[Congressional Record Volume 144, Number 85 (Thursday, June 25, 1998)]
[Senate]
[Pages S7211-S7212]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                         ADDITIONAL STATEMENTS

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            60TH ANNIVERSARY OF THE FAIR LABOR STANDARDS ACT

 Mrs. FEINSTEIN. Mr. President, today we honor the 60th 
anniversary of the historic Fair Labor Standards Act. The Fair Labor 
Standards Act is landmark legislation, creating the federal minimum 
wage, establishing the forty-hour work week and banning oppressive 
child labor practices. Each element is an important component in our 
federal commitment to workers and their families.
  We can all appreciate the current strength of the economy: 300,000 
more Americans started new jobs in May alone; unemployment was steady 
at 4.3%, the lowest in 28 years; and median family income has increased 
for three years in a row and today, more Americans own their own homes 
than ever before.
  However, while the U.S. economy is expanding, all Americans are not 
sharing equally in the benefits of the growing economy. Despite growth 
in both gross domestic product and employment between 1989 and 1994, 
median family income in 1994 was still $2,168 lower than it was in 
1989. In the current economy, growth is not leading to improved 
economic well-being for typical families. Some working families, 
particularly single women, are falling

[[Page S7212]]

further and further behind. For these families, a minimum wage increase 
is not a windfall, but a necessary step to allow them to attain a real 
``living wage.'' This uneven growth should concern us all in Congress.
  The Clinton Administration's plan is to increase the current minimum 
wage of $5.15 by $0.50 in January 1999 and another $0.50 a year later, 
resulting in a wage floor of $6.15 in the year 2000. I support the 
proposal and would like to take a moment to put the proposed increase 
in context. If we do nothing, the minimum wage in the year 2000 would 
be equal to $4.82, a level that cannot support a family. The 
administration proposal, if fully implemented in the year 2000, would 
result in a minimum wage of $6.15 per hour. However, based on the 
inflation estimates of the Congressional Budget Office, that $6.15 wage 
in the year 2000 would equal only $5.72 in today's dollars.
  The proposed increase would move the minimum wage back to the level 
of the early 1980s, before inflation was allowed to erode the real 
value of the minimum wage by 30 percent. Throughout the 1960s and much 
of the 1970s, the minimum wage was as much as a dollar above the 
current proposal. The fact is that the minimum wage increases in the 
1990s, including the one currently under consideration, will only 
restore some of the lost ground and real earning power of America's 
lowest paid workers.
  Despite the 1996 increase, the minimum wage remains below its real 
value from 1956 through 1983. And if no action is taken, its value will 
once again erode over time. From 1980 through 1995, inflation rose 86 
percent, but the minimum wage increased by only 27 percent. As a 
result, working families fall further and further behind. Because of 
inflation, it now takes $7.33 to buy what the minimum wage did in 1968. 
The current minimum wage of $5.15 has nearly 30% less buying power than 
it did thirty years ago. That's unfair for low-income individuals, 
struggling to provide for themselves and their families.
  Since the late 1970s, wage inequality has grown steadily. Wage 
inequality is the gap between those at the bottom, the middle of the 
wage scale and those earning the highest income. In 1996, the 
wealthiest one-fifth of the population, those whose earnings place them 
in the highest 20% of household earnings, collected 49% of all national 
income, an increase from 42.8 percent in 1968. By contrast, the share 
earned by the remaining 80 percent of all Americans declined. The 
decline in the real value of the minimum wage is a large part of this 
widening gap. By raising the minimum back to its 1979 level, we can 
help close the gap and ensure that low-wage workers get a fairer share 
of the economic growth. The minimum wage helps workers get their fair 
share of our economic growth and prosperity, raising wages for millions 
of workers across the country.
  The 60-year-old Fair Labor Standards Act serves as our basic 
commitment to America's workers. FLSA was subsequently amended by the 
Pay Equity Act roughly thirty-five years ago, pledging equal pay for 
equal work. Of the 12 million workers who would benefit from an 
increase in the minimum wage, 60% are women. Pay equity is an important 
issue in the minimum wage debate.
  Today, the median annual earnings for women is only 71% of a man's 
earnings, just 71 cents for each dollar. Expressed another way, the 
median annual income for women in 1995, less than $22,500, was the male 
median earnings level of the early 1980s. We've all been through the 
1980s and shouldn't be expected to go back.
  After more than a decade of wage growth for most women, the bottom 
two-thirds of women in the workforce saw their wages decline between 
1989 and 1995. At the same time, jobs have become less secure and less 
likely to offer health and pension benefits.
  By increasing the minimum wage, we can provide strong support and 
raise family income for low income families across the country, helping 
to address widening income inequality for women, particularly single 
women raising children.
  Who are minimum wage workers? They are men and women who operate 
airport metal detectors and X-ray machines at Los Angeles International 
airport are among those making the state's minimum wage of $5.75 an 
hour. They receive no benefits, no sick days, and no vacation, and yet 
they protect the safety of millions of passengers who travel though the 
nation's second-busiest airport every year.
  Minimum wage workers are disproportionately women, often single heads 
of households with children. The average minimum wage worker is 
responsible for providing more than half of his or her family's 
earnings. Working 40 hours a week, 52 weeks a year, a minimum wage 
worker earns $10,712 a year, approximately $2,900 below the poverty 
level for a family of three.
  During the successful 1996 effort to increase the minimum wage, 
opposition in the business community argued the increase would trigger 
a loss of minimum wage jobs. However, recent studies suggest otherwise. 
A review of the 1996 minimum wage increase found the increase raised 
wages of almost 10 million workers. Approximately 71 percent of those 
were adults, with roughly half working full time, and another third 
worked 20 to 34 hours a week. The study found no impact on the level of 
jobs or inflation, but workers got the raise they deserve.
  Contrary to Republican critics, the increases were well-targeted, 
disproportionately benefiting low-income working households. The 
poorest 20% of American households, those with an average income of 
$15,728, received 35 percent of the benefits from the minimum wage 
increase. Raising the minimum wage lifts family income for low-income 
workers, without the adverse effects and job loss claimed.
  During the 1996 welfare reform debate, there was widespread support 
for the concept of ``making welfare work.'' Raising the minimum wage is 
particularly important for those moving off welfare as a result of 
welfare reform. We need to make sure these workers are able to find 
work that enables them to make ends meet. Minimum wage workers are 
primarily adults, with more than half serving as their family's primary 
wage earner. Raising the minimum wage plays an important role in moving 
people from welfare assistance to supporting themselves and their 
family.
  An Oregon study found that, following an increase in the state 
minimum wage, the average wage of an individual leaving welfare 
increased as well. By contrast, the average wage of an individual 
leaving welfare fell by 5 percent in the years prior to the increase. 
Nearly one-third who found work, and one-half of those finding part-
time work, received the minimum wage. A strong minimum wage offers 
strong protection for low-income families and can assist them to make a 
successful transition from welfare to work.
  Mr. President, by any measure, whether its education level or test 
scores, low-wage workers are equally if not more skilled than the 
workers of 20 years ago. These workers have more labor market 
experience, more education and have contributed to an expanding economy 
which has experienced overall labor productivity growth of 22 percent 
since 1979.
  Yet today's minimum wage earner receives nearly 30% less buying power 
than they did thirty years ago. That's unfair for low-income 
individuals, struggling to provide for themselves and their families. 
Today, about 12 million workers earn the minimum wage. These low income 
workers deserve a share of the benefit. These workers deserve a 
raise.

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