Convenience-store retailer Sheetz Inc. is the first employer to commit to a new Pennsylvania Department of Labor & Industry program, Integrated Vocational Engagement and Support Team (InVEST), that uses millions of dollars in federal funding to help transition individuals with disabilities away from subminimum wage positions and into competitive, fulfilling careers.
The department launched the program through its Office of Vocational Rehabilitation (OVR), leveraging a $14 million federal grant to assist Pennsylvanians with disabilities earning a subminimum wage to obtain competitive, integrated employment (CIE).
Sheetz plans to hire up to 10 individuals annually and retain all previously hired individuals. Sheetz will support these new employees with job coaches funded by OVR, who will support on-site employees, develop accommodations, and prepare employees for long-term success.
Sheetz is No. 13 on CSP’s 2024 Top 202 ranking of U.S. convenience-store chains by store count.
InVEST builds on Pennsylvania’s commitment to uphold and advance the 2018 Employment First Act, which provides for competitive integrated employment in state and county agencies and any entity providing publicly funded education, training, employment and related services and long-term services and supports for working-age Pennsylvanians with a disability. It also established the Governor's Cabinet for People with Disabilities and the Employment First Oversight Commission.
The program aims to eliminate some of the challenges faced by individuals with disabilities working in sheltered workshops, which typically pay people with disabilities subminimum wage and are often segregated from the greater community. InVEST will empower participants to pursue competitive wages through economically stable career paths by facilitating the transition from subminimum wage positions to CIE.
The practice of paying individuals with disabilities subminimum wage remains legal under Section 14(c) of the Fair Labor Standards Act of 1938, although several states have phased that practice out.
Two providers have been selected for the grant through a competitive bid process. Achieva will serve InVEST participants in the western region and Kencrest will launch services in the eastern region.
Pennsylvania is among 14 states to receive grant awards from the federal Department of Education for the Subminimum Wage to Competitive Integrated Employment (SWTCIE) demonstration project. Additionally, L&I’s OVR has also partnered with the Department of Human Services’ Office of Developmental Programs (ODP) and the PA Family Network: Vision for Equality (PAFN) to provide peer-to-peer education, mentoring services and systems navigation support for participants and their families.
InVEST advances efforts to ensure that competitive integrated employment is the focus for education, training, or support services for anyone with a disability who is eligible to work. OVR believes in the ability of all people with disabilities to pursue CIE and InVEST is just one of the ways OVR supports customers to achieve their goal of working in the community.
OVR assists Pennsylvanians with disabilities in obtaining and retaining employment while keeping their independence. Since 2016, nearly 370,000 individuals have received services from OVR, including vocational counseling, evaluations, medical diagnostic services, medical restoration services, employment training, placement services and career support services. Individuals who enroll in vocational rehabilitation services work with an OVR counselor to determine the services that best suit their needs.
Altoona, Pennsylvania-based Sheetz has more than 750 convenience stores in in Pennsylvania, North Carolina, Virginia, West Virginia, Ohio, Michigan and Maryland.
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