[Congressional Record Volume 146, Number 39 (Monday, April 3, 2000)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E473]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                  OPPOSITION TO MINIMUM WAGE INCREASES

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                        HON. SUE WILKINS MYRICK

                           of north carolina

                    in the house of representatives

                         Monday, April 3, 2000

  Mrs. MYRICK. Mr. Speaker, today I state my opposition to recent 
efforts to raise the government-mandated minimum wage. I am convinced 
that a higher mandated minimum wage would dramatically reduce job 
opportunities for those who truly need them and stifle the growth of 
our economy.
  Congress raised the minimum wage twice in recent years. It is my 
belief that employers should have the right to choose when to give 
employees raises. Several economists have stated that mandating a 
higher minimum wage will encourage employers to replace people with 
machines, or move their businesses to countries that do not have a 
mandated minimum wage. Either way, this will result in fewer jobs for 
Americans.
  If we truly support increased opportunities for teens to get work 
experience, and for poor men and women to escape unemployment, we must 
not legislate an even higher minimum wage that prices them out of the 
job market. Instead, Congress needs to focus our efforts on achieving 
regulatory reform tax relief and legal reform which will increase the 
capital available to the business sector for wage increases. Congress 
must also focus on reducing individual income taxes so that citizens 
can keep more of their hard-earned money.

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