Federal Minimum Wage

Posted on February 14, 2013 by townsend

• Raising minimum wage would ease income gap but carries political risks, By Annie Lowrey, February 13, 2013, New York Times: ” President Obama called on Congress to raise the federal minimum wage to $9 an hour from $7.25 and to automatically adjust it with inflation, a move aimed at increasing the earnings of millions of cooks, janitors, aides to the elderly and other low-wage workers. The proposal directly addresses the country’s yawning levels of income inequality, which the White House has tried to reduce with targeted tax credits, a major expansion of health insurance, education and other proposals. But it is sure to be politically divisive, especially given the weakness of the recovery and the continued high levels of joblessness…”
• The impact of a $9 minimum wage, By Tami Luhby, February 13, 2013, CNNMoney: “After promising five years ago to raise the federal minimum wage, President Obama finally unveiled a plan to do so on Tuesday. In his State of the Union address, Obama pressed to raise the hourly rate in stages to $9 an hour in 2015, up from the current $7.25, and index it to inflation. The change, should it become law, would boost the wages of 15 million Americans, according to the White House…”
• Minimum wage in Europe offers ammunition in U.S. debate, By Liz Alderman, February 13, 2013, New York Times: “Now that President Barack Obama has proposed an increase in the U.S. minimum wage, people on both sides of the debate in Washington might want to look to Europe for ammunition. Minimum wage policies vary widely across the Continent, and as Europe grapples with the austerity measures that governments have imposed to help overcome its long-running debt crisis, the issue — especially the way minimum wages affect growth and competitiveness — is as important as ever…”
• Obama’s call for higher minimum wage could have ripple effect, By Marilyn Geewax, February 13, 2013, National Public Radio: “So maybe the Great Recession really is over. After more than five years of recession and painfully slow recovery, President Obama has sent a powerful signal that he thinks the U.S. economy is now in much better shape — good enough, at least, to provide workers with raises. In his State of the Union address Tuesday night, Obama called upon Congress to boost the federal minimum wage to $9 an hour by 2015, up from the current $7.25. The wage would rise in steps, and after hitting the maximum in two years, would thereafter be indexed to inflation. In the president’s first term, the unemployment rate was very high, peaking at 10 percent in October 2009. And during those four years, Obama never seriously pushed Congress for legislation to force employers to pay more…”
• Reaction mixed to Obama’s bid to hike minimum wage, By Don Lee and Shan Li, February 14, 2013, Los Angeles Times: “President Obama’s new proposal to set a higher floor for wages faces an uphill battle in Congress — and the fight may well boil down to a matter of timing. Obama, in his State of the Union address, called for increasing the minimum wage to $9 an hour from $7.25 in gradual stages by 2015. He said it was aimed at lifting families above the poverty line and putting more money in the pockets of consumers, which would end up helping companies. While unions and labor advocates praised the proposal, Republican leaders and business groups immediately lined up against it, calling it an anti-jobs idea…”
• Obama, business groups differ on minimum wage plan, Associated Press, February 14, 2013, Ventura County Star: “President Barack Obama says raising the minimum wage to $9 an hour and tying future increases to inflation will boost the incomes of millions living in poverty and spur job growth by pouring more money into the economy. But business groups are not so sure. They complain that increasing the federal rate from $7.25 an hour would discourage employers from hiring new workers, hurting the very people Obama aims to help. Obama pointed out in his State of the Union address Tuesday that 19 states and the District of Columbia already have minimum wages set above the federal rate of $7.25, creating a vast wage disparity across the country…”