Civil and Human Rights Coalition Welcomes Legislation to Raise Federal Minimum Wage to $15 by 2024

WASHINGTON—Wade Henderson, president and CEO of The Leadership Conference on Civil and Human Rights, issued the following statement on the introduction of the Raise the Wage Act of 2017 by Sens. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) and Patty Murray (D-Wash.), and Reps. Bobby Scott (D-Va.) and Keith Ellison (D-Minn.). The bill incrementally raises the federal minimum wage to $15 an hour by 2024:

“We welcome the introduction of the Raise the Wage Act, which would raise the federal minimum wage in eight steps to $15 an hour by 2024, gradually eliminate the tipped minimum wage, and sunset the ability of employers to pay working people with a disability a subminimum wage. Working people are long overdue for a raise, and the Raise the Wage Act is an important step in combatting the troubling inequality that continues to rise in our nation, hitting communities of color among the hardest.

Today, one in every three jobholders—41.7 million people—earns under $12 per hour, which is just above the poverty line for a family of four. It is unconscionable that our federal minimum wage is so low that working people who put in an honest day’s work are unable to sustain themselves and their families while the wealthy and big corporations continue to do better and better. Congress should move swiftly to enact this legislation.”

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 200-plus member organizations, visit www.civilrights.org.