[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 153 (2007), Part 1]
[House]
[Page 742]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




                              {time}  1015
                        RAISING THE MINIMUM WAGE

  (Mr. SCHIFF asked and was given permission to address the House for 1 
minute and to revise and extend his remarks.)
  Mr. SCHIFF. Mr. Speaker, today we have the opportunity to raise the 
wages of 13 million Americans, and we should take it.
  Why raise the minimum wage in America? For the simple reason that men 
and women in the richest Nation on Earth should not work full time and 
still be relegated to living in poverty. What does it mean for the 
father or mother in a family of three to live on the current minimum 
wage? It means an income of $10,000 a year.
  Imagine living in Glendale, Burbank or Pasadena, or any city in 
America, and trying to get by on $10,000 a year. A raise in the minimum 
wage will be an additional $4,000 for that family of three. It will 
mean more groceries on the table and a greater opportunity to get 
health care. It will mean potentially pulling that family out of 
poverty. It is the right thing to do. We have the opportunity today to 
make that happen for millions, and we should take it.

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