07021
January 9, 2007

Religious groups urge Congress to raise minimum wage

PC(USA), Jewish groups call for increase to $7.25

by Jerry Van Marter

LOUISVILLE — Leaders of the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.) and a number of Jewish groups have united to send a letter to members of Congress urging an increase in the federal minimum wage from $5.15 to $7.25 an hour.

     “The Jewish and Presbyterian communities have long advocated for the rights of fair pay and the sanctity of families. We have sought an end to child labor, sweatshops, the six-day work week, and occupational safety violations,” the religious leaders said in their letter, dated Jan. 8. “Today, we continue our commitment to these values, by calling on Congress to raise the federal minimum wage to $7.25 an hour and give America’s workers the pay increase they so rightfully deserve.”

     The letter was signed by leaders of the PC(USA), the Reform Jewish movement, The United Synagogue of Conservative Judaism and the Jewish Reconstructionist Federation.

     The full text of the statement sent to members of Congress:

     As members of the religious community, morally guided by our religious texts, our shared prophetic traditions value compassion, economic justice, and cultivating strong families and communities. We take to heart the words from Deuteronomy and that command us to open our hands to the poor and moreover, to help others establish self-sufficiency. An increase in the federal minimum wage gives those in minimum wage jobs a little more help in their struggles to support themselves. While we cannot alleviate all poverty, we must do everything we can to alleviate the fact that too many full time workers are hungry, homeless, and without health care in our society.

Paying workers a decent wage is an issue that embodies our ideals of justice and ethical teachings. Each year, low-wage workers are left behind as the cost of living increases, executive salaries grow exponentially, and congressional pay raises are enacted. Currently, a full time minimum wage worker brings in under $11,000 a year, $5,000 below the poverty level for a family of three.  In addition, 44 million Americans, many of whom work more than one minimum wage job, currently live without health insurance, and over 88 percent of minimum wage workers cannot afford a two bedroom apartment in the city in which they work.