Congressman Andre Carson

Representing the 7th District of INDIANA
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Congressman Carson’s Statement on Unemployment Insurance and Minimum Wage February 26, 2014

Feb 26, 2014
Statements for the Record

Mr./Madam Speaker, I rise today to draw attention, once again, to an issue that some in this Congress seem to have forgotten—the millions of Americans who are unemployed or working for wages that cannot support their families.

Many of my colleagues have not experienced what it means to be poor in America. 

It’s no secret that most Members of Congress have been very privileged in their lives—and there is nothing wrong with that.

But we can all imagine what poverty means without having lived through it.

Today, a mother working full time at minimum wage makes just $14,500 per year.

That’s equal to what a Member of Congress makes in just one month.

Imagine being told that you have to support your family for the rest of the year with just this month’s paycheck.

That means paying your bills, feeding your kids, filling your tank to get to work, and covering your medical bills.

If it sounds impossible to manage, it’s because far too often, it is.

Low-income families have to make impossible choices between food and medicine.

They often live in unsafe neighborhoods and send their kids to subpar schools, because they have no other option.

Getting paid the minimum wage has always been difficult. 

But it’s getting harder every year.

If the minimum wage had been tied to inflation in 1960, it would be $10.10 cents today—or over $20,000 per year.

Someone making this today wouldn’t be wealthy. 

But working full time might at least allow them to make ends meet.

For me, this is what our country is really about.  If you work hard, you can build a life for yourself and your family.

This is why I’m a proud cosponsor of the Fair Minimum Wage Act, which finally raises the minimum wage for millions of Americans. 

Unfortunately, some of my colleagues oppose the bill, claiming that raising the minimum wage should be a state-by-state decision.

This is fine…if your state chooses to raise its minimum wage.  But if not, your constituents are no better off.  They are still making $7.25 an hour.

So I have just one question.

If you’re a Republican who wants to leave the decision up to the states, are you prepared to explain to your constituents why they are worth less to you than the people across state lines?

For my part, I do not want low wage Hoosiers to make less than those in other states just because our General Assembly decides not to act.

Of course, I also understand the argument that some people may work fewer hours and some may lose their jobs. 

This may be true.  But it’s important to remember that we have raised our minimum wage in the past.

And in the past, this same argument has proven untrue.

So I’m optimistic that American employers—and particularly Hoosier employers in my Congressional district—will do what they can to weather a minimum wage increase without letting people go.

Unfortunately, this is not the only unnecessary struggle Congress has laid on America’s low-income families this year.

Today, Republican leaders continue to block an extension of emergency unemployment insurance.

Because of Congressional inaction, nearly 2 million Americans were instantly cut off from their benefits in December, with 72,000 more being cut off each week.

Many Republicans have painted unemployment benefits as a slush fund for certain lazy Americans. 

This is not only incredibly offensive.  It’s false.

Americans want to work.  But in many communities there are simply no jobs available.

In our economic downturn, everything from restaurants to machine shops to retail stores closed their doors—and are only now starting to come back.

In Indianapolis, many Hoosiers are finding they no longer have the skills necessary for the modern workforce.

Educated men and women with years of experience have to retrain before they can get hired.

Others have seen their industries simply disappear and have to prepare themselves for an entirely new career.

This is far from laziness. 

Retraining and looking for a job is hard work with no pay.

These Americans deserve our help covering expenses while they get back on their feet.

Mr./Madam Speaker, House Republicans have yet to bring a real jobs bill to the floor in the 113th Congress, instead focusing continually on deregulation and repealing the ACA.

Meanwhile, they overlook that raising the minimum wage and extending unemployment benefits could pump billions of dollars into our economy and raise nearly 1 million people out of poverty.

These bills help millions of struggling Americans and help grow our economy. 

There is no excuse—it is time for us to act on these long overdue bills.