Lots of good deals at the Goodwill:
Quote:
Goodwill Industries International has been criticized by some for using a provision of federal labor law to pay workers with disabilities less than the federal minimum wage. Under Section 14(c) of the Fair Labor Standards Act of 1938, organizations can obtain a "special wage certificate" to pay workers with disabilities a commensurate wage based on performance evaluations.
7,300 of Goodwill's 105,000 employees are paid under the special wage certificate program. The National Federation of the Blind considers it "unfair, discriminatory, and immoral." Other disability rights advocates have defended Goodwill's use of the special wage certificate to employ workers with disabilities. Terry Farmer, CEO of ACCSES, a trade group that calls itself the "voice of disability service providers," said scrapping the provision could "force [disabled workers] to stay at home," enter rehabilitation, "or otherwise engage in unproductive and unsatisfactory activities."
Goodwill believes that the policy is "a tool to create employment for people with disabilities" who would not otherwise be employed. Goodwill notes that "Eliminating it would remove an important tool for employers and an employment option available to people with severe disabilities and their families. Without the law, many people with disabilities could lose their jobs."
Goodwill has urged Congress to "support legislation that would strengthen the FLSA and increase its enforcement," and to "preserve opportunities for people with disabilities who would otherwise lose the chance to realize the many tangible and intangible benefits of work."
A 2013 FLSA fact sheet from Goodwill states that "Without FLSA Section 14(c), many more people with severe disabilities would experience difficulty in participating in the workforce. These jobs provide individuals with paychecks that they would be unlikely to receive otherwise, as well as ongoing services and support, job security, and the opportunity for career advancement."
A 2013 article on Watchdog.org reported that Goodwill's tax returns showed that more than 100 Goodwills pay less than minimum wage, while simultaneously paying more than $53.7 million in total compensation to top executives.
The former CEO of the Goodwill of Southern California was the highest paid Goodwill executive in the country. He received more than $1.1 million in total compensation. "In 2011, the Columbia Willamette Goodwill, one of the largest in the country, says it paid $922,444 in commensurate wages to approximately 250 people with developmental disabilities. These employees worked 159,584 hours for an average hourly wage of $5.78. The lowest paid worker received just $1.40 per hour."
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Most organizations need periodic review and reform due to entrenched career bureaucrats/corrupt workers that find ways to cheat the system.
Overall, I think that the goals of the organization are noble. Having worked with severely mentally and physically disabled people years ago, I know firsthand the great pride that many disabled people feel at being able to work and socialize with others.
