This is big news and it will freak a bunch of you out. This means that in the year 2029 we will no longer be able to pay people piece rate for Workshop jobs. Say it out loud: 2029. There are five years to plan and adjust and figure out how best to do things and make sure people are getting the vocational supports they want and need. This has been coming for more than a decade. The difference is that we finally have an exact date. This is the reason way back 15 years ago Streator Unlimited did the RICES grant and become certified in Customized Employment and why we became a pilot site for Customized Employment contracts with DRS when those began. We’ve been working to make sure we’re ready for changes in the service system so we can keep doing a good job well into the future.
The intention of this legislation is for people to work in the community rather than at workshops. It’s a good intention. The practicalities of that, as we know, are a different matter. The realities of taking 10 people working on a job paid per piece with Jeanne or Leesa running it are different from 10 people all finding a job in the community where an employer will pay them minimum wage. And the resources it takes to accomplish that in a way that feels good to everyone are much more intensive (and expensive).
What that means is we’ll need to put a lot of thought into what we do with our workshop (just work with people who can work at a minimum wage pace? figure out some kind of blended operation? close it and move into purely placements with community employers?). We’ve been preparing for this for a long time, and we’ve got five years. Don’t freak out.
There is one thing we know we’ll need. The rates the state pays (even with the increases in the legislation) for competitive employment services are too low. That will have to be part of the advocacy related to this legislation.
There is one other thing we know. Things change, and not all change is bad. 70 years ago if you had a child with an intellectual or developmental disability you might have been told the best thing to do would be to send them away to an institution, far away from everyone and away from society. Then groups of parents, families, and community leaders said no to that and begin creating what would become group homes and sheltered workshops/day programs, so that their family members could remain in their community. 70 years from now maybe there won’t be anything “special” about having an intellectual or developmental disability aside from some support being available when needed to be fully participating as an individual in every aspect of work and community life. It’s already happening and we are already a part of that. We will greet the future and find the good it holds for Streator Unlimited and the people we serve.