National Disability Rights Network Statement About Preventing Worker Exploitation: Protecting Individuals With Disabilities & Other Vulnerable Populations

March 9, 2009 An employer in Atalissa, Iowa, who for 30 years had provided substandard living and employment conditions for employees with developmental disabilities was the topic of a hearing by the Senate Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions. The committee sought to understand how the situation could have occurred and how to prevent similar abuses in the future. In his testimony, Curtis Decker the executive director of the National Disability Rights Network noted that the current wage and employment policies are outmoded because they fail to reflect advances in assistive technology, supported employment, and the use of behavioral . . .