According to the Center for American Progress, raising the federal minimum wage to just $10.90 would lift 4.5 million Americans out of poverty, benefitting as many as one in five children in the country.
The nation's hourly minimum wage was last raised in 2009 to $7.25. Had it kept pace with inflation since then, it would be a full $3.65 higher.
The cost of food, housing, transportation and other essentials have all exploded. Yet wages have largely stagnated in the last decade, especially for the nation's roughly 10.6 million workers living at or below the poverty level.
It's past time American workers were paid a living wage. Sign this petition to urge your US Representative and Senators to support Rep. Al Green (D-TX)'s Original Living Wage Act of 2015 (H.R. 122).
Dear Decision Maker:
I strongly urge you to support Rep. Al Green (D-TX)'s Original Living Wage Act of 2015 (H.R. 122).
The cost of food, housing, transportation and other essentials have all exploded. Yet wages have largely stagnated in the last decade, especially for the nation's roughly 10.6 million workers living at or below the poverty level.
The nation's hourly minimum wage was last raised in 2009 to $7.25. Had it kept pace with inflation since then, it would be a full $3.65 higher.
According to experts at the Center for American Progress, raising the federal minimum wage to just $10.90 would lift 4.5 million Americans out of poverty, benefitting as many as one in five children in the country. It would also result in significant cost savings from government assistance programs that many of the working poor must now rely on to help make ends meet.
[Your comments]
Sincerely,
[Your name]
