Lynn C. Woolsey: “28 years ago, I was a single working mother with three small children, receiving no child support and earning close to…”

“28 years ago, I was a single working mother with three small children, receiving no child support and earning close to the minimum wage. Even though I was working, I was earning so little that I was forced to go on welfare to provide my children with the child care, the health care, and the food that they needed. Even though I was educated and had good job skills, I still was not earning enough to fully support my children. My story bears repeating tonight, because too many families today are in the same predicament I was 28 years ago. Mr. Speaker, if this Congress is truly serious about reducing dependence on welfare, then let us increase the minimum wage. Let us make work pay, and let us make sure that paying working parents enough to support their families and take care of their children is a priority on our agenda. Mr. Speaker, the minimum wage has not kept up with the increase in the cost of living. Workers these days can put in a full day of work, 40 hours a week, at minimum wage and still live below the poverty line. The new majority in Congress wants to cut the earned income tax credit, kick single moms and their children off welfare, and reduce health benefits for low-income families, but they will not even hold a hearing on increasing the minimum wage. If we want to reduce reliance on public assistance, Mr. Speaker, does it not make sense to make work pay? Should not entry level jobs pay more than public subsistence?”