Washington, D.C. – Congressman Al Green (TX-9) joined his colleagues on the floor of the House of Representatives today to urge the Republican leadership to raise the minimum wage. The Republican leadership has stalled bringing the FY 2007 Labor-HHS Appropriations bill to the floor of the House of Representatives for a vote due to a provision in the bill requiring a minimum wage increase.  Democrats have been vocal on the issue of a minimum wage increase over the past several weeks, urging the Republican leadership to bring the Labor-HHS Appropriation Bill before the House for a vote.  On June 29, Congressman Green introduced H.R. 5731, the Living American Wage (LAW) Act, which would increase the minimum wage to $7.25 by 2007.

In his statement on the floor of the House of Representatives, Green stated:

“It’s past time to raise the minimum wage.  It was last raised in 1997.  Currently, a person working full time at $5.15 an hour makes 10,712 per year.  The poverty line for a family of two is $13,461.  No one should work full time and live below the poverty line.  Many Americans do.  No one should work full time and stand in a welfare line.  Many Americans do.  Americans don’t want welfare, they want self-care.  It is time to raise the minimum wage.”

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.

While opponents of 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.