In what was a major victory for progressives and labor rights, the House of Representatives recently passed the Raise the Wage Act, which aims to raise the federal minimum wage from $7.25 to $15 an hour.
If the Raise the Wage Act becomes law, it will mark the first federal minimum wage increase in over a decade, and will be the largest jump ever. Even more importantly, the Raise the Wage Act ties future increases to the minimum wage to middle class pay levels.
Negin Owliaei, a researcher at the Institute for Policy Studies, joined Rising Up With Sonali to discuss the bill, including the role workers played in advancing it, the stipulation for ending tipped wages, and the 27 million people who would benefit from its implementation.