Yahoo Finance Companies ‘ought to be ashamed of themselves’ for fighting $15 minimum wage: Rep. Jim Clyburn
President Joe Biden’s push to include raising the federal minimum wage to $15 an hour as part of his $1.9 trillion financial relief plan was met with resistance during the Senate’s marathon voting session that ended early Friday. Democrats ended up conceding on that front: by a voice vote, the senators approved an amendment from Sen. Joni Ernst (R., Iowa) to "prohibit the increase of the federal minimum wage during a global pandemic."
Sen. Bernie Sanders (I., Vt.), who had long been an advocate in the Senate for including the wage hike in the stimulus plan, relented. He added, however, that his plan calls for raising the federal minimum wage in phases over five years.
Democrats’ budget reconciliation approval victory on Friday does lay the path for the pursuit of a future minimum wage hike which Republicans would be unable to block. The reconciliation process allows Democrats to get legislation passed with a simple majority rather than the 60 vote supermajority usually required. A tie-breaking vote by Vice President Kamala Harris would be enough to get key legislation such as raising the federal minimum wage approved.
In an interview with Yahoo Finance, House Majority Whip Rep. Jim Clyburn (D., S.C.) slammed businesses – and some lawmakers – for their reluctance to raise wages.
“They ought to be ashamed of themselves,” said Clyburn. “They give a trillion dollars in tax breaks to wealthy people, and they are bemoaning us using the reconciliation process to give people a $15 an hour minimum wage.”
Businesses have expressed long standing opposition to raising the federal minimum wage. “There’s no question that raising the minimum wage, especially to $15, will put some small businesses out of business and will cost a lot of low-wage workers their jobs,” said Neil Bradley, chief policy officer at the U.S. Chamber of Commerce, in January.
And prior to the pandemic, many companies voiced their opposition to raising the minimum wage to $15 by 2025. In a letter sent to Congress in 2019, business trade group International Franchise Association said that increasing the minimum wage “would have disruptive impacts on employers, particularly small business franchise owners, as well as negative effects on the job market for many.”
Democrats have called out Republicans’ hypocrisy in opposing their use of the budget reconciliation process. President Trump’s signature $1.5 trillion tax cut reducing the corporate tax rate from 35% to 21% was pushed through the House and Senate via reconciliation.
“[Biden] said he would make every attempt to represent those who voted for him, as well as those who voted against him. And that he would do so by trying to sort of serve in a bipartisan way,” said Clyburn. “That’s what he’s doing.”
Biden praised lawmakers for getting the budget resolution approved on Friday.
“I’ve told both Republicans and Democrats that’s my preference to work together, but if I have to choose between getting help right now to Americans who are hurting so badly and getting bogged down in a monthly negotiation or compromising on a bill that’s up to the crisis, that’s an easy choice,” Biden said Friday. “I’m going to help the American people who are hurting now.”
Americans overwhelmingly agree the federal minimum wage should be increased, according to a recent survey from Yahoo Finance and the Harris Poll. However, the survey found that 83% agreed Congress should consider the wage hike separately from a COVID relief package.
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