Minimum wage hike helps women

By Hilda L. Solis

Today the federal minimum wage is going up from $6.55 to $7.25 per hour.

Seventy cents an hour may not seem like much, but in these tough economic times, this modest increase will put between 3 million and 5 million Americans a step closer to making ends meet every month.

In 1996, as a California state senator, I was proud to play a leading role in helping to increase California’s minimum wage.

As a member of Congress in 2007, I was also proud to help pass the Fair Minimum Wage Act, which amended the Fair Labor Standards Act and raised the minimum wage for the first time in 10 years.

Today’s raise is the final installment from that act and will benefit 30 states where the state minimum wage is currently at or below the federal minimum wage.

This increase means that a family with a full-time minimum wage earner will see its monthly income increase by about $120.

That is more than a week’s worth of groceries for a family of four, or perhaps enough to cover utility bills.

The $120 could buy three tanks of gas for a fuel-efficient car, or cover the cost of replacing the light bulbs in a typical home with compact fluorescent bulbs.

Both would put money back in the pockets of workers and be an important step toward greening our nation.

Contrary to popular belief, minimum wage workers are not just teenagers working summers bagging groceries or selling jeans at the mall.

Many minimum wage earners are in fact “involuntary part-time workers” because their hours have been cut during this recession.

An increase in their wages will make a big difference.

I am especially pleased that this change will benefit working women, who make up two-thirds of minimum wage earners — including some 500,000 who are mothers and the head of their household.

And here’s another myth-breaker: Today’s minimum wage increase is not only good for workers, but also good for the economy.

Small-business owners will benefit as this increase can improve worker retention.

As a matter of fact, everyone benefits from today’s pay raise. The Economic Policy Institute has estimated the increase in the minimum wage will generate $5.5 billion in consumer spending over the next 12 months.

I am proud of my record as a legislator to raise the minimum wage.

Now, as the U.S. secretary of labor, it’s my role to vigorously enforce this law.

During the first six months of the 2009 fiscal year, the Department of Labor recovered more than $82 million in back wages for nearly 107,000 minimum wage workers.

That’s a good start, but we need to do even more to protect vulnerable workers.

This is why I am hiring an additional 250 new wage and hour investigators beginning this year and into 2010, so they can continue to effectively monitor wage and hour violations.

I am committed to ensuring good jobs for all Americans. Jobs that are secure, sustainable and can support a family.

We have a long way to go in ensuring the economic security of all our workers, but today we have taken a step closer toward that goal.

Hilda L. Solis, a Democrat, is U.S. secretary of labor.