Bill to end paying disabled workers less than minimum wage passes Tennessee House

(The Center Square) – Tennessee came a step closer to ending the practice of paying workers with disabilities less than minimum wage after the House unanimously the measure.

The House replaced its bill with Senate Bill 2040, dubbed the Tennessee Integrated and Meaningful Employment Act, and approved it Monday on an 89-0 vote. It now moves on to Gov. Bill Lee for approval. If he signs the bill, it will go into effect July 1.

The legislation prevents employers from receiving federal approval to pay workers with disabilities in Tennessee less than the federal minimum wage of $7.25 an hour.

Rep. Darren Jernegan, R-Old Hickory, said he carried a similar bill four years ago and thanked Rep. Rush Bricken, R-Tullahoma, for carrying the bill this time in the House.

The bill was previously approved, 27-3, in the Senate.

During the Senate discussion, sponsoring Sen. Jeff Yarbro, R-Nashville, said only two employers in Tennessee have the certification to use the minimum wage exception but did not name them.

One of the few votes against the bill in the Senate came from Sen. Janice Bowling, R-Tullahoma, who said she majored in special education in college and previously volunteered at a sheltered workshop that paid less than minimum wage.

A sheltered workshop is a separate site or area where people with disabilities work under different labor standards.

“While it appears this bill will pass, there is a concern for me that people who actually enjoyed the piecework and the sheltered workshop and who could not go out into the regular workforce, that we need to pay close attention that we don’t lose the opportunity for these people to be meaningful and going to work in their world and providing some degree of useful work,” Bowling said.

Disclaimer: This content is distributed by The Center Square