Paying employees less than what they are entitled to is not only illegal but immoral, and when those workers are disabled, the offense is particularly repugnant.

That was the situation for nine disabled workers at a now-defunct San Francisco company that hired them to perform assembly and packaging work. A U.S. Department of Labor (DOL)  investigation has resulted in the employees receiving $43,000 in back wages they should have gotten over the course of the year they were cheated.

The company, Disabled Employees Rehabilitation Inc. also must pay $9,900 in penalties.

The company’s Facebook page said it was founded in 1948 to provide “a positive, nurturing and healthy environment for the physically and intellectually disabled adults to learn skills, feel empowered and be productive.”

Apparently, such an environment does not include fair wages for their productivity.

According to the DOL, the products they assembled and packaged included iPhone wallets and cases, toys, first aid kits and soap.

Federal labor regulations permit some employees with a physical or mental disability to be paid less than the federal minimum wage, but their employers must be certified that they are following stringent regulations. Disabled Employees Rehabilitation was not certified.

“This should not have happened, and the fact that it was being done under the cloak of an organization presenting itself as having a charitable purpose just makes all these violations all the more shameful,” said the DOL.

Read the whole story in The San Francisco Appeal.