Glenn Thompson: “I thank the chairwoman from North Carolina for yielding. Mr. Speaker, I certainly rise in favor of upward mobility. I…”

“I thank the chairwoman from North Carolina for yielding. Mr. Speaker, I certainly rise in favor of upward mobility. I rise in favor of greater opportunity. But this bill doesn't do that. I rise in opposition to this underlying bill. Mr. Speaker, increasing the Federal minimum wage by 107 percent is an extreme and unprecedented policy that will have a severe and negative impact on many American families, our Nation's workforce, our economy, and once again, most importantly, hardworking American families. According to the nonpartisan Congressional Budget Office, if enacted, this legislation would cause approximately 3.7 million workers--let's extrapolate that to families--across this Nation to lose their jobs by 2025. {time} 0930 My home State of Pennsylvania has estimated that more than 120,000 individuals, thereby families, would be negatively impacted through the loss of their jobs. That is not upward mobility. That is downward mobility. Mr. Speaker, the majority of Americans, 54 percent, think losing up to 3.7 million jobs for a $15 minimum wage is not a good idea. And 42 percent of families with a minimum-wage earner would see a net reduction in total family income under the $15 minimum wage. That is according to the Congressional Budget Office. Mr. Speaker, that is totally unacceptable.…”