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Disabled Man Loves A Job That Some Call Exploitation

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By ANTHONY CORMIER, Sarasota Herald-Tribune

Published: February 19, 2008

BRADENTON - Thousands of people every day see him dressed in a Lady Liberty or Uncle Sam costume, waving a placard for a Bradenton tax service.

There, on the sidewalk, Gordon Becker stands on weekday afternoons, shaking the placard, smiling, waving.

Most drivers wave, honk or flash their lights.

There have been a few, though, who have complained to Liberty Tax Services, which hired him, or the job placement agency that finds work for people like Becker with developmental disabilities.

Some have asked whether Becker is being exploited, and think it cruel to put a disabled man in a costume and make him parade around in the sun.

Becker and other developmentally disabled people in the workplace, however, defy stereotypes about the disabled by holding steady jobs and scratching out regular paychecks.

"Many, many people have these ideas about the disabled," says Tom Lawson, director of the nonprofit group Excelsior Education & Training Foundation. "That they can't work or they should not be doing certain jobs. In this case, Gordy loves his job."

Becker, 30, has spent most of his adult life in group homes, depending on others for his care. He had never thought to hold a steady job before and does not wholly understand the concept of a checking account.

He is a natural charmer, though; a real character, talkative, outgoing, good with people. One day, a job coach asked Becker what kind of job he would want.

"We picked something in marketing," says Ralph Schlechter, the job coach.

Schlechter drives Becker to work, helps him prepare for his job and watches from nearby as he completes his shift.

Of the developmentally disabled people working in this region - and there are likely thousands, as grocery baggers, at fast-food chains, in a Bradenton flower shop, for a printing company - Becker is as well-known as any.

Becker said he loves the spotlight. He waves heartily at those who beep or shout hello, and he certainly likes getting paid. He makes $7 an hour and mostly spends it on cigarettes and coffee, two of his favorite things.

"McDonald's iced coffee," he says, "it's the best."

Becker has had a rough go in life.

His parents gave him up for adoption when he was young. He is not sure, exactly, where he was born.

He endured trauma, Schlechter said, when he was younger and bounced between different homes and caretakers for most of his life.

The job seems to have given him a layer of security, something regular in a life that too often has been scattershot.

It also gives him a connection to the world outside his group home - for Becker, a wave from a passing motorist is reinforcement of a job well-done.

"I love my job," he says. "Love it."

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