Congressman Al Green Proposes Legislation to Increase the Minimum Wage

Congressman Al Green Proposes Legislation to Increase the Minimum Wage

Congressman Al Green (TX-9) yesterday introduced legislation that would increase the minimum wage to $7.25 by 2007. He was joined by Education and Workforce Committee Ranking Member George Miller (CA-7), Congressional Black Caucus Chair Mel Watt (NC-12), Congressional Hispanic Caucus Chair Grace Napolitano (CA-38), Congressional Asian Pacific American Caucus Chair Michael Honda (CA-15), and 46 additional original co-sponsors. The Living American Wage (LAW) Act of 2006 would raise the minimum wage by linking it to the federal poverty threshold for a family of two - a factor determined by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. If enacted, the bill would increase the minimum wage for the first time since 1997.

"I would like to thank all of my colleagues who have signed on in support of this legislation and all staff who have worked tirelessly to bring it to fruition," Green said. There are 37 million Americans living in poverty due to their lack of income, which impacts their housing, access to education, and health care. While a full-time job should be a bridge out of poverty, this is clearly not the case for minimum wage earners and their families. A full-time worker earning the minimum wage in this country cannot support a single child above the poverty threshold. This is inexcusable and a problem my legislation seeks to redress.

Green's bill amends the Fair Labor Standards Act of 1938 to link the minimum wage to the federal poverty threshold for a family of two, one adult and one child. Under this provision, the minimum wage would increase to $7.25 by 2007, and would be recalculated every four years, making it a living wage. Congress has not increased the minimum wage since September of 1997 - the second longest period of inaction since it was enacted in 1938. While the 2005 federal poverty threshold for a family of two is $13,461, a full-time worker earning the current minimum wage of $5.15 per hour earns well below this level at $10,712 a year. In addition, the Economic Policy Institute, a non-profit, non partisan think tank, reports the real inflation-adjusted value of the minimum wage in 2006 is at its lowest point in 50 years.

"Opponents of minimum wage increases often claim that the majority of individuals holding minimum wage jobs are teenagers and other part-time workers, a claim that is simply untrue," Green said. Approximately three-quarters of minimum wage workers are adults over the age of 20, and more than one-third of workers who would benefit from an increase are parents of children under age 18, including 760,000 single mothers. This Congress has an obligation to help ensure these hard-working Americans are able to provide for themselves and their families."

While those opposed to minimum wage increases have linked job loss with past wage increases, supporters of increasing the minimum wage counter that employers may be able to absorb some of the costs through higher productivity, lower turnover resulting in lower recruiting and training costs, decreased absenteeism, and increased worker morale. According to the Economic Policy Institute, studies have failed to find a systematic link between significant job loss and past minimum wage increases.

http://www.house.gov/list/press/tx09_green/2006_06_30_minwage.html