Eni Faleomavaega

Forgive me for pausing here, Mr. Chairman, but what company in good conscience in my opinion would suppress wages in a U.S. Territory on the finding that more than 300 Samoan women cleaning fish in the Territory for 27 cents an hour…

Reports are proved to be false.

It is also my recommendation that we establish one minimum wage rate for American Samoa, rather than the 18 different industry rates to which we are needlessly subjected.

I am appreciative of what the U.S. Congress has done, and continues to do, for us and, once more, I ask for your support to halt further increases for 2012.

I continue to be supportive of our tuna cannery workers being re-trained to become nurses, teachers, or whatever else they might want to be because I believe in their future and the future of American Samoa.

Whether North or South, East or West, there [is] a standard of American living, and we ought to recognize that and fix a minimum wage upon that basis.

Chicken of the Sea left without the courtesy of discussing its departure either with myself or the Governor of American Samoa.

On September 30, 2009, one day after American Samoa was struck by a powerful earthquake...

American Samoa's private sector economy had been nearly 80% dependent... on two of the three major brands.

The history of minimum wage in American Samoa is not pretty.

After three increments of 50-cent increases to minimum wages in American Samoa, a cannery that once employed over 2,000 people closed.

How much does our government expect us to suffer until we have to stand up for our survival?

Our job market is being torched. Our businesses are being depressed.

Our Territory of the United States, American Samoa, needs some advice from this Subcommittee and from this Congress.

Mr. Chairman, thank you very much. Certainly it is always a welcome sight to see Secretary Babauta and also Dr. Gootnick here from GAO.

We are going to keep listening and watching, as time goes by, so we achieve our goal of keeping people working--while making sure they earn a decent, fair, and dignified wage to support themselves and their families.

I think it is an interesting observation that maybe American Samoa is a good micro example in terms of bringing this to the national forum as far as the minimum wage issue is concerned.

I couldn't agree with the Governor more and I appreciate his comments on this issue.

We need to be sure that in our zeal to give workers a better wage we 'do no harm.'

Minimum wage policy needs to be our concern here in Congress, however.

Let me tell you: one way to solve unemployment is to pay people a decent wage.

It is still not enough. It is not what I call a dignified wage.

Raising the minimum wage is one way to accomplish that goal.

I am pleased with the overall approach taken by President Obama. In his budget proposal for FY 2012 and beyond the President makes the case for selectively cutting spending while increasing resources in areas like education and…

While I appreciate the goal to cut spending and reduce the deficit, which is projected to hit $1.6 trillion this year, getting there appears to me the real issue for debate.