During a recent debate, Democrat Representative Barbara Lee (D-CA), who is vying for the U.S. Senate seat previously held by Senator Diane Feinstein, reiterated her support for a $50 minimum wage. The moderator questioned Lee about the feasibility of such a wage, highlighting that it is seven times higher than the current national minimum wage of $7.25 per hour.
In response, Lee promptly pointed out her experience as a small business owner for more than ten years, emphasizing that she successfully generated numerous job opportunities along with various benefits such as retirement plans and healthcare coverage.
“I know what worker productivity means, and that means that you have to make sure that your employees are taken care of and have a living wage in the Bay Area,” Lee said. “I believe it was the United Way [that] came out with a report that — very recently — [said] $127,000 for a family of four is just barely enough to get by,” she said, pointing to another survey that identified $104,000 as not being enough for one person, essentially classifying them as low income “because of the affordability crisis.”
She added:
“And so, just do the math. Just do the math. Of course, we have national minimum wages that we need to raise to a living wage — you’re talking about $20, $25 — fine, but I have got to be focused on what California needs and what the affordability factor is when we calculate this wage.”
Watch the clip here:
Senate candidate Rep. Barbara Lee has a solution to inflation and high prices:
Raise the minimum wage to $50 an hour pic.twitter.com/H5Ema1pGY5
— End Wokeness (@EndWokeness) February 13, 2024
