WASHINGTON, D.C. – As part of a nationwide Day of Action around increasing the federal minimum wage, the U.S. Conference of Mayors on 10/10 urged Congress to raise the wage to $10.10 and mobilized existing support from mayors across the country who favor the increase.
More than 70 mayors recently signed The U.S. Conference of Mayors Cities of Opportunity Task Force letter in support of raising the federal minimum wage, following passage of the USCM Resolution in Support of Raising the Federal Minimum Wage at its annual June meeting in Dallas.
Raising the minimum wage to $10.10 per hour would increase earnings for nearly 28 million workers across the country and help address the growing inequality gap that is leaving our middle and working class families behind, said USCM President and Sacramento Mayor Kevin Johnson.
“We are calling for this Day of Action not only to urge Congress to increase the minimum wage but also to remind all of us that even though the economy is rebounding, the wage gap continues to expand at an alarming rate,” said Mayor Johnson, who recently created a Cities of Opportunities Task Force and appointed New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio and Boston Mayor Martin Walsh as chair and vice-chair of the task force.
“Today, we must raise our voices and redouble our efforts to strengthen our communities and to put policies in place that build an economy that works for everyone,” said Johnson.
Today, mayors, senior Obama Administration officials, workers, and other key stakeholders will be urging Congress to raise the federal minimum wage from $7.25 to $10.10 an hour. Mayors will also use social media and other communications tools to generate backing for the increase among the general public. Mayors are using the Twitter hashtags, #Mayorsdo and #RaiseTheWage, and designing Facebook pages to promote the $10.10 campaign.
Mayor de Blasio, who recently convened a meeting of the Cities of Opportunity Task Force in New York City said, “We are living in a time of rising inequality and declining opportunity – this is a threat to our fundamental values and an obstacle to the nation’s economic growth. Across the country, people are working harder and harder, and yet, they’re struggling to get by. Increasing the minimum wage nationally would be the single best solution to help close the growing inequality crisis in America. As mayors, it’s our job to create more opportunity in our cities, and we must work together to push for national change, and send a message to Washington that we need something better for hardworking Americans.”
Task force members are asking other mayors to organize events to raise awareness around wage increase and write op-eds and encourage their constituents to do so as well.
Mayor Walsh said, “We need have a real dialogue about the growing divide between the haves and have-nots, and a huge piece of the puzzle is addressing the federal minimum wage. If Congress is serious about creating a pathway out of poverty for Americans and securing the economic prosperity of the country, then increasing the minimum wage must be part of their solution. It will allow families to better support themselves and, at the same time, help reinvigorate local economies across the country.”
Tom Cochran, CEO and Executive Director of the U.S. Conference of Mayors, said, “Increasing the minimum wage is one step, among others, we can take to help families provide for their children and become self-sufficient without worry of losing their home and paying bills. U.S. mayors are working to create jobs, improve infrastructure and protect the environment to provide a quality of life that all Americans deserve. Mayors assembled at our June Annual Meeting in Dallas resolved that Congress should join the nation’s mayors in their efforts and take this one step today on 10/10 for a $10.10 minimum wage.”
The U.S. Conference of Mayors is the official nonpartisan organization of cities with populations of 30,000 or more. There are nearly 1400 such cities in the country today, and each city is represented in the Conference by its chief elected official, the mayor. Like us on Facebook at facebook.com/usmayors, or follow us on Twitter at twitter.com/usmayors.
