<html><head><meta http-equiv="content-type" content="text/html; charset=utf-8"></head><body style="overflow-wrap: break-word; -webkit-nbsp-mode: space; line-break: after-white-space;">DRO can claim that they fought this case, but that will come as a great surprise for Dr. Dr. Maurer, who poured hundreds of hours into this case and a bunch more of us who worked with these workers and mentored them at national conventions.<div>Barbara<br id="lineBreakAtBeginningOfMessage"><div>
<div dir="auto" style="word-wrap: break-word; -webkit-nbsp-mode: space; line-break: after-white-space;"><div style="caret-color: rgb(0, 0, 0); color: rgb(0, 0, 0); font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 12px; font-style: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-weight: normal; letter-spacing: normal; text-align: start; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; word-spacing: 0px; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; text-decoration: none;">Barbara Pierce (she, her, hers)</div><div style="caret-color: rgb(0, 0, 0); color: rgb(0, 0, 0); font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 12px; font-style: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-weight: normal; letter-spacing: normal; text-align: start; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; word-spacing: 0px; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; text-decoration: none;">President Emerita<br>National Federation of the Blind of Ohio<br>Barbara.pierce9366@gmail.com<br>440-774-8077<br> <br><br>The National Federation of the Blind knows that blindness is not the characteristic that defines you or your future. Every day we raise expectations for blind people because low expectations create obstacles between blind people and their dreams. You can live the life you want; blindness is not what holds you back.</div></div>
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<div><br><blockquote type="cite"><div>On Jan 16, 2024, at 8:50 AM, Richard Payne via Ohio-Talk <ohio-talk@nfbnet.org> wrote:</div><br class="Apple-interchange-newline"><div><div><br>Disability Rights Ohio and Advocates Say Court Ruling Affirms Decision<br>Awarding Back Pay and Liquidated Damages to Individuals Unlawfully Paid Less<br>Than Minimum Wage<br>Industry News <https://weeklyreviewer.com/all-news/industry-news/> Political<br>news <https://weeklyreviewer.com/all-news/politics/> <br>ByWorld Reviewer Staff <https://weeklyreviewer.com/author/user/> <br>Modified date: January 13, 2024 11:38pm EST<br>Court's action supports the rights of individuals working in non-integrated<br>work environments are protected, including minimum wage<br>COLUMBUS, Ohio, January 12th, 2024 /PRNewswire-PRWeb/ - In a ruling handed<br>down last week by the United States District Court for the Northern District<br>of Ohio (Seneca Re-Ad Industries, Inc. v. Secretary of the Department of<br>Labor et al., 3:20-cv-02325-JJH), the Court upheld a 2016 decision from the<br>United States Department of Labor that found three individuals employed by<br>Seneca Re-Ad Industries, Inc. are not disabled for the work they perform and<br>cannot be paid less than minimum wage. The Court affirmed the Department's<br>award of back pay and liquidated damages to Pamela Steward, Ralph "Joe"<br>Magers, and Mark Felton. Ms. Steward, Mr. Magers, and Mr. Felton were<br>represented by attorneys from Disability Rights Ohio<br><https://c212.net/c/link/?t=0&l=en&o=4066800-1&h=1100467062&u=https%3A%2F%2F<br>www.disabilityrightsohio.org%2F&a=Disability+Rights+Ohio> and Brown,<br>Goldstein & Levy<br><https://c212.net/c/link/?t=0&l=en&o=4066800-1&h=619305733&u=https%3A%2F%2Fb<br>rowngold.com%2F&a=Brown%2C+Goldstein+%26+Levy> , LLP.<br>This court action is a clear victory for those working to reverse subminimum<br>wage, and affirms our belief that having a disability does not make one<br>unworthy of fair pay.<br>Seneca Re-Ad Industries, Inc. operates a sheltered workshop in Seneca<br>County, Ohio that is overseen by the Seneca County Board of Developmental<br>Disabilities and that performs work for Roppe Corporation, an international<br>flooring company.<br>"This court action is a clear victory for those working to reverse<br>subminimum wage, and affirms our belief that having a disability does not<br>make one unworthy of fair pay," said Kerstin Sjoberg, DRO executive<br>director.<br>In November 2015, with the support of the National Federation of the Blind<br><https://c212.net/c/link/?t=0&l=en&o=4066800-1&h=3651751435&u=https%3A%2F%2F<br>nfb.org%2F&a=National+Federation+of+the+Blind> , Ms. Steward, Mr. Magers,<br>and Mr. Felton filed a petition with the Department of Labor challenging<br>their receipt of subminimum wages. In a precedent-setting decision, the<br>Department of Labor explained that employers cannot rely on a provision in<br>the Fair Labor Standards Act that allows individuals with disabilities to be<br>paid less than the minimum wage without clear evidence that an individual's<br>disability impacts his or her productivity.<br>"The National Federation of the Blind has fought the payment of subminimum<br>wages to the blind and other workers with disabilities since our founding,"<br>said Mark Riccobono, President of the National Federation of the Blind.<br>"Now, after nearly a decade of litigation, a federal court has affirmed, for<br>the first time, that disability by itself cannot be used to demonstrate<br>lower productivity even under the terms of Section 14(c) of the Fair Labor<br>Standards Act. This ruling points to the truth that we have always known:<br>the subminimum wage exemption is simply a manifestation of society's low<br>expectations and false assumptions regarding the capacity of workers with<br>disabilities. We applaud the court for recognizing this truth as it applies<br>to the courageous workers who took their case to the Department of Labor,<br>but we will not rest until no blind or disabled worker can be victimized by<br>this antiquated, discriminatory, and immoral practice."<br>In addition to affirming that decision, the Court rejected Seneca Re-Ad's<br>argument that the Administrative Law Judge who ruled on Ms. Steward's, Mr.<br>Magers's, and Mr. Felton's petition was not properly appointed under the<br>U.S. Constitution.<br>"Eight years ago, a Department of Labor Administrative Law Judge affirmed<br>what Pamela Steward, Joe Magers, and Mark Felton have known all along: that<br>they are not disabled for the work they perform at Seneca Re-Ad, and that<br>they cannot be paid less than the minimum wage," said Kevin Docherty, a<br>partner at Brown, Goldstein & Levy. "The Court's ruling, upholding the<br>Department of Labor's landmark decision, is an important step forward in the<br>fight to curtail payment of subminimum wages to individuals with<br>disabilities."<br>About Disability Rights Ohio<br>Disability Rights Ohio is the federally and state designated Protection and<br>Advocacy System and Client Assistance Program for the state of Ohio. The<br>mission of Disability Rights Ohio is to advocate for the human, civil and<br>legal rights of people with disabilities in Ohio. Disability Rights Ohio<br>provides legal advocacy and rights protection to a wide range of people with<br>disabilities. Find more information at www.disabilityrightsohio.org<br><https://c212.net/c/link/?t=0&l=en&o=4066800-1&h=3258130010&u=http%3A%2F%2Fw<br>ww.disabilityrightsohio.org%2F&a=www.disabilityrightsohio.org> . Follow<br>Disability Rights Ohio on Facebook<br><https://c212.net/c/link/?t=0&l=en&o=4066800-1&h=159837647&u=https%3A%2F%2Fw<br>ww.facebook.com%2FDisabilityRightsOhio&a=Facebook+> and X<br><https://c212.net/c/link/?t=0&l=en&o=4066800-1&h=998166827&u=https%3A%2F%2Ft<br>witter.com%2FDisabilityRtsOH&a=X> .<br>About the National Federation of the Blind<br>The National Federation of the Blind (NFB), headquartered in Baltimore,<br>defends the rights of blind people of all ages and provides information and<br>support to families with blind children, older Americans who are losing<br>vision, and more. Founded in 1940, the NFB is the transformative membership<br>and advocacy organization of blind Americans with affiliates, chapters, and<br>divisions in the fifty states, Washington DC, and Puerto Rico. We believe in<br>the hopes and dreams of blind people and work together to transform them<br>into reality. Learn more about our many programs and initiatives at<br><https://c212.net/c/link/?t=0&l=en&o=4066800-1&h=708406044&u=https%3A%2F%2Fn<br>fb.org%2F&a=+> nfb.org<br><https://c212.net/c/link/?t=0&l=en&o=4066800-1&h=1905424761&u=https%3A%2F%2F<br>nfb.org%2F&a=nfb.org> .<br>Media Contact<br>Liz Lane, Team Fleisher Communications, 1 6145586666, Liz@Teamfleisher.com<br><mailto:Liz@Teamfleisher.com> , https://teamfleisher.com<br><https://teamfleisher.com/> <br> View original content to download<br>multimedia:https://www.prweb.com/releases/disability-rights-ohio-and-advocat<br>es-say-court-ruling-affirms-decision-awarding-back-pay-and-liquidated-damage<br>s-to-individuals-unlawfully-paid-less-than-minimum-wage-302033261.html<br>SOURCE Disability Rights Ohio<br><br><br>PR Newswire Political/Government News<br><https://weeklyreviewer.com/disability-rights-ohio-and-advocates-say-court-r<br>uling-affirms-decision-awarding-back-pay-and-liquidated-damages-to-individua<br>ls-unlawfully-paid-less-than-minimum-wage/dba83741375385884945f300abcf735a> <br>Share<br><br><https://www.facebook.com/sharer.php?u=https%3A%2F%2Fweeklyreviewer.com%2Fdi<br>sability-rights-ohio-and-advocates-say-court-ruling-affirms-decision-awardin<br>g-back-pay-and-liquidated-damages-to-individuals-unlawfully-paid-less-than-m<br>inimum-wage%2F> <br>Facebook<br><br><https://twitter.com/intent/tweet?text=Disability+Rights+Ohio+and+Advocates+<br>Say+Court+Ruling+Affirms+Decision+Awarding+Back+Pay+and+Liquidated+Damages+t<br>o+Individuals+Unlawfully+Paid+Less+Than+Minimum+Wage&url=https%3A%2F%2Fweekl<br>yreviewer.com%2Fdisability-rights-ohio-and-advocates-say-court-ruling-affirm<br>s-decision-awarding-back-pay-and-liquidated-damages-to-individuals-unlawfull<br>y-paid-less-than-minimum-wage%2F&via=ReviewingNews> <br>Twitter<br><br>Pinterest<br><br><https://api.whatsapp.com/send?text=Disability+Rights+Ohio+and+Advocates+Say<br>+Court+Ruling+Affirms+Decision+Awarding+Back+Pay+and+Liquidated+Damages+to+I<br>ndividuals+Unlawfully+Paid+Less+Than+Minimum+Wage%20%0A%0A%20https://weeklyr<br>eviewer.com/disability-rights-ohio-and-advocates-say-court-ruling-affirms-de<br>cision-awarding-back-pay-and-liquidated-damages-to-individuals-unlawfully-pa<br>id-less-than-minimum-wage/> <br>WhatsApp<br><br><br><https://weeklyreviewer.com/disability-rights-ohio-and-advocates-say-court-r<br>uling-affirms-decision-awarding-back-pay-and-liquidated-damages-to-individua<br>ls-unlawfully-paid-less-than-minimum-wage/> <br><br> <https://weeklyreviewer.com/author/user/> <br>World Reviewer Staff <https://weeklyreviewer.com/author/user/><br>https://weeklyreviewer.com/<br>The first logical thought has to be "no way". 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Every day we raise the<br>expectations of blind people, because low expectations create obstacles<br>between blind people and our dreams. You can live the life you want;<br>blindness is not what holds you back.<br><br><br><span id="cid:93280E97-9681-4C15-B27F-FF1ADB3E68AB"><winmail.dat></span>_______________________________________________<br>Ohio-Talk mailing list<br>Ohio-Talk@nfbnet.org<br>http://nfbnet.org/mailman/listinfo/ohio-talk_nfbnet.org<br>To unsubscribe, change your list options or get your account info for Ohio-Talk:<br>http://nfbnet.org/mailman/options/ohio-talk_nfbnet.org/barbara.pierce9366%40gmail.com<br></div></div></blockquote></div><br></div></body></html>