The fight for a livable minimum wage has raged for 100 years. Why are Democrats like Manchin now standing in its way?
Minimum Wage
Centrist Democrats want to gut the wage hike, but progressives have more power than ever in Congress.
So far, Democratic leadership in both chambers is standing with striking workers over moderate Democrats.
Joe Biden has said that the $15 minimum wage proposal may not make it through stimulus talks.
“I believe that we will succeed in including the minimum wage in the reconciliation bill,” said Sen. Bernie Sanders.
The Congressional Budget Office said raising the minimum wage to $15 an hour by 2025 would benefit 27 million workers.
Budget Chair Sanders says lawyers are working to show a pay hike is eligible for reconciliation after Biden cast doubt.
The Fight for $15 has come a long way since 200 food workers went on strike in 2012.
It’s too early for labor organizers to run victory laps, but Biden’s first few days suggest ambitious plans are ahead.
She went to Hunts Point Produce Market in the Bronx to express solidarity with 1,400 striking produce workers.