U.S. Department of Labor
Wage and Hour Division
(July 2022)
Fact Sheet #39H: Limitations on the Payment of Subminimum Wages under
Rehabilitation Act Section 511
This fact sheet provides general information concerning the impact of section 511 of the Rehabilitation Act of
1973 (section 511) on the payment of subminimum wages (SMWs) to workers with disabilities under section
14(c) of the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA). See Fact Sheet #39H(a) for additional information about section
511 youth requirements and Fact Sheet #39H(b) for additional information about section 511 requirements for all
employees being paid SMWs. Section 511 places important limits on the ability of employers to pay SMWs to
workers with disabilities under section 14(c). These limits are designed to ensure that workers who are paid
SMWs under section 14(c) have access to necessary support and resources, which enhance access to competitive
integrated employment. Importantly, an employer that has not complied with the requirements of section 511
does not have authority to pay SMWs to workers with disabilities under section 14(c).
Section 511 was created by the Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act (WIOA). WIOA is a
comprehensive federal law enacted on July 22, 2014, which was intended to improve workforce development
and training services for various groups, including youth and workers with disabilities. Section 511 limits the
ability of employers to pay SMWs to workers with disabilities, even when the employer holds a certificate
under section 14(c) that would otherwise allow the payment of such wages. Such requirements help ensure
that workers receive critical information and services in a timely fashion, which helps maximize opportunities
to obtain competitive integrated employment.
Section 511 requires that individuals with disabilities who are age 24 or younger (youth) complete
requirements designed to improve their access to competitive integrated employment, including transition
services, vocational rehabilitation, and career counseling services, before they are employed at SMWs.
Section 511 also requires that all workers with disabilities who are paid SMWs, of any age (including youth),
receive regular career counseling and information about self-advocacy, self-determination, and peer
mentoring training opportunities in their local area. Employees must receive these services twice in the first
year they are hired at SMWs and at least one time every year after. These requirements are in addition to and
do not replace the requirements of section 14(c). For more information about the Wage and Hour Division’s
enforcement of section 511, see Field Assistance Bulletin Nos. 2016-2, 2019-1, and 2022-4.
Enforcement Authority
The Wage and Hour Division (WHD) is responsible for the administration and enforcement of both section
14(c) and section 511. Section 14(c) authorizes employers who hold a certificate from WHD to pay SMWs to
workers who have disabilities for the work being performed. The certificate also allows the payment of wages
that are less than the prevailing wage to workers who have disabilities for the work performed on contracts
under the McNamara-O'Hara Service Contract Act (SCA) and the Walsh-Healey Public Contracts Act (PCA).
Section 511 applies to employers paying subminimum wages that are less than the FLSA Federal minimum
wage, currently $7.25 per hour. Section 511 does not apply when wages paid are above the Federal minimum
wage, such as may be case under the SCA. For more information about section 511’s definition of
subminimum wages, see Field Assistance Bulletin No. 2019-1.