Free the Minimum Wage!
 

The minimum wage increase is still being delayed and it may be in jeopardy! The House of Representatives in early January overwhelmingly passed (315-116) a bill that increased the minimum wage, in three steps, to $7.25. That bill was filibustered in the Senate. The Senate then passed another bill (94-3) that not only increased the minimum wage but cuts in business taxes by over $8 billion. The House responded by passing a bipartisan tax package cutting taxes by $1.5 billion and sent it to the Senate urging them to attach the minimum wage increase to it and send it back. So far the Senate has refused to act with lots of political rhetoric and excuses for the delay. Meanwhile, low wage workers languish without an increase in the minimum wage for more than 10 years.
 
We ask your urgent help to move this small measure of justice forward. Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid said he “is running out of patience” on the minimum wage issue. (CQ 2/28/07) A large bipartisan majority in the House of Representatives and the United States Senate support raising the minimum wage; an overwhelming number of Americans support raising the minimum wage; and still millions of low wage workers still haven ’t received a raise.
 
While the USCCB does not have a particular position on the tax provisions, the Conference supports a minimum wage increase – now—as an overdue and small step to helping the poorest workers in our country.
 

Call your Senators   (202-224-3121, Capitol Switchboard)
Insist they raise the minimum wage now!
 
FREE THE MINIMUM WAGE, NOW!