The “Sheltered Workshop” Debate Should and Must Continue
The goal of workshops is to help people with disabilities get back to work, if possible, but are they up to the task?
Persons with any type of disability, whether physical or mental, that makes it difficult for them to work, often need a period of retraining to regain or develop their skills. Formerly, these places providing rehabilitation of this type were known as sheltered workshops.
The term, while still in use, has fallen out of favor and has been replaced by others: work centers, business services, and special employers. In Australia, these rehab facilities are called Australian Disability Business Enterprises.
Even though the mission is worthwhile and needed, there are some concerns. The shops provided much-needed help but were not paying workers fairly for their labor. Contracts between businesses and workshops that make small items don't provide that workers will be paid anything near the minimum wage. In some states, such as Utah, this information is not available to the public, and workers may receive fifty cents an hour or less.
Many years ago, while working at a local mental health center, I learned that they paid members in our workshop pennies for each item they made (often putting a sponge on a card). I also remember creating a jig for putting fringes on…
