Conyers: Michigan Minimum Wage Hike to $9.25 a Step Towards Worker Dignity

Congress Must Still Act to Guarantee a Living Wage

(WASHINGTON) – Yesterday, following overwhelming support in the Michigan House (76-34) and Senate (24-12), Governor Rick Snyder (R-Mich.) signed into law a gradual increase in the minimum wage. Over the next four years, the minimum wage in Michigan will increase from its current hourly level of $7.40 to $9.25. In addition, the law indexes the minimum wage to inflation - up to a maximum increase of 3.5% annually - beginning in 2019. After the bill signing, Congressman John Conyers, Jr. (D-Mich.) issued the following statement:

U.S. Representative
John Conyers, Jr.

“Michigan’s minimum wage increase is a step in the right direction. At our state’s current minimum wage of $7.40 per hour, parents working full-time lack the income needed to cover food, clothing, and shelter—let alone childcare, healthcare, and transportation,” said Conyers.

“While the increase to $9.25 over four years represents genuine progress, this level is still lower than the inflation-adjusted minimum wage back in 1968. For this reason, I have co-sponsored H.R. 1010 to raise the federal minimum wage to $10.10 this year.

“Raising the minimum wage is both good ethics and good economics. When hardworking Americans gain more purchasing power, they go out and buy necessities including meals and school supplies. This improves their lives, while boosting consumer demand and job-creation across the economy. As a matter of worker dignity - and a means of tackling America’s growing income inequality - Michigan’s minimum wage hike is welcome, but more work remains to be done.”

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Conyers Rallies with House Democrats, Urging Congress to Raise the Minimum Wage

Congressman Conyers Signs On to Discharge Petition Raising Minimum Wage to $10.10 an Hour

(WASHINGTON) – Today, Congressman John Conyers, Jr. (D-Mich.) joined House Democratic Leader Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) and House Democrats at a press conference calling on Congress to raise the federal minimum wage from $7.25 to $10.10 an hour. At the press conference, Representative Conyers signed on to a discharge petition – a legislative maneuver to bring a bill to the House Floor for a vote if a majority of Representatives sign on – calling for an increase in the minimum wage. An increase in the minimum wage to $10.10 would raise wages for nearly 25 million people and lift between 1 and 4.5 million Americans out of poverty. Following the press conference, Rep. Conyers issued the following statement:

“At $7.25, the minimum wage today is worth around $2 less than what it was worth in 1968, when adjusted for inflation. Further, hardworking Americans have not seen an increase in the minimum wage since 2009, as wages were bottoming out in the throes of the Great Recession. Simply put, it is long past time to give millions of working families a raise,” said Conyers.

“Today, I was proud to join with Leader Pelosi and House Democratic Members in signing on to a discharge petition urging Congress to raise the federal minimum wage to $10.10 an hour. While a seemingly modest increase, raising the minimum wage to $10.10 an hour will boost approximately 25 million workers’ wages, and lift between 1 and 4.5 million Americans out of poverty. Considering the consensus among economists that had the minimum wage kept pace with inflation and productivity gains it would be between $16 and $22 an hour, it is exceedingly reasonable for Congress to approve an increase to $10.10 an hour.

“Raising the minimum wage is both a matter of economic fairness and sound policy, as increased wages fuel demand and lift our country’s economic growth. After years of stagnant wages, and an increasingly widening opportunity gap, it is time to grant millions of hardworking Americans the raise that they have earned.”

Congressman Conyers alongside Leader Pelosi, House Democratic Members and small business owners, rallying for an increase in the federal minimum wage.

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Conyers Joins Rep. Jesse Jackson, Jr. in introducing Bill to Raise Federal Minimum Wage to $10.00

U.S. Representatives John Conyers, Jr., Jesse Jackson, Jr.,
Dennis Kucinich and Ralph Nader announcing federal
minimum wage bill

(WASHINGTON) – Today, Representative John Conyers, Jr. (D-Mich.) joined Representative Jesse Jackson, Jr. (D-Ill.), Representative Dennis Kucinich (D-Ohio), consumer advocate Ralph Nader, and the president of Public Citizen Robert Weissman at a press conference to announce the introduction of the “Catching Up To 1968 Act of 2012”, which would raise the current federal minimum wage to $10.00 per hour and require an annual increase to the minimum wage indexed to inflation.  Should the federal minimum wage be raised to $10.00, it would still be less than the minimum wage in 1968 adjusted for inflation.  The current federal minimum wage is $7.25 per hour. 

“I am pleased to join my fellow Members of Congress to advocate for the passage of Representative Jackson’s bill to raise Americans’ wages,” said Conyers.  “This legislation is long-overdue and sorely needed.  More than 30 million Americans would see their wages increased which would provide an immediate boost to the economy.  And if you look at today’s levels of inflation, average wages, and productivity, the data clearly shows that today’s minimum wage provides far less for American families than it has historically.  In fact, as the bill’s name suggests, even if raised to $10.00 per hour, the rate would still be lower than in 1968 if adjusted for inflation.  This bill is a good starting point for reversing this unacceptable historical trend in working and middle class wages.   

“The minimum wage was originally created to ensure that workers were able to secure a decent and dignified life for themselves and their families through their labor.  As the years have passed and the purchasing power provided by the minimum wage has waned, this social contract has been broken and the exploitation of low-income workers has increased at a disturbing rate.  So, I call on Speaker Boehner and Leader Pelosi to take up this bill with all deliberate haste, so that Congress can reverse this troublesome trend and put our country back on the path of having an economy that works for everyone, employee and employer alike.”

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