Georgia Industries for the Blind

What We Do

Georgia Industries for the Blind (GIB) provides jobs in manufacturing and packaging for individuals who are severely visually impaired. The authorizing legislation for GIB was the Javits-Wagner-O’Day Act of 1938, which provided for federal government purchase of products from workshops employing the blind. Georgia’s first plant was established in 1949; today there are two facilities, one in Bainbridge, which also houses the administrative offices, and the other in Griffin.

Services We Provide

• Unique to Georgia government, GIB is a not-for-profit organization that operates as a business and generates revenues that make it largely self-supporting. At least 92% of the GIB budget comes from product sales, with the state providing the other 8% in administrative costs.
  
• While the total number of employees in the GIB labor force fluctuates because of contractual commitments, the organization typically employs 165 hourly workers, 90 of whom are severely visually impaired.
  
• A diverse product line includes pillows, plastic cutlery, laundry bags, safety vests and flags, whisk brooms and mop heads, screen printing, binders, file folders, card guides, and index sets.
  
• Annual product sales over the past three years have averaged $9.8 million, with 80% coming from federal government contracts with the General Services Administration and the Department of Defense. Other customers include all state of Georgia departments, several agencies from other states, various civic organizations and such commercial markets as Delta Airlines.

For further information about Georgia Industries for the Blind, contact the Central Office at 229-248-2666, or e-mail us at gib@dol.state.ga.us.