Dear John,

People with disabilities want - and can - work in mainstream jobs in their community and earn the same as their nondisabled peers through competitive integrated employment.

Yet federal law, known as Section 14(c) of the Fair Labor Standards Act, currently allows people with disabilities to be paid less than the minimum wage. These wages are often pennies on the dollar, and the jobs are in segregated settings where people with disabilities don’t interact with their nondisabled peers.

On November 15, 2019, the U.S. Commission on Civil Rights (USCCR) held a public briefing titled “Subminimum Wages: Impacts on the Civil Rights of People with Disabilities.”

Now, USCCR is seeking written comments from members of the public to help shape a forthcoming report analyzing the use of the 14(c) program and making recommendations on this issue. This is where you come in.

Please submit written comments via the form we created by December 15, 2019. We have included a sample comment to make it easy for you.

Thank you for your help!

- NDRN