Following Republican Obstruction in Senate, Cohen Renews Call for Speaker Boehner to Give Americans A Raise

[WASHINGTON, DC] – After Republicans in the Senate blocked the consideration of an increase in the minimum wage earlier today, Congressman Steve Cohen (TN-09) once again called on Speaker John Boehner to allow the House to vote on H.R. 1010, the Fair Minimum Wage Act, which would increase the minimum wage from $7.25 per hour to $10.10 per hour and tie the wage to inflation moving forward. Increasing the minimum wage would help more than 600,000 Tennesseans and help lift as many as 4.5 million Americans out of poverty.

“Throughout my career, I have always fought to ensure that hard-working Memphians can earn a living wage and won’t have to struggle to provide for themselves and their families,” said Congressman Cohen. “No one who works hard and plays by the rules should have to raise their families in poverty. When I came to Congress in 2007, I was proud to vote for an increase in the federal minimum wage, but since then the cost of basic necessities has risen and the minimum wage has become less valuable. I am disappointed that Republicans have blocked the Senate from even debating an increase in the minimum wage, and I strongly urge Speaker Boehner to schedule an immediate vote on the Fair Minimum Wage Act. The millions of Americans working for the minimum wage—who average 35 years old—deserve a raise for their hard work.”

The current minimum wage pays only $14,500 per year. A majority of minimum-wage workers have full-time jobs, and a majority of them are women. The average worker working for the minimum wage is 35 years old and brings home half of their family’s total income.

Even though a strong majority of Americans support raising the minimum wage, Republicans in Congress are blocking action in both the Senate and the House. House Republicans have voted seven times to block consideration or against a minimum wage increase. That is why 195 Democrats, including Congressman Cohen, have signed a discharge petition to force action on this widely supported legislation. The Fair Minimum Wage Act was introduced by Rep. George Miller on March 6, 2013, and has 195 cosponsors, but Republicans have failed to schedule a hearing or a mark-up on the bill. The discharge petition will require the House to consider the minimum wage legislation once a majority of Members of Congress (218) have signed the petition.