U.S. Rep. Kathy Castor (D-Tampa/St. Petersburg, FL) announced her support today for an increase in the minimum wage, which would boost the economic security of women across America. Castor is a cosponsor of the Fair Minimum Wage Act (H.R. 1010), which would raise the federal minimum wage from $7.25 to $10.10 an hour.

“When women succeed, America succeeds. Two-thirds of minimum wage workers are women, and two-thirds of workers in tipped occupations – such as restaurant servers or nail salon technicians – are women. Forty percent of women are the primary breadwinners for their families,” said Rep. Castor, who urged the GOP House leadership yesterday to allow a vote on the critical measure. 

Nearly five years have passed since the last increase in the federal minimum wage.  Currently, a full-time minimum wage worker makes less than $16,000 per year, which is below the poverty line for a family of two or more.

“Hard-working Americans who have full-time jobs should not live in poverty.  Furthermore, many are surprised to learn that -- contrary to critics’ claims that teens are the primary beneficiaries of increases in the minimum wage -- only 12 percent of the workers likely to benefit from a minimum wage increase are teenagers,” Rep. Castor noted.   

According to the National Employment Law Project, the value of today’s minimum wage has eroded by nearly a third over the past 40 years. Passing the Fair Minimum Wage Act would restore the minimum wage to its historic purchasing power, give a raise to 16.5 million people currently working for less than $10.10 and lift nearly 1 million Americans out of poverty. In addition, it would increase the federal minimum wage for tipped employees from $2.13 to $3 an hour during the first year, while providing a formula for subsequent annual adjustments. 

“Although the GOP-controlled 113^th Congress will go down in history as the least productive ever, America cannot wait and it is past time to provide an economic shot in the arm for working women and families,” Rep. Castor said. “Increasing the minimum wage would create an estimated 85,000 additional jobs nationwide. In Florida alone, more than 1 million workers would be directly affected by raising the minimum wage to $10.10, according to a briefing by the Economic Policy Institute.

“Along with access to quality child care, paid family leave and paycheck fairness, raising the minimum wage is an important step towards ensuring economic stability for women.” Last fall, Rep. Castor hosted a local “When Women Succeed, America Succeeds” forum with women from across Tampa Bay to build an agenda that addresses the economic challenges facing women and families today, including an increase in the minimum wage.

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