[Nfbnet-members-list] Fwd: National Federation of the Blind Urges Boycott of Goodwill Industries

[David Andrews]

>
>FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
>
>
>
>CONTACT:
>
>Chris Danielsen
>
>Director of Public Relations
>
>National Federation of the Blind
>(410) 659-9314, extension 2330
>(410) 262-1281(Cell)
><mailto:cdanielsen at nfb.org>cdanielsen at nfb.org
>
>
>
>
>National Federation of the Blind Urges Boycott of Goodwill Industries
>
>
>
>
>
>Condemns Practice of Paying Subminimum Wages to Workers with Disabilities
>
>
>
>
>
>Baltimore, Maryland (June 7, 2012): <http://www.nfb.org/>The 
>National Federation of the Blind (NFB), one of the oldest and 
>largest organizations of Americans with disabilities, today called 
>for a boycott of Goodwill Industries International, Inc., the 
>nonprofit manufacturer and retailer, for its payment of subminimum 
>wages to many of its workers with disabilities.  Freedom of 
>information requests filed by the NFB confirmed that Goodwill 
>Industries employees have been paid as low as $1.44 an hour.  The 
>NFB and 
><http://nfb.org/Images/nfb/documents/word/HR_3086_Support_List_2.doc>over 
>forty-five other organizations support legislation, the 
><http://nfb.org/Images/nfb/SI/Fair%20Wages%20for%20Workers%202012.pdf>Fair 
>Wages for Workers with Disabilities Act (H.R. 3086), which would 
>phase out and then repeal the nearly seventy-five-year-old provision 
>of the Fair Labor Standards Act that permits 
><http://www.dol.gov/whd/specialemployment/CRPlist.htm>special 
>certificate holders to pay subminimum wages to workers with disabilities.
>
>
>
>Dr. Marc Maurer, President of the 
><http://www.twitter.com/nfb_voice>National Federation of the Blind, 
>said: "Goodwill Industries is one of the most well-known and 
>lucrative charitable organizations in the United States, yet it 
>chooses to pay its workers with disabilities less than the federal 
>minimum wage.  While this practice is currently legal and many 
>entities engage in it, many other nonprofit organizations have 
>successfully transitioned to paying their employees the minimum wage 
>or higher.  That Goodwill Industries exploits many of its workers in 
>this way is ironic, because its president and chief executive 
>officer is blind.  Goodwill cannot credibly argue that workers with 
>disabilities are incapable of doing productive work while paying its 
>blind CEO over half a million dollars a year.  Goodwill should be 
>ashamed of such blatant hypocrisy.   We are calling upon all 
>Americans to refuse to do business with Goodwill Industries, to 
>refuse to make donations to the subminimum-wage exploiter, and to 
>refuse to shop in its retail stores until it exercises true 
>leadership and sound moral judgment by fairly compensating its 
>workers with disabilities."
>
>
>
>For more information on this critically important issue, please 
>visit <http://www.nfb.org/fairwages>www.nfb.org/fairwages.
>
>
>
>
>
>###
>
>
>
>
>
>About the National Federation of the Blind
>
>
>
>With more than 50,000 members, the National Federation of the Blind 
>is the largest and most influential membership organization of blind 
>people in the United States.   The NFB improves blind people's lives 
>through advocacy, education, research, technology, and programs 
>encouraging independence and self-confidence.  It is the leading 
>force in the blindness field today and the voice of the nation's 
>blind.  In January 2004 the NFB opened the National Federation of 
>the Blind Jernigan Institute, the first research and training center 
>in the United States for the blind led by the blind.
>
>
>
>
>
>
-------------- next part --------------
An HTML attachment was scrubbed...
URL: <http://nfbnet.org/pipermail/nfbnet-members-list_nfbnet.org/attachments/20120607/4a5df9d9/attachment.html>