Raising the Minimum Wage: An Overdue Pay Raise for America's Working Families


THE WHITE HOUSE
Office of the Press Secretary


For Immediate Release March 8, 2000



RAISING THE MINIMUM WAGE:
AN OVERDUE PAY RAISE FOR AMERICA’S WORKING FAMILIES

Today, President Clinton will call on Congress to pass clean, straightforward legislation to raise the minimum wage by $1 -- from $5.15 to $6.15 -- in two equal steps. The President will say that working families deserve a raise which would restore the value of the minimum wage to its level in 1982. He will also reiterate his opposition to legislation that holds this increase hostage to provisions that delay this overdue pay raise -- costing a full-time minimum wage worker more than $900 over two years -- and jeopardize our ability to strengthen Social Security and Medicare and pay down the debt by 2013 for future generations. The President will also release a report by the National Economic Council which shows that raising the minimum wage is good for American workers and good for the American economy. Some highlights from the report are:



What's New - March 2000

Women's History Month 2000

The Minimum Wage: Increasing the Reward for Work

New Medicare Prescription Drug Benefit

Meeting with Religious Leaders

Women's History Month

New Public Private Initiative to reduce Weather Related Air Travel Delays

Gun Violence

Agreement with Smith & Wesson

Restoring

Colorectal Cancer Awareness Month

American Red Cross Month

Prescription Drug Plan

U.S. – China WTO Accession Deal

Common Sense Gun Laws

Irish-American Heritage Month

Civilian Research and Development

Patient's Bill of Rights

Joint Statement by President Clinton and Prime Minister Tony Blair of the UK

Vaccines to Developing Countires

Human Genome Project

Information Age

Semi-Finalists for 2000-2001 White House Fellowships

President Clinton Urges Congress to Pass Budget

Congressional Budget Resolution

Save your Vision Week

St. Patrick's Day, 2000

Clinton/Gore actions to Enhance America's Energy Security

Social Security Trustees Report - March 30, 2000

Strengthen America's Energy Security

Report Shows Unprecedented Progress

Proclamation: Cancer Control Month, 2000

National Poison Prevention Week

Education and Sharing Day, U.S.A., 2000

Greek Independence Day

Proclamation: National Child Abuse Prevention Month, 2000

Statement by the President on NPT

Common Sense Gun Legislation

Raising the Minimum Wage

U.S. --China WTO Accession Deal

U.S.- China WTO Agreement

Enforcement of The U.S. - China WTO Accession Deal


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