Ending programs that allow sub-minimum wages for disabled workers

Many people assume that minimum wage laws – whether federal or state – apply to everyone regardless of what kind of work they do or their demographic information. However, that hasn’t always held true for employees with disabilities.

As the Biden administration comes to an end, the U.S. Department of Labor is proposing a new federal rule that could require all workers with disabilities to be paid at least minimum wage. It was estimated last year that more than 120,000 people throughout the country earned less than the federal hourly minimum wage of $7.25. About half of that group earned under $3.50 per hour.

Sub-minimum wages are currently legal under the Fair Labor Standards Act for employers who get certificates to employ disabled workers in special programs primarily for people with intellectual and developmental disabilities. The new federal rule could end these certificates within three years. There’s no way of knowing, however, what will become of the proposed rule under the Trump administration.

California law and sub-minimum wages in ‘sheltered workshops’

Fortunately, California is ahead of the federal government on ending the sub-minimum wage. Several years ago, Gov. Gavin Newsom signed a law eliminating certificates that allow employers to pay disabled workers less than the state minimum wage.

Like the proposed federal rule, the state law requires a phase-out of the certificates for these “sheltered workshops” where some 12,000 Californians were working for as little as 15 cents per hour in some cases. The law requires full compliance by Jan. 1, 2025.

The number of workplaces paying sub-minimum wage has already decreased significantly since the law was signed. The law includes a plan to transition workers in these programs to other types of work. No matter the work they end up doing, they cannot be paid less than the state’s minimum wage.

California was the 13^th state to make sub-minimum wages illegal. An official with the State Council on Developmental Disabilities stated, “California was long overdue to end the sub-minimum wage and with this policy change, we can move forward to creating new opportunities that ensure that people with disabilities have meaningful days on many different levels.”

For Californians with disabilities that keep them out of many “traditional” workplaces, these programs may help them find fulfillment and purpose as well as learn valuable skills. Seeking legal guidance may help those with disabilities and their loved ones to know and assert their rights to fair pay.