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Virginia Beach man who lost "sheltered workshop" job of 25 years gets a new one

Virginian-Pilot - 4/21/2018

April 21--When I first wrote last summer about Chris Cook losing a job he'd held for 25 years, I received impassioned responses from across the country.

Some people were incensed that Cook, who is 51 and has an intellectual disability, was losing a packaging job because the company was getting rid of what many refer to as "14c" jobs.

Those used to be called "sheltered workshop" jobs, a term that has fallen out of favor. It refers to a workplace where people with disabilities, under careful supervision, do tasks like applying labels to envelopes, packing boxes and putting screws in bags. They get paid less than minimum wage, according to how many units they complete.

Other people, while sympathetic to Cook's plight, applauded the underlying progress in the field of the disabled. The working world is moving toward more integrated, competitive settings for people with disabilities that give them better opportunities to move up and pay at or above the minimum wage.

What I learned is that the topic of employment and the disabled is a lively one, and that the only thing everyone seems to agree on is that the demand for jobs outstrips the supply. About 64 percent of people with disabilities don't work, according to the federally funded Rehabilitation Research and Training Center on Disability Statistics and Demographics.

I'm returning to the subject for a couple of reasons. One, Cook found a new job, this one at Eggleston. The local company serves about 1,000 people with disabilities a year in settings ranging from jobs that pay at least minimum wage in the community, to 14c jobs, to programs with day activities that include art, recreation and often what's called a "work experience."

This is also a chance to tell you about a "community conversation" that's coming up on May 18 to discuss the issue in greater depth, with the idea of finding more jobs for people with disabilities, and the role that faith communities can play.

While opinions vary, most people agree that sheltered-workshop-type jobs are going by the wayside. The term isn't even used anymore. Eggleston, for instance, is called an "employment services organization."

At one time, all of Eggleston's jobs were considered 14c, a Fair Labor Standards Act certificate that came about in 1938 with the idea of expanding job opportunities for disabled veterans. Employers apply for certificates that allow them to compensate people with disabilities at a rate less than minimum wage. Pay is based on the reduced amount the disabled person can produce compared to someone without a disability.

Over time, advocates for the disabled said that the jobs unfairly segregated them. The term "subminimum wage" arose in arguments that the disabled were being exploited. The National Council on Disability has recommended phasing out 14c jobs. Now, federal contracts require wages of at least $10.35 an hour.

Eggleston has laundry contracts for military installations that require that wage. Gradually, companies like Eggleston, Community Alternatives Inc. and Goodwill are shifting to different models that pay higher wages.

Those programs are more expensive to maintain, so do the math and recognize that translates into fewer jobs. At Eggleston, about 185 jobs are what Eggleston President and CEO Paul Atkinson calls the "best practice" model, paying at least minimum wage, in integrated settings in the community.

The number of 14c jobs has fallen below 100. Cook has one of them at a facility on Military Highway in Norfolk. Wednesday he sat at a table with other people with disabilities, carefully placing an address label on a civic league newsletter.

Eggleston also has a day services program, with art and recreational activities, along with what is called a work experience rather than a job -- for instance, rolling silverware in napkins at the Yard House restaurant or passing out flyers.

Fenton Priest, vice president of business operations at Eggleston, showed me other divisions at the center where Cook works. People shred documents, transfer paper ones into electronic form and repair remote control devices. Priest said they're trying to grow jobs with better pay, but it can be hard to find companies that will agree to a contract.

"People love our mission, but if I quote a price that's way out of line, they're going to turn me down. I'm in a competitive environment."

The shift toward jobs that pay at least minimum wage or day programs that offer activities instead of jobs is going on across the country. Donna Bonessi, deputy director of employment services and special programs for the Virginia Department for Aging and Rehabilitative Services, said it won't happen overnight, for the very reason that people like Cook have worked in the jobs for decades.

"There's definitely passion on both ends, and they both have the best of intentions for people with disabilities."

Rosemarie Hughes, Cook's mother, thinks it's wrong to get rid of the 14c, especially for people like her son, who has made work part of his routine. She said he often turned down field trips after he lost his job last summer because he thought an opportunity would come up to do something like he used to do.

"He'd go home with 10 sheets that he colored that day," Hughes said.

In November, Cook switched to Eggleston and started working again.

Bonessi said that more education and counseling services are available to younger people today. The hope is to give them more input and choice in what they do after high school. People who are higher-functioning have an easier time of it. For instance, those with vision and hearing disabilities can use adaptive technology to work.

Federal statistics show that 51 percent of people with hearing disabilities are employed, compared to 26 percent of people with cognitive disabilities and 17 percent who can't live independently.

But Bonessi said people with all kinds of disabilities should have job opportunities and choices. Years ago, the sheltered workshop settings were often just a place to keep people occupied and socializing with others. Older people with disabilities may have gone to schools or training centers when there was less emphasis on transitioning them to life after high school. Today, there's more discussion about what people want to do. Federal policies require people with 14c jobs to receive annual career counseling.

With help from his mother, Cook answered some questions about his new job:

What do you do here? "I work here."

Do you like it? "I like working here."

Are you happy? "Yeah, I am."

And with that, he was back on the job.

___

(c)2018 The Virginian-Pilot (Norfolk, Va.)

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