Title
Resolution Directing the City Administrator to Advocate for the Michigan Legislature to End the Use of 14(c) Certificates and Subminimum Wage in the State of Michigan
Body
Whereas, Section 14(c) of the Fair Labor Standards (Act) authorizes employers, after receiving a certificate from the United States Department of Labor's Wage and Hour Division, to pay wages less than minimum wage, or subminimum wage, to workers who have disabilities;
Whereas, The Act places no limit on how little an employee with a disability can be paid but does not allow such provisions for underperforming employees;
Whereas, 63 percent of 14(c) employees in Michigan earned a subminimum wage of $3/hour, with nearly half of this group earning less than $2/hour and 23 percent of this group earning less than $1/hour, while the state's minimum wage rests at an already low $10.10/hour1;
Whereas, In 2019, nearly half of all people with disabilities in Michigan lived below the ALICE (Asset Limited, Income Constrained, Employed) threshold of financial survival2 ;
Whereas, People with disabilities are more likely to become impoverished and people living in poverty are more likely to have or acquire a disability or have their existing disability exacerbated by poverty3;
Whereas, 2020 Census data shows that as the US population ages, more people than ever before identify as having a disability4;
Whereas, The rate of non-white people with disabilities is disproportionately higher than the rate of white people with disabilities, contributing to an increase in the rates and types of discrimination experienced5 ;
Whereas, The lack of regulation of the 14(c) program by agencies such as the Department of Labor (DOL) and the Department of Justice (DOJ) has exacerbated the exploitation of 14(c) employees6 ;
Whereas, Paying wages based on ability violates Article 23 of the United Nations' Universal Declaration of Human Rights7;
Whereas, Governor Whitmer's 'Make it in Michigan' plan commits to g...
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