News
DRSC February Newsletter
February 25, 2021
Vaccination Priority for People with Disabilities
On February 19, 2021 Disability Rights South Carolina (DRSC) as well as multiple other agencies, sent a letter to Governor McMaster as well as to the Department of Health and Environmental Concerns about the prioritization of people with certain disabilities for vaccinations. Although many people with disabilities are healthy, there are people with disabilities that are vulnerable due to their health status. These people include individuals with significant physical disabilities, high-risk medical conditions, and individuals with intellectual and developmental disabilities. You can read the full letter on our website.
Community Feedback Survey
We want to ensure that our work is having the greatest impact on people with disabilities in South Carolina. To do this, we set annual goals and priorities that will guide our work. Before we write goals and priorities we need to know what you think! Help us by taking our community feedback survey. Available in English https://www.surveymonkey.com/r/DRSCSurvey and Spanish https://es.surveymonkey.com/r/DRSCSurveyEspanol
Advocacy Watch: Subminimum Wage Bill
Earlier this month, Senator Katrina Shealy introduced a bill to the Statehouse that would end subminimum wage for people with disabilities. Currently, the United States still operates under a law in the Fair Labor Standards Act of 1938, which grants certain employers a 14(c) certificate to pay people with disabilities less than the minimum wage—sometimes pennies an hour. In South Carolina as of 2020, approximately 1,200 people with disabilities are making less than the minimum wage.
Amtrak Settlement
Amtrak is to pay $2.25 Million Dollars for harm caused by inaccessible train stations, to include the station in Dillon SC. If you suffered physical or emotional harm at the train station in Dillon, SC because it was not accessible to people with mobility disabilities between July 27, 2013, and December 2, 2020. Learn more on our website.