Minimum Wage. During consideration of a bill to consolidate job-training programs (H.R. 803), Rep. George Miller (D-Calif.) offered a motion to recommit the bill to the House Education and the Workforce Committee and report it back immediately with an amendment that, among other things, would incrementally increase the federal minimum wage by a total $2.85 over two years to $10.10 an hour. In 2007, the federal minimum wage was increased by $2.10 to the current $7.25 an hour. Though many people believe that raising the federal minimum wage is a solution to national poverty, mandating higher wages causes employers to limit hiring of entry-level workers, causing more unemployment. On the other hand, when the market is allowed to dictate wages, entry-level workers are able to get the experience and job training they need to get higher paying jobs.
The House rejected Miller\’s motion on March 15, 2013 by a vote of 184 to 233 (Roll Call 74). We have assigned pluses to the nays because it is unconstitutional for the government to prohibit citizens from working for less than a government-set wage.
