Protect Section 14-C Employment

“My son Jonathan is a delightful nonverbal autistic 20 year-old man. Powerfully built, he has a supercharged energy and a deep well of affection for loved ones and his iTunes library. But Jonny is also profoundly intellectually impaired.

Accomplishing even simple tasks requires vigorous prompting and continuous oversight, and chances are that along the way he might bite, stand on, or even throw his chair. As muscular and lovable though he may be, his chances of landing a competitive job are exactly zero….

It is simply inconceivable that a commercial employer would willingly hire someone like Jonny, who cannot talk, read, or write, and at best can follow only one-step directions, over a non-disabled person whose productivity is ten times greater.”

-- Jill Escher, President of the National Council on Severe Autism

BOTTOM LINE: Anyone – anyone – who can get a competitive job that pays minimum wage or better should do exactly that. But for those with severe cognitive disabilities for whom that competitive job is just not ever going to be possible, Section 14 (c) work is a lifeline… the only alternative to being a permanent volunteer or worse.

80,000 Section 14 (c) have disappeared since 2019, and the remaining 40,000 are at immediate risk. Please use this link to voice your opinion and help protect Section 14-C, before the January 17 deadline for comments. https://www.ncsautism.org/action#/2