Political Quotes

“I believe that real, long-term economic growth is built from the middle out, not from the top down. Our government, our economy, and our workplaces should work for all of our families, not just the wealthiest few. But across the country today, millions of workers are working harder than ever without basic overtime protection. That is why I am so proud to come to the floor today to express my strong support for the Obama administration's new proposal to restore overtime protections for millions of workers and families. Not only is this the right thing to do, but it is good for our economy. I wish to share a story of a man named Paul who lives in Massachusetts. As reported in the Boston Globe, Paul worked very hard at a discount retail store to provide for his family. Each week he was working 72 hours, on average. On one particular stretch, he worked for 40 days in a row without a single day off, but his employer didn't pay him one extra dime for the work he did beyond 40 hours a week. That is fundamentally unfair. And Paul, believe me, is not alone. There are so many workers like him in States across the country, and these workers feel as though they have been left behind in this economic recovery. They need government policies on overtime protections to catch up. In 1938, Congress recognized the need to set a standard for the 40- hour workweek.…”