[Nfbmo] Minimum-wage activity in St. Louis

[Gary Wunder]

Last week the city Council in St. Louis voted to increase the minimum wage
in St. Louis. This bill made no provision for exempting those who would
currently be exempt under section 14 C of the federal Fair Labor Standards
Act. Of course, local municipalities are free to do this, and we are
encouraging the city of St. Louis to stick to its guns. If it is going to
have a minimum wage, blind people should be paid that wage. Other disability
organizations also support this, and we are joining with them to help.

 

I will soon be forwarding a list giving the names of aldermen in the city of
St. Louis and contact information. I particularly encourage those of you who
live in St. Louis to make your voices heard. Others of us who have had
experience in the sheltered workshops or know about the laws under which
they operate can certainly chime in, but it is likely that the people who
will have the most influence will be those who actually elect the aldermen.

 

If we support the repeal of section 14 C federally, then certainly we must
support that repeal at the local level. We can't have it both ways. Either
we believe that blind people should be paid at least the minimum wage or we
don't; this issue has been decided by countless resolutions in favor of the
abolition of the subminimum wage. Let the debate go on about whether a
minimum wage is a good or a bad thing. So long as it exists, we want to be
part of the protections that it affords.

 

I welcome your thoughts, and I am particularly interested in how you think
we might advance this cause. My guess is that one-on-one contact with your
aldermen will be the most helpful.

 

Warmly,

 

 

Gary Wunder, President

National Federation of the Blind of Missouri