A good percentage of waitpersons in the country are working below minimim wage so there is precedent for this type of carve-out to labor laws. Prisons are chock full of exploited workers with no labor rights. If the intellectually challenged are to be treated equally then they should have every right to be grossly exploited like the rest of them.
…but at what cost?
Between “testing” and “analysis” there should be “prepublish clickbait headlines” on the internet speculating on the results.
I did not see any reference to US exporting more animal products. While US consumption may have fallen, exports to developing countries have risen shifting not eliminating the carbon costs. Also, I feel the dietary change from animal consumption may be driven more by poverty than concern for the planet; beans are cheaper than beef.
I’ve watched Thailand dump the nation’s wealth into building kilometers and kilometers of roads, mostly around Bangkok, to move more and more cars at a slower and slower pace. Moving cars instead of people. That money could have been spent in hundreds of different and better ways.
I starting wearing N95 masks years before Covid-19 reared up. The air being under AQI100 is a rarity where I live and +400 not unheard of.
Why not point to Cuba? Despite 75 years of brutal sanctions, Cuba has a more equitable education and healthcare system than the USA.
If you are okay with waitstaff and prisoners being underpaid then you will be okay with others suffering the same fate.