Latest news with #FairLaborStandardsActof1938
Yahoo
3 days ago
- Politics
- Yahoo
Ohio bill would require employers to pay people with disabilities minimum wage
COLUMBUS, Ohio (WCMH) – While federal law allows employers to pay some individuals with disabilities less than minimum wage, Ohio lawmakers are attempting to eliminate the practice in the state. House Bill 225, sponsored by Reps. Dontavius Jarrells (D-Columbus) and Tom Young (R-Washington Twp.), seeks to phase out subminimum wages for employees with disabilities over a five-year period. Indoor park with 'waterless slides' opens first Ohio location in Columbus 'This bipartisan legislation is about dignity,' Jarrells said at a hearing for the bill in May. 'It's about economic opportunity and it's about making sure every Ohioan, regardless of ability, has the right to fair wages and the chance to contribute meaningfully to their communities.' Section 14(c) of the Fair Labor Standards Act of 1938 permits employers to pay workers whose disabilities impact their productivity less than the federal hourly minimum wage of $7.25, if they obtain a certificate from the U.S. Department of Labor. The practice is intended to prevent the restriction of employment opportunities for those with disabilities, according to the department. Introduced in April, the bill would require employers who hold a certificate to submit a plan regarding phasing out subminimum wage to the Ohio Department of Developmental Disabilities. The plan would have to be submitted within 15 months of the bill's effective date. Under the legislation, the state would assist employers with implementing their plans. Over the five-year transition period, the state would also be required to gather, monitor and publicly report the progress of the phase-out. Unsolved Ohio: Who killed Amy Jo Nelson? Family wants answers in 2017 homicide The bill underwent three hearings in the House's Commerce and Labor Committee in May, where more than 40 people testified in support of the bill. 'Paying people with disabilities less than minimum wage devalues their labor and reinforces harmful stereotypes that their work is worth less,' said Justin Blumhorst with the disability support organization Capabilities. 'Many people with disabilities perform as well as or better than their non-disabled peers when given the proper support and accommodations.' Seven spoke out against the legislation, including Brittany Stiltner with Sandco Industries, a nonprofit that provides employment skills training to people with developmental disabilities. 'At Sandco, the 14(c) certificate allows us to provide customized, supportive employment opportunities to individuals who may not be able to succeed in a traditional competitive work environment,' Stiltner said in written testimony. 'Phasing out this option entirely would eliminate opportunities for people who depend on it – individuals whose stories too often go unheard in policy conversations.' In Ohio, 41 businesses have obtained federal 14(c) certificates, most of which are nonprofit agencies that 'provide rehabilitation and employment for people with disabilities,' often in a 'sheltered' setting, according to the Labor Department. Intel executive explains why Ohio plant will need to fight for Intel's business Jarrells introduced a similar bill last April, but it only received one hearing and did not progress to the point of receiving a vote. Sixteen states have already legislated or initiated the phase-out of subminimum wages, according to Jarrells. In December, the Labor Department proposed phasing out the practice nationally over three years. The agency has not provided an update on the status of the proposal since. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Yahoo
02-06-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Changes proposed to Pennsylvania's minimum wage statutes
(WHTM) — A bill circulating in the State House proposes changes to Pennsylvania's minimum wage laws. The bill, proposed by State Rep. Christopher Rabb (D-200), aims to fundamentally improve the application of minimum wage principles to ensure they are more broadly and fairly applied. According to the memo, the bill proposes making critical updates to the definition of 'employee,' strengthening protections against wage theft, and extending eligibility for the minimum wage to classes of workers who are 'historically and unfairly excluded from the federal Fair Labor Standards Act of 1938.' Rep. Rabb's memo says the bill will abolish the sub-minimum tipped wage that 'subsidizes corporations that profit from providing poverty wages to their employees at the expense of taxpaying customers.' The bill would ensure that gratuities are the sole property of the employee and that none of the wages are taken by an employer for processing fees. Close Thanks for signing up! Watch for us in your inbox. Subscribe Now The memo adds that the bill would also repeal the state preemption of municipal or county ordinances to set minimum wage standards, empowering local governments to enact minimum wage provisions that best reflect their community's needs. Further, Rep. Rabb's memo says the bill would expand eligibility for the minimum wage in our Commonwealth to people who have been historically disenfranchised and excluded from labor laws, including 'incarcerated, domestic, agricultural, neurodivergent, youth, and gig workers.' The bill has not been submitted for introduction yet. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Axios
10-04-2025
- General
- Axios
New book spotlights San Antonio pecan shellers strike
A local author hopes her new book, a fictionalized story of the San Antonio pecan shellers strike, reaches school-aged children who might not otherwise know about the historic movement. Why it matters: Author Lupe Ruiz-Flores aims to humanize the Latinas who helped spur a landmark law setting federal minimum wage and overtime pay standards — especially when such stories are threatened by book bans in Texas and across the nation. State of play: " The Pecan Sheller," released by Lerner Publishing Group this month, features a fictional teenage girl in San Antonio who wants to become a writer, but has to drop out of school to shell pecans to help her family. She eventually joins the real-life strike for better wages and safer working conditions. The latest: Ruiz-Flores will present the book, aimed at kids in the fifth through eighth grades, at 1:30pm on Saturday at the San Antonio Book Festival. Flashback: In January 1938, around 12,000 pecan shellers — mostly Hispanic women — began a strike in San Antonio that lasted three months. Employees often worked more than 10 hours a day, seven days a week for $2 to $3 weekly pay. When companies decreased wages, Emma Tenayuca of the Texas Workers Alliance led a strike. The workers eventually won higher pay, clearing the way for the Fair Labor Standards Act of 1938 — a bedrock labor law that established a minimum wage. Zoom in: Ruiz-Flores grew up in San Antonio knowing her mom shelled pecans as a teenager and didn't get to finish high school. But it wasn't something they discussed, and Ruiz-Flores never learned about the strike in school. In 1999, when she read that Tenayuca had died, she thought of her mom. Ruiz-Flores interviewed her mother and used bits of her personal history in the new fictionalized book. Unlike the main character in her book, Ruiz-Flores' mother did not actually join the strike. What they're saying: Hispanic history is often "put aside, and people don't know about it," Ruiz-Flores tells Axios. "I just want (children) to know what happened." It's important that students learn about local history through personal stories, not just in a textbook, she adds. "Especially Latinos, Mexican American children, we need to let them know that we had a part in the history of the United States," Ruiz-Flores says. Yes, but: Ruiz-Flores, who says she hopes kids read her book in school, worries it could be banned. The big picture: Texas is one of the top states in the country for the number of book titles it has challenged in public schools and libraries, according to the American Library Association.
