House approves minimum wage increase

WASHINGTON — The House approved a minimum wage increase Wednesday, giving Democrats a victory in their first 100-hour agenda but drawing criticism from Republicans, who wanted to see more protection for small businesses in the bill.

The bill, if approved by the Senate and signed by President Bush, would raise the hourly minimum wage from $5.15 to $7.25 an hour incrementally over the next two years. It passed the House 315-116, with Rep. Jim Matheson, D-Utah, voting for it and Reps. Chris Cannon and Rep. Rob Bishop, both R-Utah, voting against it.

Matheson said a study by University of Utah's Center for Public Policy and Administration has found this would mean a raise for about 170,000 Utahns, or 17 percent of the state's work force. A minimum-wage worker in Utah earns, on average, $893 per month, according to that report. If the federal legislation becomes law, the same person would earn $1,213 per month.

"I do have concerns about difficulties this may pose for some small businesses, but it appears the Senate version will include provisions needed by some employers," Matheson said.

Matheson said it has been 10 years since the last wage increase, and most states already have set the minimum wage at or more than $7 an hour.

House Speaker Nancy Pelosi called the bill's passage a "victory for America's families.

"With the passage of this crucial legislation, we will reward work, paying America's workers a decent wage so they may join in our nation's prosperity," she said.

But Republicans counter that just raising the wage will not solve the problems facing those on minimum wage.

"Simply increasing the minimum wage without really understanding who it will help or hurt is taking the easy way out," Cannon said. "At a time of record low unemployment, we need to be addressing the more important task of understanding and removing the obstacles that are preventing willing workers from filling the abundant jobs that are available today at much higher wage rates."

Bishop said the raise would hurt "the people that we're trying to help" because it would likely raise unemployment among the least-skilled and lowest-paid workers — including high school and college students working part-time. He said only about 2 percent of working adults make minimum wage, with the rest at that level mainly being students.

"I have letters from throughout my district from employers who are worried, in order to cover the costs of this mandated wage hike, about being forced to fire some employees, reduce working hours for current employees, or postpone plans to hire new ones," Bishop said. "Most of the time, the government is not the best solution. Most of the time, when left alone, the economy and hard-working American workers and businesses take better care of things themselves."

Republicans tried to change the bill so that small businesses that offered health insurance to their employees would not have to raise their salaries as well but it failed. This and other changes presented by Republicans Wednesday are expected to come up when the Senate takes up the bill.

The minimum wage would increase to $5.85 an hour 60 days after becoming law if it gets that far, then to $6.55 a year after that and reaching $7.25 two years after it becomes law.

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