February 12, 2014
04:49 PM EST
President Obama: "What I Signed Today"
Hello everyone,
Earlier today, I signed an Executive Order to raise the minimum wage to
$10.10 for federal contract workers.
It's the right thing to do. But what's more, companies have found that when
their employees earn more, they're more motivated, they work harder, and they
stick around longer. You should expect the same of your federal government.
The bottom line is this: We are a nation that believes in rewarding honest
work with honest wages. And America deserves a raise.
If you agree, let me know you're
standing with me -- and take a look at what else we're going to do in
2014.
The order I signed today will help folks across the country. But it's not
enough.
Right now, there's a bill in Congress that would raise the federal minimum
wage to $10.10 an hour for all Americans. It would lift wages for more than 28
million current workers, and would move millions of Americans out of poverty.
That means businesses would have customers with more money to spend.
Raising the minimum wage would grow the economy for
everyone.
You don't need to believe me: Believe the 600 economists -- including seven
Nobel Prize winners -- who wrote both houses of Congress last month to remind
them that the bill before them will have little or no negative effect on
jobs.
When I stood before both chambers of Congress and said that I intended for
2014 to be a year of action, that wasn't just a nice line in a speech. It was an
acknowledgment that we've got to restore opportunity for everyone in America --
the idea that no matter who you are, or how you started out, you can get ahead
here if you're responsible and willing to work for it. That's what this "year of
action" is all about.
And since that speech, I have taken actions on my own to make it easier for
folks to save for retirement, help working Americans get the skills that good
jobs demand, and assist millions of Americans who have been looking for work for
several months. I've announced a major new commitment toward connecting our
schools to 21st-century technology.
That action continues today, and in the months to come.
Take a look at what we've done
already and what's to come.
Thank you,
President Barack Obama