Some Congress members make $608/hour -- but vote against raising min wage....

[CousinIT]

Link to tweet

[frazzled]

1. Where does that figure come from?

According to law,

The compensation for most Senators, Representatives, Delegates, and the Resident Commissioner from Puerto Rico is $174,000

The only exceptions include the Speaker of the House (salary of $223,500) and the President pro tempore of the Senate and the majority and minority leaders in the House and Senate (salary of $193,400).1

Outside Earned Income Limits
Permissible “outside earned income” for Representatives and Senators is limited to 15% of the annual rate of basic pay for level II of the Executive Schedule. According to the House Ethics Committee and Senate Ethics Committee, the 2016 limit is $27,495.5
Certain types of outside earned income, however, are prohibited.

Prohibition on Honoraria
Representatives and Senators are prohibited from accepting honoraria.7 The acceptance of honoraria by Representatives was prohibited effective January 1, 1991.8 The acceptance of honoraria by Senators was prohibited effective August 14, 1991.

https://www.senate.gov/CRSpubs/9c14ec69-c4e4-4bd8-8953-f73daa1640e4.pdf

Assuming a 40 hour work week (and I'm sure most work more than that), that would be the equivalent of $83.65 per hour for all, other than the six positions mentioned at slightly higher rates.

That's still a hell of a lot more than minimum wage, so your argument holds in that sense. But hyperbole is not helpful to making it.

If I'm wrong here, please enlighten me.

[CousinIT]

2. Here...

Congress will be in session for only eight days during a 102-day span between Aug. 1 and Nov. 12, when lawmakers are set to return for a lame-duck session after the elections.

Because the annual salary for members of the House is $174,000, their hourly wage for those eight days amounts to $608 per hour, presuming 10-hour workdays.

That’s several times the hourly compensation of anesthesiologists, one of the highest-earning professions, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, at $113 an hour on average.
Liberal activist Ralph Nader worked out the eye-popping calculation in an angry letter he sent to Speaker John Boehner (R-Ohio) on Monday.

“While millions of Americans are working more and more for less and less, you and your House of Representatives seem to have no problem working less and less for more and more,” he wrote.

Nader calculated that Boehner, who earns $223,500 a year as Speaker, will earn roughly $781 per hour over a three-and-half month span, given Congress worked only eight days. Boehner has a higher salary than rank-and-file members.

http://thehill.com/homenews/news/218579-time-in-dc-for-lawmakers-works-out-to-608-per-hour

[frazzled]

4. Counting only days in session is misleading

There is still work back in their districts when Congress is not in session.

By that measure, should we calculate teachers hourly salaries in my city (avg yearly salary according to union at $71,017) based on 178 plus 12 days that school is in session?

[CousinIT]

5. I didn't write the article.

But that's where the numbers in the graphic came from. And point still stands that whatever their hourly rate is, the congress members who make $170-220K / year for 160 days or so of work (paid by tax dollars from American paychecks) refuse to raise the min wage for American workers who work almost 365 days/year and can't make ends meet. And they're not teenagers but elderly, parents of young kids, etc working these jobs because it's all they can get.

[crazycatlady]

6. Some work in their districts, others go into hiding

Or don't bother to go home at all.

[onethatcares]

3. no wonder

they need taxpayer funded healthcare. Jeeez, have you ever tried to live on $2400.00 a week? Trust me, you gotta cut corners to stay alive.

[coco22]

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