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The RESPECT of Florida e-Newsletter
September 2016


RESPECT of Florida is the central non-profit agency for the State of Florida that helps employ more than 1,250 Floridians with disabilities through the production of commodities and contractual services that are sold to government entities. If you would like to learn more about us or browse our catalog, visit us at:  respectofflorida.org


A Message from Executive Director Ryland Musick


Most governmental purchasers know RESPECT offers janitorial and lawn maintenance services, as well as a variety of commodities. Many of our buyers are surprised to hear that RESPECT's partners perform a variety of services beyond janitorial and lawn maintenance. Additional services include Office Support, Call Center Monitoring, Fleet Maintenance, and Price Per Page Copying and Toner Maintenance but our partners' capabilities do not stop there. Many of our partners work on private and/or federal contracts providing Food service, IT work, Temporary Staffing, and much more.

RESPECT understands the need for its government buyers to conduct hassle-free procurements. To better serve our customers, RESPECT has committed to reviewing its procedures for preparing pricing proposals and creating a more standardized method. Internally, RESPECT management and staff have held multiple workshops to work out the details. Most recently, RESPECT's Oversight Committee agreed to form a Services Pricing Workgroup. All of these efforts are aimed at the goal of providing state and local governments high quality products and services and competitive pricing to meet our customers' needs.


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Meetings, Training, and Events

October
- Disability Employment Awareness Month
October 5
- Exceptional Employer Awards, Tallahassee


Commodity of the Month -
12 month Laminated Wall Calendars
 


This 12 month, 2 foot by 3 foot calendar is laminated for use with erasable overhead projector and transparency markers and includes all 12 months with national holidays. The poster is printed with landscape-orientation on one side and portrait-orientation on the reverse side. 
 



Employees of the Year Awards

2016 RESPECT Award Winners
RESPECT's partner Employment Centers throughout the state nominated 28 employees working in RESPECT programs for the Employee of the Year Awards. The Awards Ceremony was held on September 21st in Tampa. Betty Scott from The Arc of the Glades, Inc. and Matthew Beasley from CARC - Advocated for Citizens with Disabilities, Inc. won the Employees of the Year for Services. Scott Adams from Louise Graham Regeneration Center, Inc. won the Employee of the Year for Commodities. Robert Taylor from Stewart-Marchman-Act Behavioral Healthcare won the Most Improved Employee of the Year Award, and Warren Watson from Brevard Achievement Center won the Rookie of the Year Award. Congratulations to the winners and all of the outstanding nominees!
Employment Centers of the Year - Gulfstream Goodwill Industries and Lighthouse WORKS!

2016 ECs of the YearThe Employment Centers of the Year Awards are given to Employment Centers that demonstrate excellence in responsiveness, creativity, enthusiasm, innovation, and a whole host of other areas.

The winner for Employment Center of the Year for commodities was Lighthouse WORKS!.  This year Lighthouse WORKS! has shown great commitment to developing new commodities and providing meaningful employment to people with disabilities.

We are really excited about the progress we've made in our commodities area this year, and Lighthouse WORKS! is responsible for a lot of that increased activity. 

Lighthouse WORKS! supplies toothbrushes, alcohol pads, and compatible OEM toner cartridges.  Most recently, Lighthouse WORKS! added LED Lighting products and Medical and Dental supplies to their list of assignments. 

The winner for Employment Center of the Year for services was Gulfstream Goodwill.  Gulfstream Goodwill has provided services for RESPECT for more than 20 years in the Palm Beach, Martin, and St. Lucie counties. 

Gulfstream Goodwill has diverse experience with many different government entities as well as the private sector.  They provide outstanding service at the Rest Areas on I-95 in Martin and St. Lucie counties.

Gulfstream Goodwill continues to grow with service contracts due to their exceptional responsiveness and customer service.

Congratulations to Lighthouse WORKS! and Gulfstream Goodwill for being our Employment Centers of the Year. 
  Customer of the Year - Department of Transportation


2016 Customer of the Year DOT For over 30 years, one state agency has consistently supported RESPECT and our mission to employ people with disabilities.  The FDOT utilizes RESPECT and Partner Employment Centers to maintain highway rest areas, weigh stations, office buildings and other facilities.  The Department has also been a steady purchaser of commodities supplied by RESPECT.  This past year alone, the Department helped employ more than 600 individuals with disabilities through RESPECT contracts.  For its steadfast support and with much appreciation, we congratulate the Florida Department of Transportation and Secretary Jim Boxold, as 2016 RESPECT Customer & Employer of the year.   The award was presented to Lance Grace, District Maintenance Engineer for District 7 at the RESPECT Annual Awards Luncheon on September 21, 2016.
Equal Pay for Women
&
A Goodbye

Bruntlett_Framed
Florida ARF Operations Director John Bruntlett
Equal pay for women performing the same or similar jobs as men has been a hot topic for decades.  Much progress has been made over the decades and women have been moving into higher paying jobs in both management and professional fields.  The White House says that full-time working women earn 77% of what their male counterparts earn.  However, Pew Research studies reveal that figure to be 84%; and for young women the gap is even smaller at 93%.  Even though the pay gap by percentage has shrunk 16 points, the problem does still exist.

What is the leading contributor to the pay gap between women and men?  The most common thought is that women are far more likely to interrupt their careers to have and raise children and/or take care of a family member.  Their male counterparts meanwhile are advancing in their careers and receiving pay increases.  It would be interesting to find a study that compares women who did not interrupt their careers for family reasons with men counterparts who also did not interrupt their careers.  

Though vast improvements have been made, the federal government is planning on taking action to once and for all eliminate the pay gap.  Hence The Pay Equity Act of 2016 (H.R. 6030) has been introduced in the House of Representatives.  It is supposed to even the playing field among men and women and minorities doing substantially the same work.   How will this happen?

The answer is by forbidding employers from asking applicants about their salary history either on an application or during the interview process.  The fines are substantial for employers.  For asking the question, employers are subject to a $10,000 fine!  AND, current and future employees can sue the employer and receive $10,000 in damages plus attorney fees!  Is this another government outreach that if passed and signed into law will once again have unintended consequences?    Probably so.

From a human resources and hiring manager perspective, removing salary history on applications takes away one of the things to look for in assessing and screening candidates. Mainly this, has the candidate progressed financially in previous jobs?  Not just cost of living increases, but merit increases as well?  

Staying with employers for multiple years and receiving promotions (with pay increases) is a good measure of the quality of the work the candidate has done in the past.  Why would employers not want to know how productive a candidate has been throughout their work history?  This applies to men and women. 

There are laws and regulations on the books that provide individuals with legal grounds to seek relief through the EEOC for any number of discriminatory actions, including equal pay.  We hope that Congress does not make the hiring process blind by making it illegal to know if a candidate has been of value to previous employers.

Goodbye

This will be my final article.  I am retiring soon to hopefully spend more time with grandkids, get in a few more dog shows and field trials, and maybe finish cleaning up my property after Hurricane Hermine.  It has been an enjoyable experience working at Florida ARF for almost 13 years and I appreciate everything Florida ARF has done for me. I also appreciate those of you who have been reading my articles for these few years that I have been doing them.  I bid you farewell.  
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