WHEREAS, the federal workforce, one of the largest contingents of Maryland workers, includes many blind individuals who serve the public in various capacities, contributing their skills and talents to the efficient operation of government agencies; and
WHEREAS, federal workers, including the blind and others with disabilities, rely on longstanding legal protections such as the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 and the Americans with Disabilities Act to ensure equal access, reasonable accommodations, and protection from discrimination in the workplace; and
WHEREAS, the second administration of President Donald J. Trump has taken actions to weaken the rights of federal workers, including efforts to erode collective bargaining, due process, and workplace protections, thereby threatening the job security and fair treatment of blind federal employees in Maryland and across the nation; and
WHEREAS, President Trump has specifically disparaged the contributions and capabilities of federal workers with disabilities in a nationally televised press conference, suggesting that disability recruiting policies of the Federal Aviation Administration led directly to the deadly collision of a commercial airliner and a military helicopter on January 29, 2025; and
WHEREAS, the administration’s efforts to undermine worker rights and President Trump’s comments about workers with disabilities risk reversing decades of progress in workplace accessibility, accommodations, and employment protections for blind federal workers, making it harder for them to fully participate in and contribute to the workforce; and WHEREAS, the National Federation of the Blind of Maryland is aware of at least half a dozen blind federal employees who have been adversely affected by administration actions so far, and the number is likely far higher; and
WHEREAS, the unemployment rate among the blind is still extremely high, and unfair treatment by the trump administration threatens to make it higher; and
WHEREAS, the laws protecting Americans with disabilities have generally been supported by politicians of both parties, and therefore lawmakers should act in a bipartisan fashion to protect and uphold the rights of blind workers: Now, therefore,
BE IT RESOLVED by the National Federation of the Blind of Maryland in Convention Assembled this sixteenth day of February, 2025, in Ocean City, Maryland, that this organization call upon the members of Maryland’s congressional delegation to take immediate and decisive action to protect blind federal workers by:
- Opposing any effort to roll back disability rights protections under the Rehabilitation Act, the Americans with Disabilities Act, and other relevant laws that ensure fair treatment in federal employment;
- Defending collective bargaining rights and due process protections for all federal workers, including those with disabilities;
- Opposing any effort to terminate any individuals serving their two-year trial period who were hired using the Schedule A Hiring Authority for Individuals with Disabilities due to the two-year trial period’s disparate impact on employees with disabilities;
- Supporting oversight and accountability measures to prevent any further administrative or regulatory actions that would weaken workplace protections for blind federal employees; and
- Advocating for policies that promote accessibility, inclusion, and equitable opportunities for blind and other disabled federal workers; and
BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that copies of this resolution be transmitted to each member of Maryland’s congressional delegation.