[nfbwatlk] SUB MINIMUM WAGE

[Mike Freeman]

Paul:

(1) NO two workers have the same productivity. Yet (at least in industry)
workers doing a given job are supposed to be paid the same wage whether they
are powerhouses of productivity or are just barely scraping by. Differences
in worker output are usually made up in consequences such as whether workers
get bonuses, how quickly and whether they advance or not, etc. Why should
disabled workers of whatever talent be treated differently?

(2) Most of the entities who are against paying minimum wages for disabled
workers get massive subsidies from either various governmental agencies or
from private donations. Presumably, all those who "employ" these workers do
so in order to make them feel productive or useful. NO one gainsays such
motives although I am often moved to wonder whether those who prattle on
about the dignity of work (even at subminimum wages) would themselves deign
to accept that reasoning as an excuse to be paid less than the Federal
minimum wage. All that might even be OK except that these governmental and
private agencies who "employ" these workers go on to sell the products of
their labor, thus benefiting twice from that labor without compensatory
benefits to the workers. And few of these agencies really train disabled
workers to go out into private industry. Think about it: if you're a
business, you *keep* your most productive workers. If you train people, you
*place* your most productive workers. You can't have it both ways. Agencies
can't have it both ways -- profiting from workers while paying them a
pittance. That's little more than slavery IMO.

Mike


-----Original Message-----
From: nfbwatlk-bounces at nfbnet.org [mailto:nfbwatlk-bounces at nfbnet.org] On
Behalf Of PUBLIC RADIO 113
Sent: Sunday, August 12, 2012 12:16 PM
To: nfbwatlk at nfbnet.org
Subject: [nfbwatlk] SUB MINIMUM WAGE

Would you hire a driver who only drove 20 miles/hour on the freeway?  If
any of you reading this ever ran a business of your own you would realize
that you cannot afford to hire workers who are less productive.  When I
began my medical transcription career in Chicago I earned far less than
minimum wage because I was paid on the basis of the work I could turn out
in an 8-hour day.  It took a while for me to get my typing speed up to 120
words/minute, but I did.  After 30 years of being an MT I retired in June.
 I made $50,000 last year WITH BENEFITS.  People who are so disabled that
they cannot compete can always use SSDI, low-cost housing, food stamps,
etc.,  to supplement their income.  It should not be up to the employer to
provide a subsidy for disabled workers.   Let's pay congress what they're
worth.

-- 
Paul Van Dyck

www.publicradio113.weebly.com

OR

www.kboo.fm/soundsofawareness
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