Task Force on Eliminating Subminimum Wages

Meeting Summary: June 14, 2022

· Location: Online meeting (Zoom)

· Participants listed below.

· Go to the task force webpage to find the formal meeting agenda, presentation slides and any other relevant documents from the meeting.

Main meeting topic

Services and supports to help workers with disabilities shift away from subminimum wages and toward jobs in the community that pay minimum wage or higher.

Agenda items

1. Review of current services and supports in Minnesota

2. Feedback from task force listening sessions and on services and supports and update on community engagement work

3. Perspectives and experiences with services and supports

4. Successes and challenges with services and supports - national perspective

5. Activity: Task force members identified solutions for Minnesota services and supports

Activity: Task force members identified solutions for Minnesota services and supports

Following several presentations about services and supports in Minnesota and nationally to help workers with disabilities shift away from subminimum wages, each task force member was asked to share solutions that stood out for providing and increasing use of services and supports for workers. Members offered the following:

Employment services and supports—choices, funding and payment structure

· Invest in the workforce and workforce options, making it a choice for people to pursue employment and keep their jobs.

· Support people in making ongoing choices for their career development, choices beyond the initial decision to find a job.

· Provide additional dollars for employment services and supports and structure payments and contracts to ensure providers help people find the right fit when it comes to jobs.

· Review Minnesota's Disability Waiver Rate System of reimbursement rates for home- and community-based services under Medicaid waivers in order to build the system around investment in work and ongoing employment support.

· Recognized that an important part of investing in workforce and career development begins at the secondary education level and the post-secondary education level, with opportunities for people to engage in authentic work experiences, to gain technical skills and to advance their education, all in ways that align with jobs and industry.

Transportation

· Rethink transportation around the movement of people with disabilities to individual work sites and other locations because that is the model that is needed now, not the old model of picking up a number of people from a group home and transporting them to a limited number of facilities.

· Make sure people with disabilities are at the table for all transportation discussions so that their needs and life experiences can inform those discussions and correct, as needed, the good intentions of others when it comes to proposed transportation changes.

· Recognize that transportation is important for people as they transition out of the secondary education system and into jobs-jobs they may not be able to maintain if they lack transportation.

· Address winter-related transportation challenges for people with disabilities because snow and ice can make bus stops inaccessible and leave someone with disabilities stranded.

· Consider broad transportation issues such as road conditions and traffic jams that affect both people with disabilities and others, too.

Information, communication and education about employment options

· Educate people about competitive integrated employment as a viable option and assume competency for people with disabilities to make informed decisions.

· Offer more information and training to individuals and families about adult services and what those consist of so that they have a realistic idea about options.

· For information about services and supports, move away from the idea of the case manager as the source and gatekeeper and toward wide dissemination of information framed around the principles of universal design, so that people of all ages and abilities can access, understand and use it.

· Move away from case management for employment services and supports and toward specialized upfront services that include navigation assistance, as is done now for housing stabilization services.

· Build on the model from housing stabilization for employment services and supports, with plain guidance in multiple languages for documentation, assessment and preparation ahead of services.

· Hold counties and Minnesota's Department of Human Services accountable for informing individuals and families about their options and for errors and poor choices that result when they fail to do so.

· For accountability, depend on people and agencies without a vested interest in the situation, so not state government, the counties or those who employ people with disabilities.

· Consider fines as a way to hold agencies and partners more accountable for errors and mistakes.

Attitudes about people with disabilities in the work place

· Take steps to change the attitudes of both employers and society more broadly about the contributions that people with disabilities make to the workplace.

Staffing for services and supports, staffing shortages and new approaches

· Raise pay for those who offer direct support for people with disabilities so that they can earn a living wage.

· Shift away from heavy reliance on workers who provide direct supports because there are too fewer of these workers and instead rely more heavily on support from the community and employers, using internships and mentorships, for example.

· Address the growing shortage of professional care givers because that shortage has real and negative impacts on people with disabilities.

· Make it easier for a person with a disability to stay on Medical Assistance for Employed Persons with Disabilities (MA-EPD) -using plain language and relying less on case workers to know the implications for MA-EPD status-particularly as the vision shifts from workers at subminimum wages to workers with higher paying job.

· Recognize the different roles between benefits planners and case managers because case managers do not now address benefits and economic assistance.

Presentations to the task force

Minnesota has the ingredients to shift workers away from jobs that pay subminimum wages

In her welcoming remarks, task force co-chair Andrea Zuber emphasized that Minnesota has in place many of the services and supports that other states have used to enable people with disabilities to shift away from jobs that pay subminimum wages and into jobs in the community that pay minimum wage or higher. “It seems to me that we have a lot of the ingredients and this [task force] really needs to write the recipe,” she said.

Task force updates

As part of his updates for the task force, Jake Granholm from Management Analysis and Development (MAD) talk about the how the task force and its workgroups will move toward recommendations for the plan and report to the legislature. The task force meetings are framed around duties and topics specified by the Minnesota Legislature. At task force meetings, members hear about the topics and options and they express preferences and concerns to inform the workgroups. The workgroups, made up of task force members and subject matter experts, meet to develop specific ideas for task force recommendations. Workgroup participants will present their ideas to the task force for consideration and refinement into recommendations for the task force plan and report. For more, see slides 7 and 8 from the task force presentation slides, to be included with the June 14 meeting materials available on the task force website under the meetings tab.

Review of current services and supports in Minnesota

Ryan Merz of the Disability Services Division at the Department of Human Services (DHS) presented to the task force on Minnesota’s employment support system for people with disabilities. Ryan provided an overview of the employment support system; identified key parts of that system at the state, community and individual level; and identified levers for change that the task force should consider in its recommendations. Altering the employment support system will require policy changes, expanded access to supports, capacity building and training, an increase in knowledge and interest among individuals and alignment of values, he said.

Ryan cited important shared values: Employment First, informed choice, person centeredness, equity and universal design. He outlined State of Minnesota employment services and supports across the four steps important to employment for both adults and students: engage, plan, find a job and keep it. For more on Ryan’s presentation, including Ryan’s points about the state, community and individual levels, review the TFESW slides about Minnesota’s employment support system, to be included with the June 14 meeting materials available on the task force website under the meetings tab.

Task force members discussed the need for accountability to ensure that people know what’s available and that there is consistency in the information that is provided. They discussed challenges and shortcomings with case management.

Feedback from task force listening sessions and on services and supports and update on community engagement work

Scott Dzurka from Public Sector Consultants (PSC) talked about two meetings that PSC organized as part of the task force’s engagement efforts: a large-scale community meeting with about 125 participants on June 6 and a recent session for leaders of the A-Team.

Participants in the large-scale community meeting included people with disabilities, families and services providers. Scott mentioned two key themes related to benefits from the community meeting: addressing income limits for disability benefits and addressing confusion around income limits and county waivers.

From the community meeting, Scott identified the following key themes related to services and supports:

· Communicate better about services.

· Ensure equitable access to services.

· Address direct-support worker shortage crisis.

· Make sure public transportation is more available, more reliable and safer.

· Avoid isolating people who don't move into community jobs.

· Reduce limitations on job coaches' time with workers.

· Address contracted case manager challenges.

· Find meaningful ways for people to spend their days if that is not in competitive integrated employment.

· Make transition programs more consistent.

For points from Scott about key themes related to benefits and key themes related to competitive integrated employment, review the TFESW slides for update on engagement activities, to be included with the June 14 meeting materials available on the task force website under the meetings tab.

PSC held a productive meeting with leaders from the A-Team in Minnesota. Scott shared the following transition needs for a shift toward competitive integrated employment, identified by A-Team leaders:

· Identify meaningful ways people can contribute to their communities if competitive integrated employment isn't a good fit for them or doesn't come quickly.

· Support the existing employment centers with business planning so they can continue to offer other services without closing.

· Identify ways to track individuals currently earning subminimum wage because if it goes away their quality of life is at risk and they might just stay home.

· Solve problems with current contracted case managers-some are undereducated for their role, there is high turnover and they can't offer meaningful help (on employment issues).

· Clarify relationships between the Department of Employment and Economic Development, its Vocational Rehabilitation Services and the Department of Human Services for families and people with disabilities. It's confusing for families and case managers.

For more on A-Team feedback about the beneficial elements of employment at subminimum wages and about concerns with competitive integrated employment, review the TFESW slides for update on engagement activities, to be included with the June 14 meeting materials available on the task force website under the meetings tab.

Erin Lammers from PSC said upcoming engagement sessions over the next month will involve smaller meetings of people with disabilities, families members, subject matter experts and others in order to inform task force recommendations. In addition, PSC has coordinated social media postings both on the work of the task force and with requests for input from persons interested in that work. Posts have appeared on Facebook, LinkedIn and Twitter.

A task force member asked about the role of task force members as advisors for the community engagement effort going forward.

Perspectives and experiences with services and supports

The Task Force heard about perspectives and experiences with services and supports from two presenters, task force member Larissa Beck, Director of Community Living at Reach for Resources and David Dively, Executive Director at the Minnesota Council on Disability.

Larissa Beck

Based on her experiences, Larissa identified the following supports as ones most beneficial for people with disabilities, ones that could be amplified or enhanced:

· Recreational services

· Individual home supports (IHS) with training

· Personal care assistance (PCA) services

· Day support services

· Assistive technology

· Case management

She cited concerns or challenges with exiting supports, including service rates, lack of staff availability, lack of affordable housing, staff turnover and transportation.

For more details on Larissa’s points and for how they relate to the experiences of several people who use services from Reach for Resources, see slides 10 through 15 from the task force presentation slides, to be included with the June 14 meeting materials available on the task force website under the meetings tab.

At the end of her presentation, Larissa raised concerns about the lack of alone time that is allowed under the plans for some people with disabilities.

David Dively

For his comments on services and supports, David focused on the following points:

· Competitive integrated employment is in the best interests of people with disabilities and efforts are needed to educate employers, families, guardians and others about the value of the paid work done by people with disabilities. A cultural shift needs to happen.

· Transportation is important to the shift to competitive integrated employment and it is lacking, especially in Greater Minnesota and for trips unrelated to medical care. Transportation network companies, such as Lyft and Uber, aren't required to make vehicles accessible.

· With competitive integrated employment, rules for earnings and assets should be structured to allow people with disabilities to advance toward economic independence without putting their benefits and supports in question or at risk.

· Affordable housing needs to be accessible housing.

· People with disabilities face barriers when others from their culture frame disabilities using a shame-based lens.

MAD background document for task force on services and supports for workers

Jake Granholm noted that Management Analysis and Development produced a background paper for the task force about services and supports for workers transitioning away from jobs at subminimum wages. This brief will be included with the June 14 meeting materials available on the task force website under the meetings tab. MAD found that Minnesota’s employment services and supports were comparable to those offered in model states, so the challenge for Minnesota may have less to do with what services and supports are missing now and more to do with increasing access to and the use of our existing services and supports. Other states suggested the following ways to increase access and use, although there may be others:

· Build capacity for employment services and supports so that state systems and programs are prepared to help more individuals.

· Change reimbursement rates and structures for employment services and supports so that service providers have a greater incentive to offer them.

· Engage in direct communication and education with workers and families about integrated competitive job opportunities.

Successes and challenges with services and supports – national perspective

David Hoff, Program Director at the Institute for Community Inclusion at the University of Massachusetts in Boston, presented to the task force on successes and supports. He focused two critical areas: transportation and benefits. To review more detail from David’s presentation, review the TFESW slides on successes and challenges, to be included with the June 14 meeting materials available on the task force website under the meetings tab.

To help address transportation challenges, service providers should fully understand transportation options and facilitate an individualized approach for self-determination by the person with disabilities, one that maximizes independence and makes efficient and effective use of resources, David said. He laid out a five-pronged approach to transportation solutions:

· Use existing resources differently, tapping into the significant funds spent already on transportation.

· Build stronger relationships with transportation officials who have expertise on the topic.

· Work with other groups experiencing transportation challenges, including seniors and people without cars.

· Build the transportation competency of service providers.

· Change the transportation mindset to one that moves beyond passive attitudes about old approaches and problems and toward active pursuit of solutions.

On the topic of benefits, David said benefits counseling is everyone’s job, not just a topic for Work Incentives Planning and Assistance (WIPA) under Social Security. He shared a pyramid diagram of Missouri’s approach to benefits education and outreach that depends on a broad base of benefit ambassadors who understand the basics about benefits eligibility; on benefit navigators aware of eligibility, incentives and the general impact of earnings; on credentialed benefit planners with more detailed knowledge; and on the Certified Community Work Incentives Coordinators for WIPA, who can carry out complex benefits analysis and planning.

Wrap up and next meeting

In her closing remarks, task force co-chair Jillian Nelson said the task force is hearing “testimony” in the presentations as it readies a plan and vision for the future. The task force will meet next via Zoom on Tuesday, July 12, from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m.

June 14 participants

Task force members present:

· Larissa Beck

· Sara Ellstra

· Brittanie Hernandez-Wilson

· Amanda Jensen-Stahl

· Alex Junge

· Michelle Kamenov

· Debbie Luther

· Jillian Nelson

· Kristina Petronko

· Lori Schluttenhofer

· Raquel Sidie-Wagner

· Andrea Zuber

Others:

· David Dively, Minnesota Council on Disability

· David Hoff, Institute for Community Inclusion

· Ryan Merz, DSD

· Karen Gaides, MAD

· Jake Granholm, MAD

· Matt Kane, MAD

· Scott Dzurka, PSC

· Erin Lammers, PSC