海角大神

In the United States, tens of thousands of people diagnosed with intellectual disabilities work in 鈥渟heltered workshops,鈥� performing simple manual tasks and paid based on productivity. More than 30,000 sheltered workshop workers earn less than the federal minimum wage of $7.25, according to the Department of Labor. Nationwide, the workers' average wage is around聽.听

Critics say such workers are treated as 鈥渓ess than,鈥� and may even face abuse. About a third of states have banned subminimum wages for disabled workers.听

鈥淚 felt 鈥� my whole family felt 鈥� I could do so much more than what I was doing,鈥� says Carrie Varner, a disability activist diagnosed with autism, of her time in a sheltered workshop in Minnesota in the late 2000s.

Others supply a different view.听While workshop organizers are required to arrange annual information sessions for each worker to learn about regular employment, few show interest in such work, says Kit Brewer, who leads an advocacy group in support of sheltered workshops.

To proponents, the workshops offer a sense of purpose to a small population that often lacks realistic paths to employment, and may be isolated or preyed on in the general community.听聽on two states that ended sheltered workshops found that most workers ended up unemployed.

In July 2025, the Department of Labor under President Donald Trump withdrew a Biden-era proposed rule to end subminimum wages for disabled workers nationwide.听And some聽sheltered workshops are exploring new ways to serve their attendees,聽offering a mix of minimum-wage work and classes that teach skills for more traditional employment. 聽

John Sweeney returned to his sheltered workshop in rural Pennsylvania after trying a part-time job at a bookstore.听He likes his workshop, he says, because people there celebrate him as 鈥渁 hard worker.鈥澛燗s he and his peers received their biweekly paychecks recently, there were scenes of pride and joy.听Said worker Mike Newby:聽鈥淚 did a good job.鈥澛�