Right now, all around the country, people are just trying to put in an honest day’s work to help themselves and their families. These are people doing all of the things we tell them they are supposed to do in America to get ahead. They are working hard, playing by the rules, and trying to provide for their families. But they’re finding that it’s not enough. You know it is not enough. Maybe you know all too well what I mean; maybe what I describe is all too real.
For decades, the needs of low-wage workers have been ignored. On Monday, I was proud to stand with workers—some of whom hold down two jobs just to put food on the table—as they rallied for a living wage and workers’ rights.
Wages have been stagnant for a generation, and the fastest growing jobs in our economy are also the lowest paid. Fast food, retail, home health, childcare and security jobs are growing, but they don’t pay enough to cover basic necessities like food, clothing and rent. The real value of the minimum wage is at a historic low. Today, 40 percent of American workers make less than the minimum wage was worth in 1968. That’s nearly a quarter of all workers. They often qualify for food stamps and other public assistance, which means that big, profitable corporations are forcing taxpayers to subsidize their low wages and burdening our economy.
It doesn’t have to be this way. That’s why fast food and retail workers are joining together to demand $15 an hour and the right to form a union without retaliation. It’s a wage that will allow them to cover their basic needs and help lift our entire economy. By putting more money into the pockets of workers in fast-growing low-wage jobs, we can get our economy moving again and rebuild the middle class. And the protection of a contract will prevent companies from the unlawful treatment and manipulation of hours that has come to define too many American jobs.
The minimum wage is about valuing and respecting work. No one who works hard and plays by the rules should live in poverty. Raising the minimum wage helps families make ends meet.
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