Raymond C. Cheever

Handicapped Workers Get Social Security

 

"Handicapped Workers Find Wider Acceptance" (News & Trends, February), Jim Johansen is quoted as saying of handicapped workers, "You don't have to worry about training or Social Security." INC. is perpetuating the myth that there is some kind of special rule that allows an employer to get by with not only not having to pay Social Security but probably also not having to pay the handicapped worker what he or she is worth.

This is like the myth that led the person who met three disabled women enjoying themselves on an ocean cruise to ask, "Did your parents send you on this cruise, or did the government pay your way?" All three women were employed at salaries well above the average, and were very much amused by the question.

The fact is, if you hire a handicapped worker, you have to pay him or her Social Security.