www.chicagotribune.com/news/local/chicago/chi-clocks-city-zone-01may01,0,3724328.story
Blind workers: Clockmakers for U.S. Lighthouse factory lets blind workers earn a living making government wall clocks By Rex W. Huppke Chicago Tribune reporter May 1, 2009 There's a reality Albert Harris has faced for more than three decades, since the day a mugger stole his vision with a gunshot in the head: "A lot of places, they don't like to hire you when you're blind." That's not as true now as it was when Harris first lost his sight, but it's still true enough that he feels blessed each day to come to his job. Harris is a clockmaker, part of a small but ferociously productive Chicago company that supplies wall clocks to U.S. government buildings across the country and around the world. "If you go to the post office here in Chicago, you'll probably see one of our clocks," said Jean-Claude Kappler, director of Chicago Lighthouse Industries, a facility on Roosevelt Road where blind and visually impaired people have been hired to build clocks since the late 1970s. "And if you go to the U.S. Embassy in London you'll probably see one of our clocks there too. They're everywhere." With a staff of 22, the company -- part of the Chicago Lighthouse program -- makes nearly 170,000 wall clocks a year, earning enough to cover all costs and even making a little money to share with other Lighthouse work programs. Dan Lee, a former director of the plant and longtime Lighthouse board member, said he believes the decades-long success of the clock factory proves the effectiveness of blind workers. "All the time I hear people say, 'Blind people can't do that,' " said Lee, who is visually impaired. "But you look around in here and you see we can do it. We do, do it." Rita McCabe has been doing it for 29 years, coming in each morning and swiftly attaching faceplates to 12-inch diameter plastic frames, deftly screwing black metal hour and minute hands into place. Her movement is effortless, her lack of vision irrelevant. By day's end, she'll have assembled several hundred clocks, sending them down a conveyor belt where another visually impaired worker will inspect them by feel and by listening for the faint hum of the battery-powered motor. "It's nice to be able to come to work, for one thing, to earn a living," said McCabe, 58. "A lot of people here have had a hard time finding jobs. I thank God every morning that I have this job." Kappler said the unemployment rate for blind people is about 70 percent. Workers at the Lighthouse clock factory earn $8.75 an hour and receive health benefits. The ideal is that blind people -- many of whom have never had a chance to work -- will come to the factory, learn the skills needed to hold down a job and then move on to other companies. That happens to an extent, though Kappler says the outside opportunities can be scarce. And some, long held back by their disability, aren't as able or willing to settle into the workaday world. "There's a lot of fear in the beginning, and we have some that don't succeed," Kappler said. "But the vast majority that come through here, once they're given the opportunity, they run with it." The program started in 1977, focusing on clocks because the assembly process is straightforward and, with proper training, adaptable to people with limited sight. Since its inception, Chicago Lighthouse Industries has been a leading provider of clocks for the U.S. government, though about six years ago the company also branched into the commercial market. Clocks made by McCabe and Harris are now sold through major office-supply stores, and the company's catalog of styles has expanded from simple 12-inch office clocks to more decorative wood-framed clocks and even ones with special-order faceplates bearing almost any design. "That's one of the things I like here," said Roy Killins, a 57-year-old plant supervisor who lost his job as a mechanic years ago because his company's insurance wouldn't cover him. "I enjoy the challenges of starting new products, figuring what we can do next. This job has allowed me to feed my family, to stay productive. That's all I can ask for." -- ================================ George Antunes, Political Science Dept University of Houston; Houston, TX 77204 Voice: 713-743-3923 Fax: 713-743-3927 Mail: antunes at uh dot edu *********************************** * POST TO MEDIANEWS@ETSKYWARN.NET * *********************************** Medianews mailing list Medianews@etskywarn.net http://lists.etskywarn.net/mailman/listinfo/medianews
