The Australian Democrats will prevent Labor from disallowing a Regulation that will provide a new system of fair wages for people with a disability working in sheltered workshops. A motion put up by Senator Forshaw (ALP) would disallow Regulation 9 of the Disability Employment and Rehabilitation Program Standards requiring employers to ensure a person with a disability has access to wages and conditions comparable to the workforce. Democrats' Disability Services Spokesperson, Senator Lyn Allison, said, "Many employees in business services are currently paid a pittance and have no access to superannuation, despite working at a high capacity." The Democrats will use the balance of power in the Senate to support new standards. Senator Allison said, "The standards ensure that people unable to work at full capacity because of a disability will have a transparent process to determine a fair pro-rata wage. We believe this is fair for workers, and fair for employers. "These standards will not deliver full award wages to all employees in business services but they are an important and constructive step forward. "People with disabilities have been waiting a long time for these standards and this is not the time to toss them out." Senator Allison said, "If Labor has their way, employers will continue to be able to claim 'inability to pay' as grounds for paying inadequate wages." The standards were developed by a working party with representatives from disability organisations, State and Territory Governments, the National Disability Advisory Council, and importantly, people with a disability and their families. Further Information: Karen Nangle 02 6277 3512 Senator Lyn Allison is the Democrats spokesperson on: Telecommunications, Energy, Nuclear Issues, Schools, Disabilities, Aged Care, Heritage, and Public Service. http://vic.democrats.org.au/lynallison/disabilities/media/index.php ###