From suncat0 at gmail.com  Fri Jul  8 02:35:50 2011
From: suncat0 at gmail.com (Joe Sontag)
Date: Thu, 7 Jul 2011 22:35:50 -0400
Subject: [Vendorsmi] Fw: [Nfbnet-members-list] 2,
	900 Delegates to National Federation of the Blind
	ConventionUnanimously Reject Workforce Investment Act
	Reauthorization
Message-ID: <9EB9E54CC8AF43488FB28831929E38F2@Alphacat>

Though this doesn't pertain directly to the BEP, it should be of interest to all caring, self-respecting  blind people.  Come to 
think of it, may become more relevant to us in the near future, given the current course of our Program.
----- Original Message ----- 
From: "Freeh,Jessica (by way of David Andrews <dandrews at visi.com>)" <JFreeh at nfb.org>
To: <nfbnet-members-list at nfbnet.org>
Sent: Thursday, July 07, 2011 09:58
Subject: [Nfbnet-members-list] 2,900 Delegates to National Federation of the Blind ConventionUnanimously Reject Workforce Investment 
Act Reauthorization


>
>
> FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
>
> CONTACT:
> Chris Danielsen
> Director of Public Relations
> National Federation of the Blind
> (410) 659-9314, extension 2330
> (410) 262-1281 (Cell)
> cdanielsen at nfb.org
>
> 2,900 Delegates to National Federation of the Blind Convention Unanimously Reject Workforce Investment Act Reauthorization
>
> Bill Would Endorse Exploitation of Disabled Workers
>
> Orlando, Florida (July 7, 2011): The National Federation of the Blind at its national convention today voted unanimously to demand 
> fair wages for blind workers.  The convention is being attended by 2,800 delegates from across the United States and Puerto Rico. 
> On Wednesday, July 13, the Senate Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions Committee will 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.
>
> Dr. Marc Maurer, President of the National Federation of the Blind, said: "Language endorsing the antiquated practice of paying 
> the blind and other workers with disabilities less than the federal minimum wage, which is based on the fallacious premise that 
> disabled workers cannot be productive and do the same work as their non-disabled peers, has no place in legislation designed to 
> increase competitive work opportunities for workers with disabilities.  We believe that this language, in effect if not by design, 
> is a Trojan Horse provision that will inevitably lead to the placing of workers with disabilities in subminimum-wage sweatshops. 
> We demand that the Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions Committee either amend this bill to remove Title V, Section 511, or 
> simply vote down the entire bill."
>
>
> ###
>
>
> About the National Federation of the Blind
>
> 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.
>
>
> _______________________________________________
> Nfbnet-members-list mailing list
> Nfbnet-members-list at nfbnet.org 




From suncat0 at gmail.com  Fri Jul  8 02:44:50 2011
From: suncat0 at gmail.com (Joe Sontag)
Date: Thu, 7 Jul 2011 22:44:50 -0400
Subject: [Vendorsmi] Fw: [Nfbnet-members-list] RESOLUTION 2011-17 Regarding
	the WorkforceInvestment Act Reauthorization
Message-ID: <29C726029AAC46F9A12CF7D2427CCC93@Alphacat>

lease read the resolution shown below, tweet about it, put the text of the resolution text on Facebook or your favorite social 
networking site; let's make everybody aware of what's been going on and how we will stop it one fine day.


----- Original Message ----- 
From: "Freeh,Jessica (by way of David Andrews <dandrews at visi.com>)" <JFreeh at nfb.org>
To: <nfbnet-members-list at nfbnet.org>
Cc: <nfb-announce at nfbnet.org>
Sent: Thursday, July 07, 2011 13:50
Subject: [Nfbnet-members-list] RESOLUTION 2011-17 Regarding the WorkforceInvestment Act Reauthorization


> RESOLUTION 2011-17
> Regarding the Workforce Investment Act Reauthorization
> Proponent:
>
> WHEREAS, the Senate Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions has distributed language for the reauthorization of the 
> Workforce Investment Act including a proposed Section 511 of Title V (the Rehabilitation Act), which would provide for employment 
> of people with significant disabilities at wages below the federally mandated minimum wage; and
>
> WHEREAS, the proposed language of Section 511 would be a tacit endorsement of the subminimum wage provision found in Section 14(c) 
> of the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) and its antiquated contention that people with disabilities cannot be competitively 
> employed; and
>
> WHEREAS, this language links the Rehabilitation Act, which was established to assist people with disabilities in obtaining 
> competitive integrated employment, with Section 14(c) of the FLSA, which is based on the false premise that people with 
> disabilities can not be competitively employed and therefore can be paid subminimum wages; and
>
> WHEREAS, the language in Section 511 that defines what steps a vocational rehabilitation counselor must take before steering a 
> client into subminimum-wage employment is intended to prevent youth with disabilities from being tracked into subminimum-wage 
> jobs, but is likely instead to track clients into subminimum-wage employment; and
>
> WHEREAS, language in Section 511 asserts that employers holding a certificate that allows them to pay subminimum wages can also 
> serve as training facilities for people with disabilities, a claim that ignores the fact that job training services provided by an 
> employer holding a special wage certificate are likely to reinforce the low expectation that workers with disabilities cannot be 
> competitively employed, since the incentive is for the employer to continue exploiting their labor rather than prepare workers for 
> other employment; and
>
> WHEREAS, the Section 511 documentation and review process, which is meant to provide safeguards against inappropriate use of 
> subminimum-wage employment, does not take into consideration the fact that state Vocational Rehabilitation programs do not have 
> the resources to ensure effective compliance with the various documentation and review requirements, including the six-month 
> review period in the proposed language, creating an opportunity to expand the exploitation caused by Section 14(c) of the FLSA; 
> and
>
> WHEREAS, the good intentions motivating the development of Section 511 are likely to result in enormous negative consequences, 
> especially the validation of subminimum-wage employment as a viable outcome for people with disabilities; and
>
> WHEREAS, the language does not provide an effective procedure for workers to challenge improper placement in such employment: Now, 
> therefore,
>
> BE IT RESOLVED by the National Federation of the Blind in Convention assembled this seventh day of July, 2011, in the city of 
> Orlando, Florida, that this organization call on members of the Senate Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions to 
> remove Section 511 of the proposed Rehabilitation Act; and
>
> BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that we call upon all members of Congress, not to address the unjust law of Section 14(c) with ineffective 
> measures, but to take direct action to abolish the reprehensible practice of subminimum-wage employment forever.
>
> _______________________________________________
> Nfbnet-members-list mailing list
> Nfbnet-members-list at nfbnet.org 




From suncat0 at gmail.com  Mon Jul 18 09:49:58 2011
From: suncat0 at gmail.com (Joe Sontag)
Date: Mon, 18 Jul 2011 05:49:58 -0400
Subject: [Vendorsmi] Fw: [nfbmi-talk] blast
Message-ID: <E04FB9EB8C3649DBBAF9CEEAAFA0EE53@Alphacat>


----- Original Message ----- 
From: "Larry Posont" <president.nfb.mi at gmail.com>
To: <nfbmi-talk at nfbnet.org>
Sent: Sunday, July 17, 2011 17:14
Subject: [nfbmi-talk] blast


>    This is going to be a great conference for blind vendors and
> entrepreneurs. We are working on getting a group from Michigan to
> attend.
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> BLAST +:
> The National Association of Blind Merchants (NABM) announces a new
> partnership with the National Federation of the Blind Jernigan
> Institute that will blast beyond the confines of the Randolph Sheppard
> Program. In collaboration with Tennessee Services for the
> Blind, NABM's BLAST + will be held in Nashville, Tennessee, from
> Wednesday, September 21, through Saturday morning, September 24,
> 2011. Over the past decade Business Leadership and Superior Training
> (BLAST), has become the most authoritative and innovative
> conference for blind entrepreneurs.  BLAST + will be the most
> significant conference ever held to encourage, inform, and inspire the
> blind and vision-impaired embarking on or currently engaged in
> building profitable small businesses. BLAST has always had training
> elements easy to apply to any business venture. BLAST + expands that
> curriculum to include even more education and networking
> targeted to blind people seeking employment through entrepreneurship
> outside of or in addition to the traditional Randolph Sheppard
> Vending Program model.
> 
> Nicky Gacos, NABM president, said, "As successful as BLAST has been
> over the past decade, it is time to reach out to everyone
> interested in creating quality job opportunities through
> entrepreneurship. A partnership with the NFB Jernigan Institute just
> made
> sense for this expansion. If the backbone of our economy is small
> business, the blind must be a part of it."
> 
> Announcing this collaboration with the nation's leading association of
> blind business owner advocates, Mark Riccobono, executive
> director of the NFB Jernigan Institute, said, "The National Federation
> of the Blind Jernigan Institute leads the quest to understand
> the real problems of blindness and to develop innovative education to
> help the world's blind achieve independence. A central concern
> of the Institute is increasing employment opportunities for the blind.
> This collaboration with NABM and other partners will improve
> the prospects for many blind people who want to be self-employed."
> 
> In addition to the program items BLAST participants have come to
> expect, BLAST + will add a number of training sessions, symposia,
> and a luncheon which will focus on government contracting, business
> ethics, team building, network marketing opportunities, the
> access technology industry, free or low-cost resources, franchises,
> business loans, and business and financial planning. For years
> BLAST has had a robust trade show, featuring access technology,
> vending, and food service suppliers. Now it will be adding agencies,
> companies, and organizations which cater to different segments of
> small business operations.
> 
> Rooms can be booked now. Simply write or call the Nashville Airport
> Marriott, 600 Marriott Drive, Nashville, Tennessee 37214; (615)
> 889-9300. Tell them that you are booking for the National Association
> of Blind Merchants BLAST +. Rooms are available at the
> unbelievably low rate of $113 per night plus applicable taxes. These
> rates are effective from Monday, September 19, through
> Saturday, September 24, 2011. Music City is beautiful in the fall, and
> as always, space is at a premium. Act quickly to enjoy the
> party and promise of BLAST +.  The entire conference will be an event
> from which everyone involved in blind entrepreneurship will
> benefit. BLAST + registration, which includes all activities and
> training materials, will cost $200 with a $50 discount for
> registrations made before August 15, 2011. The registration fee may
> exclude some tours and events held outside the hotel conference
> center. Please register at <www.blindmerchants.org> or by calling
> (866) 543-6808, ext. 10
> 
> _______________________________________________
> nfbmi-talk mailing list
> nfbmi-talk at nfbnet.org
> http://www.nfbnet.org/mailman/listinfo/nfbmi-talk_nfbnet.org
> To unsubscribe, change your list options or get your account info for nfbmi-talk:
> http://www.nfbnet.org/mailman/options/nfbmi-talk_nfbnet.org/suncat0%40gmail.com



From suncat0 at gmail.com  Mon Jul 18 09:51:02 2011
From: suncat0 at gmail.com (Joe Sontag)
Date: Mon, 18 Jul 2011 05:51:02 -0400
Subject: [Vendorsmi] Fw: [nfbmi-talk] state convention
Message-ID: <01062C508CD14A79A9C388DEA6553C30@Alphacat>


----- Original Message ----- 
From: "Larry Posont" <president.nfb.mi at gmail.com>
To: <nfbmi-talk at nfbnet.org>
Sent: Sunday, July 17, 2011 17:51
Subject: [nfbmi-talk] state convention


Dear Michigan Federationists:
Here is a friendly reminder about our State Convention. Please
circulate this widely and invite interested blind people and parents.

The State Convention of the Michigan Affiliate of the National
Federation of the Blind is being held at the Clarion Hotel in
Kalamazoo on November 4-6, 2011. Rooms are $79.99 per night. A
Parent's Seminar will be held as part of the State Convention, both
Friday evening, and Sunday afternoon.

Clarion Hotel
3600 E. Cork St.,
Kalamazoo, MI, 49001
Phone: (269) 385-3922

Sincerely,
Larry Posont
President, National Federation of the Blind of Michigan

_______________________________________________
nfbmi-talk mailing list
nfbmi-talk at nfbnet.org
http://www.nfbnet.org/mailman/listinfo/nfbmi-talk_nfbnet.org
To unsubscribe, change your list options or get your account info for nfbmi-talk:
http://www.nfbnet.org/mailman/options/nfbmi-talk_nfbnet.org/suncat0%40gmail.com



From trising at sbcglobal.net  Fri Jul 29 13:02:29 2011
From: trising at sbcglobal.net (trising at sbcglobal.net)
Date: Fri, 29 Jul 2011 09:02:29 -0400
Subject: [Vendorsmi] Fw: [nfbmi-talk] Lunch for State Board Meeting Please
	Read
Message-ID: <6955A1D824D2422892AE318F73BDBD32@btggjgjwgas>


----- Original Message ----- 
From: "J.J. Meddaugh" <jj at bestmidi.com>
To: "NFB of Michigan Internet Mailing List" <nfbmi-talk at nfbnet.org>; 
"Michigan Association of Blind Students" <mi-abs at nfbnet.org>
Sent: Friday, July 29, 2011 12:59 AM
Subject: [nfbmi-talk] Lunch for State Board Meeting Please Read


Hello. I have been asked to figure out how many people will be attending the 
state board meeting on August 6 in Kalamazoo at the Clarion hotel and 
wanting lunch.
Chapter presidents, please let me know how many from your chapter you 
expect. For those of you not a part of a chapter, please reply to this 
message off list if you plan on attending.
Lunch will be $7 with the rest covered by the affiliate.
All are welcome to state board meetings.


Best Regards,
J.J. Meddaugh
_______________________________________________
nfbmi-talk mailing list
nfbmi-talk at nfbnet.org
http://www.nfbnet.org/mailman/listinfo/nfbmi-talk_nfbnet.org
To unsubscribe, change your list options or get your account info for 
nfbmi-talk:
http://www.nfbnet.org/mailman/options/nfbmi-talk_nfbnet.org/trising%40sbcglobal.net 


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From suncat0 at gmail.com  Fri Jul 29 19:37:51 2011
From: suncat0 at gmail.com (Joe Sontag)
Date: Fri, 29 Jul 2011 15:37:51 -0400
Subject: [Vendorsmi] Fw: what BEP temps are getting away with
Message-ID: <E1D00415BB6D445AABAE722C2F94D3E0@Alphacat>


----- Original Message ----- 
From: "Joe Sontag" <suncat0 at gmail.com>
To: <president.nfb.mi at gmail.com>
Sent: Friday, July 29, 2011 15:32
Subject: what BEP temps are getting away with


> Here is about one year's history of nonreporting and missing payments from these people, one of whom is currently in training to
> become a licensed operator.  I can provide this in xls format if needed.
>
> Strange, there is a promulgated rule stating that a person cannot receive BEP training if the person owes money to the Program. 
> And
> can anybody explain why the Grand Rapids Justice location has been off the bidline?  Has it been set aside for someone special?
> 
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