Jobs and Economic Security

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Creating New Jobs in America

In the last few years, “outsourcing” has become Americans are all too familiar with. Whether it is the export of American jobs to other parts of the world, or the displacement of American workers by foreign workers being paid to do the same job at lower wages, we are witnessing a full-scale economic crisis. In the last three years alone, more than 39,000 Connecticut manufacturing jobs have gone overseas, contributing to the rising numbers of unemployed workers in our state. A recent study projected that outsourcing of state and local government technology contracts will more than double of the next five years, from $10 billion to $23 billion.

Congresswoman DeLauro introduced the United States Worker Protection Act to prevent taxpayer dollars from being used to outsource jobs to other countries. Her bill prevents the privatizing of federal jobs to contractors using offshore workers and give priority for government contracts to companies investing in American jobs.

DeLauro also introduced the L-1 Non-Immigrant Reform Act to stop companies from abusing the L-1 visa program as a way to replace American jobs with foreign workers and pay these guest workers less. There are countless stories of companies asking their employees to train workers on an L-1, only to find that they are replaced by those very same workers. This practice should be stopped.

In addition, DeLauro is fighting attempts by the House Leadership to give tax credits to companies for moving jobs overseas. She supports bipartisan legislation which would revitalize our manufacturing base by cutting taxes for U.S. companies, including small businesses and farms, in order to keep good-paying manufacturing jobs here at home.

Stopping Companies from Leaving America

Too many companies are abusing a loophole in our tax code which allows them to set up a shell corporation in a country like Bermuda, in order to avoid paying taxes in America. Connecticut residents remember all too well that a few years ago, Stanley Works of New Britain came dangerously close to doing just that. Stanley Works made the right decision and stayed in America. But they are put at a competitive disadvantage when companies which have turned their backs on America – known as corporate expatriates – continue to benefit from government contracts.

“It simply wrong to reward companies who put profits before patriotism with billions of dollars in taxpayer-funded government contracts,” DeLauro said. “These companies put good corporate citizens at permanent competitive disadvantage, and I will fight to end this practice.”

When the Department of Homeland Security was created in 2002, DeLauro successfully passed a measure that banned the Department from contracting with corporate expatriates. Unfortunately, the House leadership added provisions which essentially eliminated the ban before it was signed into law. Since that time, she has been fighting to close those loopholes and stop the Department from moving forward with at $10 billion contract with one such corporate expatriate, Accenture. Unfortunately, the House leadership used procedural measures to save the Accenture Contract, but the main piece of her amendment – closing the loopholes to strengthen the corporate expatriates contracting ban – passed the House.

She will continue to work to make sure that good corporate citizens are not underbid on government contracts by companies who have set up a post office box overseas.

Minimum Wage

Rosa DeLauro believes that the minimum wage is not simply a matter of economics. It is also a matter of our values. It is the best measure of our willingness to defend the ideal that says if your work hard and play by the rules, you can achieve the American dream.

The minimum wage is still at its lowest level in two decades. DeLauro has been working to gradually raise the minimum wage by one dollar because it is financially necessary and morally right. It would recognize the millions of Americans -- so many of them women -- who get up every morning and go to work in our factories, office buildings, and restaurants, and still struggling to raise a family. They deserve a reasonable wage, and DeLauro is committed to continue fighting until working Americans get a fair wage, and an increase in the minimum wage.

Equal Pay

Rosa DeLauro believes that women deserve equal pay for their work. Today's working women -- many of whom are the primary or sole breadwinners for their families -- earn between 73 and 75 cents for every dollar earned by men. The gap is even greater for minority women. DeLauro believes that the wage gap is not just a woman's issue, but rather, it is a family issue. Many of today's working women are the primary or sole breadwinners for their families. The lingering gap in pay translates into less money for a family to pay the rent, buy the weekly groceries, or save for a child's education. It also means significant losses in retirement benefits over a woman's lifetime. Less than 40% of women in the private sector have pensions, and those with pensions receive less than 50% of what men receive.

DeLauro introduced the Paycheck Fairness Act to help take those final steps to eliminate the wage gap. The Paycheck Fairness Act would put teeth in the Equal Pay Act and put wage discrimination on the basis of gender on the same legal footing as wage discrimination on the basis of race or ethnicity. It would strengthen current law to allow women to collect punitive as well as compensatory damages – instead of just back pay -- and it would lift gag rules which prevent employees from discussing their wages with co-workers. The Paycheck Fairness Act would also ensure that employers who have taken steps to provide equal pay get the recognition they deserve.

DeLauro on the Issues

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