Durbin Says Senate Democrats Will Back $10 Minimum Wage

[Redfairen]

Source: Bloomberg

U.S. Senator Richard Durbin said Democrats overwhelmingly support increasing the federal minimum wage to about $10 an hour, higher than the rate proposed by President Barack Obama.

Durbin, the No. 2 Democrat in the Senate, said legislation that would raise the wage probably can’t pass in the Republican-controlled House, where Speaker John Boehner has vowed to block such efforts.

“It’s going to that same room, that little dark room, where Boehner puts all of the bipartisan measures out of the Senate,” Durbin of Illinois told reporters today after a meeting of Senate Democrats. In a politically divided Congress, the House and Senate have refused to take up certain measures approved in the opposite chamber.

Obama has urged Congress to set the federal minimum wage at $9 an hour, up from $7.25 in effect since 2009. During a meeting at the Capitol today, Durbin said it was suggested Obama “would be very supportive of 10” dollars.


Read more: http://mobile.bloomberg.com/news/2013-11-07/durbin-says-senate-democrats-will-back-10-minimum-wage.html?cmpid=

[Kingofalldems]

1. Oh no! That will cause massive layoffs!

The Ayn Rand republicans will shout.

[Warpy]

3. Meanwhile, all the corporate bigwigs and their wealthy string pullers will shriek full blast

Six months after it happens (and it should, even though its chances are poor) no one will remember what the yowling was all about since money at the bottom magnifies itself as it travels through the economy and everybody's business has increased enough to increase profits far in excess of what they're laying out there in wages.

If we want a really healthy economy with the fewest number of people on public assistance as possible, we'll raise it to $15/hour. And we'll index it to inflation.

[cstanleytech]

6. Mmm they probably wont lay people off however they probably will screw most of us over

by raising their prices to pay for it which is why I still believe the proper way to motivate a company to pay workers better is hit them where it hurts..........in their profits.
As in institute a tax on companies that taxes them a variable rate depending on a number of factors but chiefly among them is the the bigger the gap in pay for its highest paid employee vs its lowest paid the larger the tax the company pays.

[KamaAina]

14. Old news here in San Jose

We've had a $10 minimum wage since the beginning of this year.

We're still bracing for the wave of massive layoffs.

[Politicalboi]

2. $15.00 should be the magic number

We're already $15.00 underpaid.

[MiniMe]

4. Start higher, then maybe when the house agrees to something, it will be higher than $9

[SDjack]

5. Senate needs to send a new bill on Minimum Wage every week until the House

votes on it. Hold news conferences and cry how the House refuses to act.

[KamaAina]

13. Forty times in a row if they have to

[NewJeffCT]

7. It would be a great stimulus to the economy

the people making $7.25 an hour getting a boost to $10 aren't going to be pocketing the extra money - most of it will go back into the economy. It's not like like somebody making $7.25 million getting a boost to 10 million and most of it will go into the bank or into other investments.

and, that's exactly why the House GOP will kill it

[safeinOhio]

8. My new bill would raise it to $10 for

those working 30 hrs or more and $12 for those only allowed to work 30 or less.

[Nanjing to Seoul]

9. Still too low, but it's a start. Now, get the president on board and get those GOP slime

to shut up and realize they have lost all political capital.

[AzDar]

10. K & R

[allGoodThings]

11. $10/hour and a guaranteed income for everyone would be an ok start.

Really should be aiming for $15/hour though...

[Demeter]

12. Only 35 years too late!

THe minimum wage should have hit $10 in 1980

[Dopers_Greed]

15. Oh no!!!

The price of a hamburger might go up $0.05.

Think of the poor.

[groundloop]

16. Oh my, how will all those "Job Creators" ever afford this

They might be stuck buying their wives a BMW instead of that Mercedes for Christmas. Oh the horror!

[musiclawyer]

17. Should be cornerstone of taking back House

A democratic house will pass a minimum wage bill .... And end the gridlock

[grahamhgreen]

18. Go progressives!

[Victor_c3]

19. There was a great Rachel Maddow segment about this just the other day

http://www.democraticunderground.com/1017157105

In short, increasing the minimum wage is wildly popular in even states that usually lean republican. Given that 2014 is coming up, this will put republicans facing reelection in a hard position. The democrats really need to get out there and push the data and argument showing that increasing the minimum wage is a good thing for our economy.

[OmahaBlueDog]

20. $14-$17 makes more sense

It's a wage that get's a 40 hour a week worker off of most public assistance. I would be willing to entertain discussion of a "sub-minimum" for 14-18 year-olds working less than 20 hours a week (i.e. after school jobs), because that's the objection I always hear thrown out by conservatives to a living wage for working adults.

I'd also like to see this attached to the bill: the current tax brackets (not rates -- brackets) and the minimum wage and the qualification levels for free/reduced lunch, section 8, SNAP, WIC, and TANF should be indexed to inflation based on today's levels.

ETA: I'm also willing to entertin some variance in the minimum wage by region. for example, $14 might work fine in Nebraska, while a worker in NYC or SF might need something approaching $20. The current "high cost of living" criteria used for setting federal salaries could be used in this regard.