wage Increase


> Yay Missouri. Our calls have made a difference.
>
>
>
> -----Original Message-----
> From: Nfbmo [mailto:nfbmo-bounces at nfbnet.org] On Behalf Of Shelia Wright
> Sent: Friday, February 07, 2014 3:19 PM
> To: nfbmo at nfbnet.org
> Subject: [Nfbmo] Letters to the President about Including People with
> Disabilities in Minimum Wage Increase
>
> FYI  - Note that this is a call for immediate action.
>
> Shelia Wright
>
>
>
> From: Nfb-legislative-directors
> [mailto:nfb-legislative-directors-bounces at nfbnet.org] On Behalf Of Sloan,
> Rose
> Sent: Friday, February 07, 2014 2:05 PM
> To: 'Nfb-legislative-directors at nfbnet.org'
> Subject: [Nfb-legislative-directors] Letters to the President about
> Including People with Disabilities in Minimum Wage Increase
>
>
>
> Hello Legislative Directors,
>
>
>
> FYI: Many organizations are encouraging letters to be sent to President
> Obama and Secretary Perez regarding President Obama's recent executive 
> order
> that will raise the minimum wage for federal government contract workers.
> We would like to see people with disabilities be included in his executive
> order-as of right now, those who are employed under 14(c) certificate
> holding organizations are not directly included in the raise.
>
>
>
> If this is a concern to you, here are the appropriate email addresses to
> send your letters.
>
>
>
> Direct your letters to the White House to:
>
>
>
> Claudia Gordon (Claudia_L_Gordon at who.eop.gov
> <mailto:Claudia_L_Gordon at who.eop.gov> ) and  "cc":
>
> * Valerie Jarrett (vjarrett at who.eop.gov <mailto:vjarrett at who.eop.gov>
> )
> * Portia Wu (portia.y.wu at who.eop.gov <mailto:portia.y.wu at who.eop.gov>
> )
>
> Direct your letters to the Department of Labor to:
>
> Matthew Colangelo (Colangelo.Matthew at dol.gov
> <mailto:Colangelo.Matthew at dol.gov> )   and "cc"
>
> * ODEP Assistant Secretary Kathy Martinez (martinez.kathy at dol.gov
> <mailto:martinez.kathy at dol.gov> ).
>
>
>
>
>
> I am also sending you the action alert from CPSD, one of our partners for
> repealing 14(c) of the Fair Labor Standards Act.
>
>
>
> I hope you find this information helpful.  Have a wonderful weekend!
>
>
>
> Rose
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
> URGENT Action Alert: Activate Your Grassroots to Send Letters to the White
> House and Department of Labor
>
>
>
>
> CPSD's letter (See below) urging President Obama and Secretary Perez to
> include federal contractors who make less than minimum wage to be included
> in the executive order to raise the minimum wage to $10.10 per hour has
> gained momentum. Labor groups such as the AFL-CIO, SEIU and Change to Win
> have signed-on, as have mental health groups, the ACLU, and advocates for
> Americans with physical, intellectual and developmental disabilities and
> their families.
>
> Now it is important for self-advocates (particularly those who have made
> subminimum wages in the past or are in that position now), along with 
> their
> families and providers who want to see a substantially decreased 
> dependence
> on this model, to get letters to the White House and the Secretary of 
> Labor.
>
>
> THIS MUST BE DONE BY MONDAY OF NEXT WEEK.
>
>
>
> Please feel free to use language from the CPSD letter and to TELL YOUR OWN
> PERSONAL STORY. Fear is a powerful factor for many families but the vision
> of a better economic future and a life of one's own for those with
> disabilities is stronger.
>
> In your letters to the White House, direct your letter to:
>
>
>
> Claudia Gordon (Claudia_L_Gordon at who.eop.gov
> <mailto:Claudia_L_Gordon at who.eop.gov> ) and  "cc":
>
> * Valerie Jarrett (vjarrett at who.eop.gov <mailto:vjarrett at who.eop.gov>
> )
> * Portia Wu (portia.y.wu at who.eop.gov <mailto:portia.y.wu at who.eop.gov>
> )
>
> To the Department of Labor, direct your letter to
>
> Matthew Colangelo (Colangelo.Matthew at dol.gov
> <mailto:Colangelo.Matthew at dol.gov> )   and "cc"
>
> * ODEP Assistant Secretary Kathy Martinez (martinez.kathy at dol.gov
> <mailto:martinez.kathy at dol.gov> ).
>
> Thank you and please let me know if I can help
>
>
>
>
>
> Here is their letter:
>
>
>
>
>
> February 6, 2014
>
>
>
> President Barack Obama
>
> The White House 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue, NW
>
> Washington, DC 20500
>
>
>
> The Honorable Thomas Perez
>
> Secretary of Labor U.S. Department of Labor
>
> 200 Constitution Ave., NW
>
> Washington, DC 20210
>
>
>
> Dear Mr. President and Secretary Perez:
>
>
>
> As national partners of the Collaboration to Promote Self-Determination
> (CPSD), we were pleased to read that you will soon be issuing an executive
> order to increase the minimum wage to $10.10 an hour for federal contract
> workers. At the same time, we are profoundly concerned by recent 
> statements
> suggesting that workers with disabilities employed by government 
> contractors
> with 14c certificates will not be covered by the new $10.10 minimum wage.
>
>
>
> CPSD is an advocacy network of 21 national organizations who have come
> together to bring about a significant modernization of the federal adult
> system of services and supports for persons with disabilities.
>
>
>
> As you know, many workers with disabilities are employed by government
> contractors, particularly those associated with the AbilityOne Commission.
> Government contractors who hold 14c certificates from the U.S. Department 
> of
> Labor Wage and Hour Division have been permitted to pay less than minimum
> wage to workers with disabilities. We believe that all Americans should be
> afforded minimum wage protections, including those workers with
> disabilities.
>
>
>
> Recent statements from the administration have suggested that employees 
> with
> disabilities working for federal contractors with 14c certificates will be
> excluded from the new $10.10/hour minimum wage and will only benefit to a
> minimal degree in so far as their subminimum wage compensation is 
> increased
> if the higher minimum wage required by the executive order increases the
> prevailing wage on which their compensation is calculated. We believe this
> is fundamentally unjust.
>
>
>
> Mr. President and Secretary Perez, all employees of federal contractors
> should mean all employees, regardless of disability status. In the last
> several years, we have seen commitments from Rhode Island, Massachusetts,
> New York and Oregon to phase out the use of sheltered workshops - the
> primary setting where disabled workers are paid less than minimum wage.
> Vermont ended the use of both sheltered workshops and subminimum wage
> employment of people with disabilities in 2003. We believe this progress
> shows that it is both economically sound and morally just to ensure that
> people with disabilities have access to the same wage protections as those
> without. While a broader end to subminimum wage and Section 14c may 
> require
> an act of Congress, we believe that the Administration has the authority 
> to
> end the use of subminimum wage for employees of federal contractors
> immediately, through the use of the same executive order establishing the
> new $10.10/hour requirement.
>
>
>
> Thank you again for your leadership and for serious consideration of our
> comments. We stand ready to work with you to align federal policies and
> financing to achieve the valued goal of integrated, competitive employment
> for all citizens with disabilities. It is our sincere hope that you do not
> leave the disability community behind in your forthcoming executive order.
>
>
>
> Sincerely,
>
> American Civil Liberties Union
>
> AFL-CIO
>
> Association of Persons in Supported Employment
>
> Autistic Self-Advocacy Network
>
> Autism Society
>
> Bazelon Center for Mental Health Law
>
> Change to Win
>
> Disability Power & Pride
>
> Demos
>
> Institute for Community Inclusion
>
> Japanese American Citizens League
>
> National Association of the Deaf
>
> National Association of State Directors of Developmental Disabilities
> Services
>
> National Coalition for Mental Health Recovery
>
> National Council on Independent Living
>
> National Down Syndrome Congress
>
> National Fragile X Foundation
>
> National Disability Institute
>
> National Disability Rights Network
>
> National Organization on Disability
>
> National Organization of Nurses with Disabilities
>
> Not Dead Yet
>
> Physician Parent Caregivers
>
> Quality Trust for Individuals with Disabilities
>
> Service Employees International Union
>
> Sibling Leadership Network
>
> TASH
>
> United Spinal Association
>
>
>
>
>
> Rose Sloan
>
> Government Affairs Specialist
>
>
>
> "Eliminating Subminimum Wages for People with Disabilities"
>
> http://www.nfb.org/fair-wages
>
>
>
> National Federation of the Blind
>
> 200 East Wells Street
>
> Baltimore, MD 21230
>
> rsloan at nfb.org <mailto:rsloan at nfb.org>
>
> (410)-659-9314 ext 2441
>
>
>
> The National Federation of the Blind needs your support to ensure blind
> children get an equal education; to connect blind veterans with the 
> training
> and services they need; and to help seniors who are losing vision continue
> to live independent and fulfilling lives. To make a donation, please go to
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>
>
>
>
>
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