This article brings up the old and tired argument of the abilities of
high partials, low partials, and totals.  This difference is artificial
when people are accommodated for their needs.  In the instance of the blind
employee below, he could have been accommodated with a scanning system that
would read the photo id.  In typical fashion, inability was assumed rather
than capacity.  The article below shows how much more work we need to do
to show the benefits of adapted technology and what options it opens up.

kelly 





San Fransisco Chronicle 

Law's Best Intentions Clash at N.Y. Newsstand
Statute to help the blind pitted against attempt to curb teen smoking
Rick Brand,  <mailto:[log in to unmask]> Newsday
Tuesday, July 25, 2000
©2000 San Francisco  <http://www.sfgate.com/chronicle/info/copyright>
Chronicle


URL:
http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?file=/chronicle/archive/2000/07/25
/MN46159.DTL
<http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?file=/chronicle/archive/2000/07/2
5/MN46159.DTL>


Hauppauge, N.Y. -- Until last week, Mike Rendina, a man with an easy laugh
and friendly manner, worked at a hole-in-the-wall concession off the lobby
of a state office building where he was immensely popular with employees.

Only on the job seven months, Rendina, blind since birth, knew the names of
most customers from their voices, could tell people where every item was
stocked and could make change better than most sighted persons.

But two weeks ago, the 44-year- old man lost his job at the stand known as
Small Change after Suffolk County health officials conducted a sting and
Rendina unknowingly sold a pack of cigarettes to a 16-year-old sent in by
the department.

Rendina is a casualty of the collision of two seemingly separate and
worthwhile government programs -- a federal law that sets up newsstands and
snack shops in public buildings to employ the blind and a state program that
finances undercover operations to keep youngsters from smoking.

Morgan Edwards, owner of the stand and himself visually impaired, said he
reluctantly dismissed Rendina after health officials, who issued no
violation, told him he could not continue to allow Rendina to sell
cigarettes while alone at the stand. Edwards said they also warned that
further inspections were likely.

Edwards said he took the action after consulting the state Commission for
the Blind, which said there was nothing it could do to protect Rendina and
recommended he let the employee go to protect his tobacco-selling permit.

``It was the last thing I wanted to do,'' said Edwards, who considers
Rendina a friend. ``And Mike was so understanding, it made me feel even
worse.''

Rendina's departure, however, has spurred a petition drive, signed by more
than 300 state workers, who want to see his job restored.

``This is entrapment,'' said Barbara Hoffman of the Civil Services Employees
Association. ``What about the disabilities laws?''

Others said the sting was unneeded because few minors use the building.

The stand, one of 125 across the state, was set up under the 1936 federal
Randolph-Sheppard Act, which gives preference to the blind to operate
newsstands, snack bars and food operations in public buildings. In New York,
the state Commission for the Blind equips such facilities for visually
impaired operators who are trained by the state and given space rent-free.
After the first $1,250, Edwards said, they give 20 percent of the profits to
the state.

The county's director of handicapped services criticized health officials
for directing the sting at the concession stand set up for the blind.
``That's just ridiculous,'' said Bruce Blower. ``The whole purpose of the
stand is to provide jobs for blind people.''

But Richard Meyer, the health department's principal sanitarian, defended
the law's enforcement, done under contract with the state, emphasizing that
the agency did not demand Rendina's firing or take any formal action against
the operator.

``We understood the unique circumstances. That's why we only issued a
warning,'' said Meyer. ``But they have to deal with the problem. If we could
buy them, kids could buy them, and kids are in there all the time getting
junior licenses and other things.''

Meyer said the concession owner had other options, including eliminating
sales of cigarettes, have someone who can see help with checking
identification cards or installing scanning devices that would read out what
is on ID cards. Edwards said adding staff or giving up cigarette sales is
unrealistic because his shop is small and tobacco products make up much of
his income.

Rendina does not blame Edwards or health officials, but he criticized the
state's Commission for the Blind for not providing up-to-date gear to help
operators. ``They told Morgan to cut me loose,'' he said. ``They didn't want
to deal with it.'

William Van Slyke, a spokesman for the Office of Children and Family
Services, which oversees the commission, disputed those claims. ``We would
not recommend terminating an employee for that kind of reason,'' he said.

But he acknowledged that a district manager told Edwards there was ``nothing
they could do about it'' when notified about the incident. ``It's an
unfortunate circumstance,'' Van Slyke said.

Although the commission provides some stands with scanners, Van Slyke said
there are none that do an audio readout of ID cards. He said the agency
recommended that shops employ someone who can see well enough to check IDs.

Melanie Brunson, director of advocacy and government affairs for the
American Council of the Blind, said the Americans With Disabilities Act bans
discrimination against disabled employees who are otherwise qualified as
long as they can perform the essential functions of their job. She also said
that employees have the right to ask employers to make accommodations so
they can perform the job and that there is scanning technology that reads
material aloud for the blind.

Rendina said he is so upset that he is not sure he wants to return to a
commission-run stand. He also said he is also considering possible legal
action. But he is also gratified by the reaction of people in the building.

``I do appreciate what they are doing,'' said Rendina. ``I didn't think
anyone would even notice I was gone.''


©2000 San Francisco  <http://www.sfgate.com/chronicle/info/copyright>
Chronicle   Page A5 sections


VICUG-L is the Visually Impaired Computer User Group List.
To join or leave the list, send a message to
[log in to unmask]  In the body of the message, simply type
"subscribe vicug-l" or "unsubscribe vicug-l" without the quotations.
 VICUG-L is archived on the World Wide Web at
http://maelstrom.stjohns.edu/archives/vicug-l.html