February 18, 2014

Statement from Sarita Gupta, Executive Director of Jobs With Justice, on Today’s Congressional Budget Office Report on Minimum Wage and Jobs

CONTACT:
Ori Korin, ori@jwj.org or 202-393-1044 x126

“Workers woke up this morning knowing that Congress should raise the minimum wage to $10.10 an hour, and they’ll go to bed tonight secure in that belief. Today’s CBO report confirms that the Fair Minimum Wage Act will lead to higher pay for 16.5 million workers and a path out of poverty for nearly a million Americans. We must place its employment effects estimate within a large body of research* that overwhelmingly shows little to no impact on employment. The fact is that raising the minimum wage is good for workers, and it is good for our economy. When employers refuse to pay a decent wage, we all pay the price.”

*See: Schmitt, J. (2013) Why does the minimum wage have no discernable effect on employment? Washington, DC: Center for Economic and Policy Research. Available here.

 

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