[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 162 (2016), Part 5]
[House]
[Page 6555]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




               WE NEED A PRO-GROWTH AGENDA TO RAISE WAGES

  The SPEAKER pro tempore. The Chair recognizes the gentleman from 
Pennsylvania (Mr. Perry) for 5 minutes.
  Mr. PERRY. Mr. Speaker, Wendy's, one of the world's largest fast-food 
chains, plans to replace human employees with automated self-service 
kiosks in many of its 6,500 restaurants around the country and around 
the world in an effort to counteract minimum wage hikes throughout the 
United States. I don't blame Wendy's at all. They can either react or 
they can close up their doors, and then no one will be working.
  The economics on the issue are pretty clear. Wendy's is doing what 
they have to do to survive, and others will certainly follow suit. They 
will adapt, or they will be gone.
  When the government unnecessarily and unilaterally increases the cost 
of labor and imposes it on the job creators, the jobs are probably 
going to be replaced through automation and technological advancement. 
This is nothing new. This technology is not new. Wendy's could have 
done this a long time ago if they just wanted to maximize their 
profits, as every single corporation in America seems to be accused of 
doing these days. But these are the job creators. These are the job 
makers. They have chosen now because they have no other choice.
  Many people say that this is an artificial wage and that it actually 
discourages employment and distorts the market. Well, here is the 
proof. This is exactly what is happening. And don't blame Wendy's. They 
are trying to survive in a 2 percent economy.
  Mr. Speaker, let's not lock out millions of people from their entry-
level employment. I am a person who worked for less than minimum wage. 
One time I asked my boss at the time, I said: ``Do I make minimum 
wage?'' And he said: ``No, you are not worth it.'' I was just barely in 
high school. I didn't have much to offer, except a strong back and 
showing up on time with a good attitude, and he paid me for that, and I 
worked my way up.
  The squeeze on the middle class is real. It is painful for tens of 
millions of anxiety-ridden Americans who don't know whether they are 
going to have a job, even though it might be their entry-level job. It 
might be the job that they could get in a 2 percent economy.
  Some people say that we are just transferring the jobs to those who 
will build kiosks or robots. Well, I have got to tell you, folks, I 
suspect that those jobs are not minimum wage jobs, so that is not going 
to be of much help. And, oh, by the way, I suspect they won't be in 
your hometown where your Wendy's is. So if you have got a job there and 
it is going to be displaced or replaced with one building a kiosk, 
unless you are planning to move to where they are building that, that 
is not going to be of much solace or help to your family.
  What this country needs is a pro-growth agenda to help raise 
everyone's wages to provide the opportunity for everyone to get started 
somewhere and then move up, just like I did, without hurting the people 
already struggling to get by. What we don't need is more liberal, 
wrong-headed, unilateral, ideological-driven government regulation that 
destroys our jobs and livelihoods.

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