Americans Deserve an Increase in the Minimum Wage – If minimum wage equaled the increased cost of gasoline, it would be set at $12.36/hr

(Washington, DC)  —  For the past two months Rep. Wasserman Schultz and Democrats in Congress have been fighting for an up or down vote on increasing the minimum wage. Now, after months of stalling, the House Republican Leadership has indicated that they might introduce legislation this weekend that on the face of it would raise the minimum wage, but buried in the legislation would provide a huge tax cut for the wealthiest of Americans. 

  “At the current minimum wage of $5.15 an hour, a person working 40 hours a week, and never taking a vacation, would make only $10,712 a year -almost $10,000 below the poverty line for a family of four,” said Rep. Wasserman Schultz. “Now the Republicans in Congress who’ve been opposed to raising the minimum wage for years are finally saying – ‘O.K., we might let you earn a bit more money, but only if you allow us to give a tax break to the wealthiest Americans.’ Hard working Americans deserve a straight up or down vote on the minimum wage.”   The minimum wage has remained at $5.15 an hour since 1997. During that time, gas prices have risen from $1.36 a gallon to an average of $3.22 a gallon, raising costs on everything from produce to transit and utility costs.   “Eight out of ten minimum wage earners are over the age of twenty, many of whom are responsible for over half their families income,” said Rep. Wasserman Schultz. “We must stand in support of hard working Americans. We must raise the minimum wage.”