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U.S.
Senator Sherrod Brown
Providing
Ohio Workers with a Fair Wage
With
too many Ohioans working harder than ever
and barely getting by, it’s well past time to raise the minimum wage in
our
country. Recently, I visited four Ohio businesses that are supportive
of an
increase in the federal minimum wage. These businesses and their owners
know
that treating their employees right isn’t just good for them, it’s good
for
business.
President
Franklin Roosevelt signed the Fair
Labor Standards Act into law 75 years ago. This legislation ensured
that
American workers would receive a minimum wage and work reasonable work
hours.
By guaranteeing that hard work in our nation meant fair wages and
decent
working conditions, President Roosevelt helped lead our country out of
the
worst economic climates we’ve ever faced to decades of prosperity. A
minimum
wage helped lift millions of Americans out of poverty and into the
middle
class.
Our
workers today work just as hard as they did
when Roosevelt was president, yet our fair wage laws do not reflect
that. Too
many Ohio families are still struggling. Ohioans who work hard and play
by the
rules should be able to take care of their families.
Nearly
1.3 million Ohioans work in a minimum
wage job. Working full-time in a minimum wage job in Ohio pays about
$16,000
per year – which isn’t much to live on when you’re trying to put food
on the
table, fill your gas tank, send your children to school, and provide a
safe
place for them to live.
In
fact, the minimum wage has lost nearly a
third of its buying power since its peak in 1968. Ohio’s minimum wage
of
$16,000 per year is about $2,000 below the poverty level for a family
of three.
And while Ohio has a slightly higher minimum rate than other states, it
is still
too low. The minimum wage in this country should be a livable wage.
That’s
why I’m fighting to pass the Fair
Minimum Wage Act, which would raise the minimum wage to $10.10 an hour
in three
steps of 95 cents—then provide for automatic annual increases linked to
changes
in the cost of living, as Ohio’s minimum wage already does. The bill
would also
gradually raise the minimum wage for tipped workers for the first time
in 20
years. This tipped minimum wage currently stands at just $2.13 an hour.
Our bill
would increase it to 70 percent of the regular minimum wage.
More
than 30 million American workers would get
a raise with our bill. The vast majority – 88 percent – are adult
workers and
more than half are women. Nearly a quarter of all American children –
totaling
18 million – have parents who would get a raise.
Sen.
Brown at Dempsey’s restaurant in Columbus
calling for a Fair Minimum Wage
But
it’s not just about the families who will
be directly affected. Increasing the minimum wage means more money
pumped into
local economies. In fact, a 2013 Economic Policy Institute report found
that
increasing the minimum wage to $10.10 per hour, would increase GDP by
nearly
$33 billion over the course of three years as workers spend their
raises in
local businesses and in their communities. This economic activity could
generate 140,000 new jobs over the course of three years
Ensuring
a fair wage is good for middle-class
families and good for our economy. Raising the minimum wage for Ohio
workers is
long overdue.
Sincerely,
Sherrod
Brown
U.S.
Senator
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