Congress Moves Closer to Giving Working People a Raise

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Contact: LaGloria Wheatfall, [email protected], 202.548.7160

WASHINGTON – Vanita Gupta, president and CEO of The Leadership Conference on Civil and Human Rights, issued the following statement after the House of Representatives voted to pass the Raise the Wage Act of 2019 (H.R. 582):

“Working people deserve to make a wage that makes it possible for them to sustain themselves and their families. We should all get paid fairly for the work we do and applaud members of the House of Representatives for voting to pass the Raise the Wage Act today. This law would make it possible for working people in our country – including tipped workers and working people with disabilities – to receive an adjustment in pay that is long overdue. Now, the Senate must take action and join the House in passing this legislation quickly to disrupt the practice of keeping working people in America living paycheck to paycheck. Earning a livable wage is a civil and human right.”

In 2018, The Leadership Conference’s sister organization, The Leadership Conference Education Fund, along with the Georgetown Center on Poverty and Inequality, released a report titled “Bare Minimum: Why We Need to Raise Wages for America’s Lowest-Paid Families.”

The Leadership Conference on Civil and Human Rights is a coalition charged by its diverse membership of more than 200 national organizations to promote and protect the rights of all persons in the United States. The Leadership Conference works toward an America as good as its ideals. For more information on The Leadership Conference and its member organizations, visit www.civilrights.org.