[Congressional Record Volume 166, Number 120 (Tuesday, June 30, 2020)]
[House]
[Page H2679]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




             HONORING GROCERY AND CONVENIENCE STORE WORKERS

  The SPEAKER pro tempore. The Chair recognizes the gentleman from 
Pennsylvania (Mr. Thompson) for 5 minutes.
  Mr. THOMPSON of Pennsylvania. Mr. Speaker, America found itself in 
the middle of the COVID-19 pandemic. It is a crisis, the likes of which 
many have not experienced in their lifetimes. There are those who run 
from the crisis, those who run toward it, and those who find themselves 
right in the middle without any say in the matter.
  Today, many of those in the middle are the men and women stocking, 
sanitizing, and serving our communities in grocery and convenience 
stores throughout our country. These employees are among the unsung 
heroes in the fight against COVID-19 who have been overlooked not only 
in appreciation, but also in our support.
  Grocery stores and convenience stores play a critical role in our 
Nation's food supply chain, and reliable access to healthy foods is 
essential for all Americans, as we have seen throughout this crisis.
  To thank them for working around the clock and putting themselves at 
risk throughout the pandemic, I would say that the employees working 
our grocery stores and our convenience stores have probably had more 
exposure to the public than any other position out there.
  To thank them for what they do, I have introduced the Giving 
Retailers and Our Convenience Employees Relief Act, or the GROCER Act. 
The GROCER Act would alleviate the Federal tax burden for grocery store 
and convenience store workers from February 15, 2020, to June 15, 2020, 
for individuals making less than $75,000 a year. The bill also gives 
the Treasury Secretary discretion to extend this benefit for an 
additional 3 months.
  The hardworking men and women stocking our shelves are among the 
unsung heroes during the COVID-19 pandemic. These frontline workers are 
putting in overtime to ensure that we have the resources we need to 
weather this storm.
  In times of crisis like these, we learn to fully appreciate these 
workers who play a valuable role in our food supply chain. Food is 
something that connects all of us, and access to food is something we 
all depend upon.
  I am proud that this is a bipartisan bill, and I would like to thank 
my colleague, Congressman Dwight Evans from Philadelphia, for joining 
me to lead this effort.
  The GROCER Act is a simple way to say thank you to these workers who 
leave their families each day, risking exposure to the virus, in order 
to ensure that our families and constituents have access to the food 
and resources we need. Without these workers, millions of Americans 
would struggle to access necessities.

  The GROCER Act is a commonsense way to compensate and support our 
grocery and convenience store workers. The Federal tax holiday for 
these workers would put more of their hard-earned money back into their 
pockets to support themselves and their families.
  I would like to urge my colleagues to join me in thanking these 
frontline workers by supporting and cosponsoring the GROCER Act.

                          ____________________