Iowa prepares to charge employer of workers with disabilities
February 10th, 2009By Clark Kauffman in the Des Moines Register:
The 21 mentally retarded men who have lived for decades in a century-old bunkhouse in rural Atalissa were declared dependent adults Monday, opening the door to criminal prosecution of their employer.
At the same time, Muscatine County prosecutors filed a court petition seeking an emergency order placing the men under the protective supervision of the Iowa Department of Human Services.
… Sen. Joe Bolkcom, D-Iowa City, said it appeared all the money the men were making was routed to a bank account in Texas, where Henry’s Turkey Service is based. The men lived on $60 to $70 per month, he said.
“This seems to me it is virtually slave labor here in our state,” Bolkcom said.
Earlier post here.
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