Put America to Work Campaign: Rep. Jesse Jackson Introduces Legislation to Raise National Minimum Wage to $10

Monday, July 16, 2012

Rep. Jesse Jackson Introduces Legislation to Raise National Minimum Wage to $10

Representative Jesse Jackson Jr. (D-IL) is joined by, left to right, Ralph Nader, Representative Dennis Kucinich (D-OH) and Representative John Conyers (D-MI) at a press conference outside the US Capitol on June 6, 2012, to call for an increase in the minimum wage. Photo by George Zornick. Photo coutesy of the Nation (read Zornick blog)

HR 5901 - Text of legislation (23 cosponsors as of 7/15/2012)

Press Release

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

WEDNESDAY, JUNE 6, 2012

CONTACT: FRANK E. WATKINS

202.225.0773

THE CATCHING UP TO 1968 ACT OF 2012 - A $10 PER HOUR MINIMUM WAGE

Statement By Congressman Jesse L. Jackson, Jr.

Attached please find legislation - the Catching Up To 1968 Act of 2012 - that I will introduce in the House of Representatives today regarding raising the minimum wage to $10 per hour. That may sound like a hefty wage increase but it doesn't fully equal the purchasing power of the minimum wage in 1968 - which today would be closer to $11 per hour. The bill is really only allowing American workers a degree of "catch-up." Thus the name and theme around the bill: "Catching Up To 1968." Of course, the current federal minimum wage has been $7.25 per hour since 2007.

The Catching Up To 1968 Act of 2012 contains four basic elements:

It raises the minimum wage to $10.00 per hour;
The minimum wage is raised immediately - not gradually as in the past - beginning 60 days after the date of enactment; and
Beginning one year after the $10.00 per hour minimum wage takes effect, and each year thereafter, the minimum wage will be indexed in proportion to the increase in the Consumer Price Index (CPI).
For workers earning their living on the basis of tips, the cash wage paid to such an employee is to be 70% of the minimum wage when the law takes effect, but in no case less than $5.50 an hour, adjusted annually as necessary thereafter.

The bill will affect more than 30 million workers and give the economy an immediate boost by significantly increasing aggregate demand. Most economists that I've talked with said there was no economic reason to increase it incrementally over a couple of years.

Raising the federal minimum wage and indexing it to keep up with inflation has been supported historically by 70% of the American people. The AFL-CIO, National Council of La Raza, civil rights organizations, Ralph Nader, Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid and many others have all supported raising it and indexing it. Even Rick Santorum (as Senator) and Mitt Romney (while Governor), believed in raising the minimum wage and Mr. Romney wanted to index it to inflation. If Mr. Romney had put it into effect during his time as Governor of Massachusetts, it would now be around $10 per hour in that state.

$10 per hour at 40 hours per week is $400. $400 times 52 weeks equals $20,800 annually. As of 2010, the average income in the US per person was $40,584 (per capita personal income).

A $10 minimum wage, after years of windfall price increases and executive compensation windfalls at labor’s expense, would annually pump tens of billions of dollars into greater consumer (or aggregate) demand by low-income families in this depressed economy.

The federal minimum wage, covered by the 1938 Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA), operates as a floor. States and communities have the leeway to set higher livable wage standards and cover more workers - and a few do. Ten states have indexed the minimum wage to inflation.

Throughout the 1950s and 1960s the minimum wage represented nearly 50 percent of average wages for private-sector, non-supervisory workers. But in 2010, that figure had fallen to only 38 percent. The purchasing power of the minimum wage plummeted in the 1980s when Congress did not increase it from January 1981 to April 1990.

In 2007, Congress raised the federal minimum wage by $2.10 per hour—from $5.15 to $7.25 per hour—as a first step toward restoring its historical value, providing an additional $1.6 billion annually in increased wages. It's now time to complete the job and index it into the future.

Research has shown no job loss resulting from reasonable minimum wage increases, even when the economy is struggling. On the contrary, to fix the underlying weakness of our economy, we must boost aggregate demand and increase the purchasing power of millions of low-wage workers—and one proven and effective way of doing that is to raise the federal minimum wage.

In conclusion, I want to especially thank Ralph Nader for encouraging me to introduce this legislation. While he has not been able to secure the presidency, he has been right on the issues and for his vast contributions to the betterment of our country, every American should be grateful.

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Other Priority Federal Job Creation Legislation

In addition to HR 1000, there are several other very important job creation bills pending in Congress. Some of these bills may be reintroduced in the next legislative session. The Put America to Work Campaign thanks the sponsors of these bills for their vision and leadership.

HR 1617 – Emergency Jobs to Restore the American Dream Act

Rep. Jan Schakowsky (D-IL) and 19 cosponsors have introduced HR 1617, which would create over 2 million jobs over two years. These jobs would include public service jobs to implement energy audit programs and retrofits, improve public parks, renovate schools and housing, and expand childcare and early education .HR 1617 would cost $227 billion over two years and is fully paid for through separate legislation that creates higher tax brackets for millionaires and billionaires, eliminates subsidies for Big Oil, and closes loopholes for corporations that ship American jobs overseas.

HR 2553 – National Infrastructure Bank Act

Rep. Rosa DeLauro (D-CT) has introduced the National Infrastructure Bank Act, with 103 cosponsors. The bill would create and fund a public bank to leverage private and public capital to support infrastructure projects of national and regional significance, including transportation, environment, energy, telecommunications and water projects.The bank would have a major emphasis in fundingenvironmental infrastructure projects such as enhancing clean water; energy and electric infrastructure projects, and is supported by the Blue-Green Alliance, the United Steelworkers and Utility Workers of America.

HR 188 -- The 21st Century Civilian Conservation Corps Act

Rep. Marcy Kaptur and 2 cosponsors have introduced HR 188, which would establish a Civilian Conservation Corps to employ unemployed or underemployed U.S. citizens in the construction, maintenance, and carrying on of works of a public nature, such as forestation of U.S. and state lands, prevention of forest fires, floods, and soil erosion, and construction and repair of National Park System paths and trails. The bill would be funded at a level of $16 billion a year from fiscal year 2014 through fiscal year 2017.

You can help!! Support these bills and urge others to do so.Pass a resolution supporting these bills in your union, Labor Council, community organization or city council. Visit www.PutAmericaToWork.net for more information about the bills, related federal legislation, and sample resolutions.

HR 1000: The Humphrey-Hawkins 21st Century Full Employment and Training Act

HR 1000, a revised version of HR 870 and HR 4277 introduced in previous sessions of Congress, was reintroduced by Rep. John Conyers (D-MI) on March 6, 2013. This transformative federal legislation would create a national public service jobs program to complement job creation efforts in the private and nonprofit sectors. Most notably, the bill "aims to provide a job to any American that seeks work, and to ultimately, create a full employment society."

HR 1000 creates a national "Full Employment and Training Trust Fund," funded by a small Financial Transactions Tax on stock, bond and derivatives transactions. This would create a major new national funding source large enough to create 2.5 to 4 million jobs in the first two years of the program. The bill would also provide much additional funding to support innovative job training programs, such as one-stop career centers, YouthBuild and Job Corps, among others.

Click here for more info

Pass a Local Resolution in Support of HR 1000!

Help build momentum for a national jobs program by passing a local resolution in your city, county or state legislature!

See here for a sample resolution:

Draft New York City Resolution in Support of HR 870/HR 4277 (previous version of HR 1000 -pending)

Recently Passed Resolutions

AFSCME 2012 Convention Amended Jobs Resolution -- passed at 40th International Convention, 6/18-22/12, Los Angeles, CA

Labor Council for Latin American Advancement (LCLAA) Resolution -- passed at National Confereence, 7/26-28/12, Orlando, FL

National Organization For Women (NOW) Resolution -- passed at National Conference, Baltimore, MD 7/1/12

Other resources for passing local jobs resolutions:

Local Jobs Resolution Toolkit, from Cities for Progress

Put America to Work!!

The Put America to Work Campaign seeks to organize a strong national social movement to guarantee a right to a living wage job for every person who wants one.

As part of our work, we strongly support the Humphrey Hawkins 21st Century Full Employment and Training Act (HR 870), which aims to create millions of jobs for unemployed workers and move the US towards a full employment society.

The bill establishes a National Full Employment Trust Fund to fund an innovative direct job creation program. The Trust Fund will pay for new jobs on Main Street by raising new revenue through a small, targeted tax on Wall Street stock, options, futures, swaps and credit default swap transactions.

This campaign is a project of the National Jobs For All Coalition, which is working to build a new movement for full employment at liveable wages. For more info, visit: www.NJFAC.org

About the Campaign

The Put America to Work Campaign is a national grassroots citizens' campaign to pass comprehensive federal job creation legislation, achieve full employment and secure the right to a living wage job for every person in the U.S. who wants one.

Our current strategic focus to build national support for HR 1000, the Humphrey Hawkins 21st Century Full Employment and Training Act, introduced by Rep. John Conyers (D-MI). To mobilize support for the bill, we will be conducting a national program of community forums and teach-ins to educate policymakers and citizens about the jobs crisis and the need for massive public investment to improve our infrastructure, human services and social safety net.

We seek to put a human face on unemployment, underemployment, financial insecurity and economic distress. Our goal is to build a powerful national social movement that harnesses the voices of ordinary Americans and community organizations to permanently improve the economic rights for people who live in this country, including the right to a job, the right to a decent education, the right to health care and the right to income and retirement security.

In taking on this challenge, we want to create a more compassionate and solidaristic economy, where the public interest and the common welfare are valued, and people from all walks of life join together to reduce and eliminate poverty and chronic unemployment. Whether we have a good job or we are unemployed, we have a huge stake in each other's well-being. The problems of unemployment, poor wages and poverty are not just the problems of the unemployed and the poor -- they are the problems of all of us. We have all seen corporations abruptly eliminate and shed jobs of highly-paid workers when it suits them to do so. The economic security of workers-at-large will be greatly improved by ensuring that everyone who wants to work has the right and opportunity to do so.

To that end, we seek to inspire a much high level of public awareness and civic engagement about solving the serious, long-standing and chronic problems of unemployment, underemployment and poverty in the U.S. Even in relatively good times, tens of millions of Americans have continued to suffer with inadequate job opportunities and low wages. The fight for full employment and economic justice must go to the top of the national agenda, and stay there until all Americans have the economic right to a decent job and livelihood.

The Put America to Work Campaign is a project of the National Jobs for All Coalition, a national organization based in New York that advocates for full employment and living wage jobs for all. Contributions to NJFAC are tax-deductible and we welcome financial and volunteer contributions in support of the campaign. To join the campaign and endorse HR 1000, or request more information, please fill out our contact form.

Monday, July 16, 2012

Rep. Jesse Jackson Introduces Legislation to Raise National Minimum Wage to $10

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