Following SOTU, Harkin says to raise the wage

Written By

In President Obama’s State of the Union address last night, he said he would institute an executive order and immediately increase wages for all federal contract workers.Senator Harkin, original sponsor of S.460 – The Fair Minimum Wage Act, spoke on the Senator floor today applauding Obama’s action by saying, “I think most Americans would agree that taxpayer dollars should not support companies that pay poverty wages” and encouraging his colleagues to take action and raise the minimum wage for all workers across the country.In the video below , Senator Harkin laid out compelling reasons to support a minimum wage increase, including testimony from Iowa worker, mother, and CCI Action member Nereida Castro:  Starting at 4:40 Harkin speaks about Nereida Castro, CCI Action member from Des Moines who supports her family on near minimum wages:“… the offensive underlying premise of all of these arguments is that anyone can rise out of poverty if they just work harder.  Tell that to Nereida Castro of Des Moines.  She and her husband both work minimum wage jobs in the fast food and construction industries.  They have 5 children to support, but Nereida says they live day to day because of their bills and expenses.  Her family ‘has to limit many things to give to our kids to only make rent, to cover basic expenses. We have to limit so much.’  A raise, she says would allow her to ‘live a life where I don’t feel like I’m drowning.”CCI Action members not only support Harkin’s Senate push to increase the minimum wage, but are also calling on the Iowa state legislature to stand up for Iowa’s low wage workers and pass legislation to raise the minimum wage here in Iowa.“We cannot wait on the federal government – hard working Iowans deserve a raise now.” Said Bridget Fagan with CCI Action Fund from Des Moines, IA. “We have bills ready to go at the Iowa statehouse, and are calling for Iowa to again lead the nation in increasing the minimum wage.” 

Join the fight

  • Contact us for more information
  • Join as an Iowa CCI Action Fund member today or chip in $20 to support our organizing this legislative session.
  • Sign up for our E-Mail Action list to get the latest updates
  • Follow us on Facebook and Twitter

 

Previous

Iowa Policy Project's Frac Sand Mine Report Uses CAFO Case-Studies As Warning, Call For Local Control
Next

DNR FACT-CHECK: Iowa Has 630 Polluted Waters