WHEREAS, the Maryland Human Relations Commission is charged with investigating and resolving discrimination against the handicapped; and
WHEREAS, the Commission lacks the expertise about blindness to be able to successfully deal with employment discrimination against the blind; and
WHEREAS, the Commission even failed to understand the need to strengthen the Maryland White Cane Law, having opposed our efforts in the 1985 Session of the Maryland General Assembly; and
WHEREAS, the operating procedures of the Commission such as, its short statute of limitations and the nonexistence of procedures to investigate industry-wide discrimination practices, weakens its ability to adequately combat discrimination; and
WHEREAS, blind Marylanders have marketable skills and actively look for work, yet remain unemployed due to discrimination; and
WHEREAS, employment discrimination is widespread and exists in all areas; and
WHEREAS, the following practices of the Baltimore Gas and Electric Company {BG&E), although not yet brought before the Commission, are one example of the rampant discrimination blind people face: 1) BG&E advertised job openings for computer programmers in the October 22nd edition of the Baltimore Sun, yet refused to provide applications or grant interviews to qualified blind computer programmers: 2) BG&E refused to allow blind people to enter its customer training program; now, therefore,
BE IT RESOLVED by the National Federation of the Blind in Convention assembled this second day of November 1985, in the City of Ocean City, Maryland, that this organization urges the Commission to work with us to take immediate action with respect to Baltimore Gas and Electric; and
BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that this organization urges the Commission to consult with us on a regular basis on all discrimination against the blind; and
BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that this organization requests that
The Commission supports our efforts to strengthen the Maryland White Cane Law.