[Congressional Record Volume 142, Number 53 (Tuesday, April 23, 1996)]
[House]
[Page H3703]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




 NOBEL PRIZE WINNERS AND OTHER ECONOMISTS SUPPORT INCREASE IN MINIMUM 
                                  WAGE

  The SPEAKER pro tempore (Mr. Collins of Georgia). Under a previous 
order of the House, the gentlewoman from North Carolina [Mrs. Clayton] 
is recognized for 5 minutes.
  Mrs. CLAYTON. Mr. Speaker, I am pleased that 20 of our Republican 
colleagues in the House now support an increase in the minimum wage.
  They join 3 recipients of the Nobel Prize in Economics, 7 past 
presidents of the American Economics Association and more than 100 
distinguished economists nationwide who have signed a ``Statement of 
Support for a Minimum Wage Increase.''
  Clearly, Mr. Speaker, the issue is compelling.
  Those economists recognize that profits are soaring, wages for 
workers are declining, and consumer demand is stagnant.
  That is a prescription for economic trouble.
  Middle and moderate-income Americans now feel the squeeze between 
profits and wages as much as the low income and the unemployed.
  Almost half of the money in America is in the hands of just 20 
percent of the people.
  That top 20 percent is made up of families with the highest incomes. 
The bottom 20 percent has less than 5 percent of the money in their 
hands.
  A modest increase in the minimum wage could help the bottom 20 
percent, and, it will not hurt the top 20 percent.
  The President has proposed such a modest increase in the minimum 
wage--an increase of 90 cents, over 2 years.
  Such an increase would mean an additional $1,800 a year for the 
working poor.
  That amount of money makes a big difference in the ability of 
families to buy food and shelter, to pay for energy to heat their 
homes, and to be able to clothe, care for and educate their children.
  That amount of money makes the difference between families with 
abundance and families in poverty.
  An increase in the minimum wage won't provide abundance, but it can 
raise working families out of poverty.
  As indicated, while the cost of bread, milk, eggs, a place to sleep, 
heat, clothing to wear, a bus ride and a visit to the doctor has been 
going up, the income of low, moderate and middle-income people has been 
going down.
  Between 1980 and 1992, income for the top 20 percent increased by 16 
percent. During that same period, income for the bottom 20 percent 
declined by 7 percent.
  For the first 10 of those 12 years, between 1980 and 1990, there were 
no votes to increase the minimum wage.
  Without an increase in the minimum wage, those with little money end 
up with less money. That is because the cost of living continues to 
rise.
  By 1993, families in the top 20 percent had an average income of 
$104,616.
  In contrast, families in the bottom 20 percent in America had an 
average income of just $12,964.
  That is an astounding gap of more than $90,000!
  The bottom 20 percent of our citizens can have a full-time employee 
in the family, working at least 40 hours a week, and still not able to 
make ends meet.
  In fact, the earnings of that family could place them below the 
poverty line.
  Recent studies indicate that job growth in America is lowest where 
the income gap is widest.
  Closing the gap helps create jobs rather than reduce jobs.
  Those who argue that an increase in the minimum wage will cause job 
losses, fail to look at all the facts.
  Othe recent studies have shown that an increase in the minimum wage 
tends to cause an increase in jobs, rather than a loss of jobs. What 
are we waiting for, Mr. Speaker:
  The Statement of the Nobel Prize winners, the past presidents of the 
American Economics Association and the more than 100 economic scholars 
across America makes the following point: ``After adjusting for 
inflation, the value of the minimum wage is at its second lowest annual 
level since 1955.''
  Let us bring minimum wages into the modern age. Let us support H.R. 
940, a bill that will help create a livable wage for millions of 
workers by permitting a modest increase in the minimum wage.

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