[Congressional Record Volume 159, Number 65 (Thursday, May 9, 2013)]
[House]
[Page H2558]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




              DECENT PAY AND BENEFITS FOR CONTRACT WORKERS

  (Ms. NORTON asked and was given permission to address the House for 1 
minute and to revise and extend her remarks.)
  Ms. NORTON. Mr. Speaker, yesterday low-income workers in Federal 
buildings held an impressive rally and press conference at Union 
Station. They serve the public and the Federal Government under 
contracts in Federal buildings nationwide, like the Ronald Reagan 
Building, often without benefits and a living wage. Despite their hard 
work, their employers, who are Federal contractors, off-load the cost 
of benefits they should provide, such as health care, onto the 
taxpayers. It is a zero-sum game.
  These working poor do not earn enough to live on, and taxpayers often 
pick up the tab with food stamps and health care that employers who pay 
a decent wage shoulder themselves.
  This is why we need administrative action to ensure that retail and 
commercial vendors who enjoy the prestige of contracts with the Federal 
Government at sites like the Smithsonian offer decent pay with 
benefits, putting everybody ahead--yes, the workers, but also the 
taxpayers and the economy alike.

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