Alabama company hired disabled workers — and cheated them $540,000 in pay, feds say
A recycling center that employs adults with intellectual disabilities in Alabama cheated its employees out of more than $540,000, according to the U.S. Department of Labor.
Federal officials say the company, along with an organization that helps people with disabilities in the Montgomery, Alabama, area, were supposed to provide services to the employees in exchange for paying less than minimum wage.
In a settlement with the federal agency, the Hanan Center and McInnis Recycling Center, both subsidiaries of Montgomery Arc, ”will pay $541,597 in back wages to 80 employees,” the DOL said.
The Fair Labor Standards Act allows some employers to pay less than minimum wage, but the law “requires that individuals with disabilities receive career counseling, information and referral services from the state vocational rehabilitation agency and information about local opportunities for self-advocacy, self-determination and peer-mentoring training from the employer each year,” according to the DOL.
The department said Montgomery Arc, a disability advocacy organization, also charged the employees for 30-minute lunch breaks even when people did not take a break during a work shift.
“The U.S. Department of Labor is committed to ensuring that all workers receive the wages legally due to them and to protecting workers with disabilities from exploitation in the workplace,” said the DOL’s Kenneth Stripling. “We will continue to provide education and tools to employers to help them understand their responsibilities and how to comply with the law.”
