28 Senators Vote to Repeal Minimum Wage. 2008 Elections, Anyone?

http://blog.aflcio.org/2007/01/25/28-senators-vote-to-repeal-minimum-wage-2008-elections-anyone/


28 Senators Vote to Repeal Minimum Wage. 2008 Elections, Anyone?

by Mike Hall, Jan 25, 2007

Maybe in 1938, the idea of a federal minimum wage was controversial. But not so much so that a majority of the House and Senate couldn’t approve the Fair Labor Standards Act that set the federal minimum wage at 25 cents an hour.

So in 2007, how can anyone with a shred of common sense, let alone an ounce of empathy for men and women who bust their tails day in and day out for $5.15 an hour, say it’s time to scrap the federal minimum wage?

Yesterday, 69 years after the minimum wage was first established, 28 U.S. senators did just that when they voted “yes” on an amendment from Colorado Republican Wayne Allard that would have scrapped the federal minimum wage. (Click here to see the 28 senators who voted for the Allard amendment. They should be ashamed of themselves and if they are your lawmakers, let them know how wrong they were.)

We’re not making this up. Here’s what Sen. Edward Kennedy (D-Mass.) had to say about the Allard amendment that was offered to the Senate bill (S. 2) to raise the federal minimum wage from $5.15 an hour to $7.25 an hour:

On the Allard amendment, members should understand what the effect of the Allard amendment is, and that is effectively to repeal the minimum wage for any states among the 50 states. That effectively is what the Allard amendment does.

Allard hid the repeal behind the “state flexibility” mask, claiming states should be allowed to set their own rates, without a federal floor, because of different costs of living and differing economies. The amendment would nullify the federal minimum wage standard in the 45 states that have their own minimum wage law, and allow the five states that don’t—Alabama, Louisiana, Mississippi, South Carolina and Tennessee—to opt-out of any federal minimum wage increase by passing a minimum wage law providing at least $5.15 an hour.

As if speaking to reluctant Depression-era lawmakers wary of federal intrusion on the states, Kennedy explained the reason for a minimum wage floor:

The concept of the minimum wage was that it was going to be a minimum payment, a minimum standard. What was accepted at the time of the minimum wage is that in this country, we didn’t want to accelerate a rush to the bottom so that we would have competition in the various states to pay the lowest possible wages–sweat labor–in order to try to attract industries into those particular States, but to provide a minimum standard.

Here in the 21st century, that simple reasoning just didn’t penetrate the skulls of 28 U.S. senators—who by the way make $165,200 a year and almost annually vote to give themselves a pay raise.

Meanwhile, after 43 Republican senators yesterday maneuvered to kill a clean minimum wage bill with no tax giveaways to business, debate continues today on another Senate minimum wage bill that includes business tax cuts and other giveaways. A final vote likely won’t take place until next week, but we will give you an update tomorrow.

Alexander (R-TN)
Allard (R-CO)
Bennett (R-UT)
Bond (R-MO)
Brownback (R-KS)
Bunning (R-KY)
Burr (R-NC)
Chambliss (R-GA)
Coburn (R-OK)
Cochran (R-MS)
Cornyn (R-TX)
Craig (R-ID)
Crapo (R-ID)
DeMint (R-SC)
Ensign (R-NV)
Enzi (R-WY)
Graham (R-SC)
Gregg (R-NH)
Hagel (R-NE)
Hatch (R-UT)
Inhofe (R-OK)
Isakson (R-GA)
Kyl (R-AZ)
Lott (R-MS)
McCain (R-AZ)
McConnell (R-KY)
Sununu (R-NH)
Thomas (R-WY )

Good!

Club for Growth and Grover Norquist's group would have killed McCain's run if he voted against this bill.

YEAs ---28
Alexander (R-TN)
Allard (R-CO)
Bennett (R-UT)
Bond (R-MO)
Brownback (R-KS)
Bunning (R-KY)
Burr (R-NC)
Chambliss (R-GA)
Coburn (R-OK)
Cochran (R-MS)
Cornyn (R-TX)
Craig (R-ID)
Crapo (R-ID)
DeMint (R-SC)
Ensign (R-NV)
Enzi (R-WY)
Graham (R-SC)
Gregg (R-NH)
Hagel (R-NE)
Hatch (R-UT)
Inhofe (R-OK)
Isakson (R-GA)
Kyl (R-AZ)
Lott (R-MS)
McCain (R-AZ)
McConnell (R-KY)
Sununu (R-NH)
Thomas (R-WY)

*bitchslap*

doesn't mean he isn't extremely conservative.

New Hampshire is no longer GOP friendly territory.

Nobody that I know (or have known in my 53 years) gets the minimum! Basic labor in any industry starts way higher. Illegals get at least $10 per hour. ( under the table) This is just a bunch of BS!! IMHO

A good salesman will make 10 to 20 times the min. A good rest. worker ,whether they be waitress ,cook or bartender will take home more than the owner. And I own 2 resturants and spent almost half my life as a salesman.Do you know anybody (please name @ least 4-5 ) that work for min.?

All dishwashers in the Applebee's franchise restaurants in the area (think there are currently 12) start at minimum wage. All wait staff is paid $2.13 per hour and most do not average minimum wage except on weekend nights across their 8 hour or more shifts. No one working part-time in the Dollar Store as cashier/sales makes over $5.35. If you're looking for names and addresses, I will not release private information to you.

Sorry if you got that impression. But i do know that Dollar Generals and Wal Mart are hiring in @ 6.75 -7.00 hour, which is way above the current min.

The $ amounts you quote for new workers is BELOW those amounts in at least 15 states. And 60% of the people making the minimum wage are over the age of 20 years old. The united states now has the most number of people as a percentage living in poverty except for the great depression. Why do you not want these people to get a raise? Why do you want to see single parents struggling to feed their children in a safe environment? I mean legal and illegal. Hunger isn't any less just because your parents had to sneak in to make a better living in the USA!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pOtyigg5BZw

Anywhere else in the country other than the state she lives in, would probably pay much more. She lives in one of the very poor states and only ended up there to take care or her mother. Her mother left her a home and since giving up a home sounds a bit stupid considering home prices in other states, she is forced to work for this ridiculous wage. It's a full-time job and she can't afford the health insurance because the wage is so low. The job is for a fairly large chain of ____ stores and involves not only computer knowledge but actually helps the police solve cases. FOR UNDER 7 BUCKS AN HOUR. And she's been there for more than one year. It's not training pay. Many people are working for if not minimum wage, just a dollar or so more an hour. We're talking wages that would not keep a roof over your head if you didn't have friends or family to live with.

Believe me, there are way too many people working for what is too close to minimum wage even if it is a bit more than $5.15 an hour.

I hate to admit it, but I worked at Disney World a few years ago and my job was almost like running my own little business. Lots of responsibility, money handling, customer relations, hard physical work, HOT and for all that I got a whopping $6.80 an hour. No tips. I worked there just for the fun of it until it began to tear me up too much physically. I think you top out after five or six years there (maybe longer now) at about 10 or 11 dollars an hour. Years ago it topped out at $15 dollars or more an hour. Another busted union.



What Disney did with College Program kids was unbelievable. They paid them 6 bucks an hour, but they had them stay in Disney housing, bunching them together in apartments and took rent out of the 6 bucks an hour. I think there's a name for that kind of labor. When I left, they were making it pretty well known that they were going to try and fill as many Disney jobs as they could with College Program kids.

The Robber Baron era is fighting like hell to come back, if it hasn't already.

There are plenty of people who earn minimum wage in this country, a lot of families depend on it. Saying that no one earns minimum wage is just another right-wing talking point.

& see the service industry close up!

Hospitality: waiters, waitresses, hotel emplyees, tourism workers, sales.

We work 365 days a year, & 24 hours a day.

And I don't get extra money for overtime.

Many people here work 2-3 jobs.