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Now that the impeachment trial of
the 45th President is over, perhaps our legislators can turn their
attention to working people, or more accurately, those who used to
work and are not now working. There were 18 million unemployment
insurance claims now than a year ago, and nearly 10 million fewer
jobs than before the pandemic. The first Friday report that the
unemployment rate has dropped is misleading when the number of people
fleeing the labor market is alarming. Most disturbing, of course, is
the departure of women from the labor force. Last month alone, more
than 250,000 women left the labor market, compared to 71,000 men.
Further,
many of those working, especially in meat-packing, manufacturing, and
most service occupations, don’t have the luxury to physically
distance at work. Some of these folk earn appallingly low wages, in
some cases hovering near the $7.25 minimum, the same rate it has been
for more than a decade. To be sure, minimum wages are higher in some
cities and states, with the District of Columbia, San Francisco, and
Seattle establishing a $15 minimum. Other jurisdictions have passed
legislation gradually moving the wage to $15.
President
Biden promised to support new minimum wage legislation, and Senator
Bernie Sanders is pushing hard. The Raise the Wage Act of 2021 was
introduced on January 26, and House Speaker Pelosi has said a version
of the bill will be sent to the Senate for approval. There is likely
to be pushback, especially from states that have not raised their
wage above the federal level. It is useful to note that in Florida,
where the former President enjoys popularity, a ballot measure
supporting a $15 minimum wage passed. Even conservatives have to eat!
Senate
Bill 53, the Raise the Wage Act, would gradually raise the federal
minimum wage from the current $7.25 level to $15 by June of 2025. The
first increase would happen this year, raising the wage to $9.25 this
year. In subsequent years, the wage would rise to $11.00 in 2022,
$12.50 in 2023, $14.00 in 2024, and $15 by June of 2025. The most
significant bump is 31 percent, from the current $290 per week (for a
full-time week) to $380 per week. Even with that increase, though, a
family of four is living below the poverty line of $26,500. The
minimum wage for a family with one worker won’t exceed the
poverty line until 2024 when the wage is $14 an hour.
Some
households with minimum wage workers have more than one person
contributing to household expenses. But many minimum wage workers
work part-time, not full time, and don’t work part-time by
choice. Many employers offer less than a 40-hour workweek to avoid
paying benefits.
Raising
the minimum wage gives at least 27 million workers a raise. Most of
them are women. A third are Latino, and 40 percent are African
American. Raising the wage would reduce inequality and poverty.
Senator Sanders is prepared to push this legislation through by
reconciliation if he can’t get Republican support. If
Republican Senators value their constituents’ voices, they will
support legislation that brings relief to some of them.
There
may also be some assistance coming to working people via the
Protecting the Right to Organize, or PRO Act. This legislation
protects workers’ rights to form unions, limits employers’
right to interfere with union activities, and strengthens other
workers’ rights. With several dozen new provisions, the PRO Act
represents the first attempt to overhaul the National Labor Relations
Act in more than seventy years. The legislation passed the House in
2020, passing mostly along party lines, but the Republican-controlled
Senate declined to deliberate. This time, Democrats control the
schedule, and the legislation will receive some review and
deliberation. But Chambers of Commerce and other business groups are
likely to oppose it. Research shows that the presence of unions in
the workplace increases wages. Equally importantly, it protects
workers from unsafe working conditions.
Perhaps
legislation will provide workers with some relief this year. It is
also possible, though, that working people, especially those near the
bottom, will get caught up in partisan squabbling. Workers need a
break, need a raise, need safe working conditions. Can Washington
deliver?
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