Hawaii “disability subminimum wage” repealed

On June 16, 2021, Governor David Ige signed legislation, effective immediately, repealing the state’s “disability subminimum wage,” which permitted employers to pay employees with disabilities a wage below the state minimum wage. In support of repeal, the Hawaii legislature cited the Arizona Advisory Committee on the U.S. Commission on Civil Rights findings which reported that the minimum wage exemption no longer served its original purpose in providing a training opportunity towards competitive employment for workers with disabilities, but achieved stagnation in workshops and was a discriminatory practice against workers with disabilities.

By Megan Butz
General Counsel, HR Compliance, Checkwriters
Megan joined Checkwriters in 2020 and is responsible for reviewing, revising, and implementing internal policies of the company, advising on human resource, employment, and labor matters, and monitoring and publishing state and federal legal updates to the Checkwriters News and Compliance Center for distribution to thousands of clients around the country. Before joining Checkwriters, Megan served as a judicial law clerk for the justices of the Massachusetts Probate and Family Court performing legal research and writing, followed by private practice in Cape Cod.

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