Speak Out on Subminimum Wages

The Institute on Community Integration this week submitted a public comment letter to the U.S. Department of Labor, urging the phaseout of certificates that allow workers with disabilities to be paid less than the federal minimum wage.

ICI is leading the Minnesota Transformation Initiative (MTI), a project funded by the state Department of Human Services as part of a statewide effort to support more people with disabilities to find competitive jobs in their communities.

From 2022-2024, MTI supported seven Minnesota provider organizations to transform their service models and relinquish the certificates that permit them to pay subminimum wages, ICI’s Julie Bershadsky (pictured) wrote in a letter to Daniel Navarrete, director of the division of regulations, legislation, and interpretation in the Labor Department’s Wage and Hour Division.

“These providers supported 675 people to shift from subminimum wage employment into a combination of competitive, integrated employment, group employment, day supports, and center-based work at or above minimum wage,” wrote Bershadsky, director of community living and employment at ICI. “These seven providers ended 2024 with sustainable long-term business plans.”

Anyone can submit a comment about the proposed rulemaking, known as Employment of Workers with Disabilities Under Section 14(c) of the Fair Labor Standards Act. Comments are being accepted until 11 p.m. Central Time on January 17. They can be submitted electronically via www.regulations.gov (RIN 1235-AA14).