McCormick: Amid record-high corporate earnings, working people deserve a raise

U.S. corporate profits are surging, with after-tax profits hitting a seasonally adjusted annual rate of nearly $3.9 trillion, and progressive New Jersey Democrat Lisa McCormick is applauding members of Congress who are working to raise the minimum wage.

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U.S. Sen. Chris Murphy (D-Conn.) on Thursday introduced the Living Wage for All Act, bicameral legislation that would more than triple the federal minimum wage to $25 an hour, marking the most significant proposal to boost wages since the federal floor was set at $7.25 in 2009.

The legislation, which has a companion bill already introduced in the House by Reps. Delia Ramirez (D-Ill.) and Analilia Mejia (D-N.J.), would establish a two-track phase-in schedule requiring large corporate employers to implement the $25 wage floor by 2032 and other businesses by 2039.

The legislation would also index future increases to two-thirds of the national median wage, ensuring the minimum wage rises automatically with the economy.

Forty-five percent of American workers currently earn less than $25 an hour, according to the bill’s sponsors. Sens. Richard Blumenthal (D-Conn.), Andy Kim (D-N.J.), and Ron Wyden (D-Ore.) are co-sponsors of the Senate version.

“Democrats need to offer solutions that are as big as the problems people are facing,” Murphy said in an interview. “The way you solve people’s basic economic problem—not having enough money to pay the bills—is by making the minimum wage a living wage.”

“It’s the first major piece of federal legislation introduced by newly elected New Jersey Congresswoman Analilia Mejia,” said McCormick, who championed raising the minimum wage during her 2018 challenge to incumbent U.S. Senator Bob Menendez.

Rep. Delia Ramirez, who led the House version of the bill, said she watched her immigrant parents and neighbors work multiple minimum-wage jobs while growing up.

“Today, companies are reporting record-high earnings while working people struggle to survive. The minimum wage is not a living wage. That’s not right,” Ramirez said. “If we want to address the affordability crisis, we must also address the wage crisis.”

Stagnant Wages Amid Rising Costs

Congress has not increased the federal minimum wage since 2009, during the first Obama administration. Since 1979, worker productivity has increased by approximately 92%, but wages have risen by less than 34%, according to data cited by the bill’s sponsors. Had the minimum wage kept pace with inflation and productivity since 1968, it would have reached roughly $25 by 2023.

“Today, in the wealthiest country in world history, employees who earn the minimum wage while working full time cannot make ends meet,” Blumenthal said. “That’s because the federal minimum wage has remained unchanged at $7.25 since 2009. Meanwhile, a gallon of gas costs $4 in most places in America and close to $6 in some. This is unconscionable and unacceptable.”

The bill’s sponsors argue that there is nowhere in America where a worker with one dependent can afford basic necessities while working full time at an hourly wage below $25. Twenty states currently have minimum wages that do not exceed the federal floor of $7.25.

Phasing Out Subminimum Wages

The legislation would gradually eliminate subminimum wages for tipped workers, youth workers, and workers with disabilities, ensuring all employees are paid at least the federal minimum wage. The phase-in schedule would begin with an increase from $7.25 to $12 in the first year after enactment.

Large employers—defined as those with annual gross revenues of $1 billion or more or employing 500 or more workers—would be required to reach the $25 wage floor by 2031. Other businesses would have until 2038 to comply. The bill’s sponsors said the two-track approach recognizes that larger corporations have greater capacity to absorb wage increases.

Political Outlook

With Republicans controlling both chambers of Congress, the legislation faces significant headwinds. McCormick has been pushing the Democratic Party to take more aggressive stances on affordability long before it suffered catastrophic defeats in the 2024 elections.

“The Living Wage for All Act is endorsed by a broad coalition of labor unions, civil rights organizations and advocacy groups, including the NAACP, SEIU International, the American Federation of Teachers, the National Education Association, UnidosUS, and the National Urban League,” said McCormick. “The bill is also endorsed by One Fair Wage, the National Action Network, the Center for Popular Democracy, PolicyLink, the Retail, Wholesale and Department Store Union, 1199SEIU United Healthcare Workers East, the Southern Poverty Law Center, Common Cause, the National Organization for Women, the Center for Law and Social Policy, the Alliance for a Just Society, the Sunrise Movement, Our Revolution, Patriotic Millionaires, Voices for Progress and End Workplace Abuse.”

“If you work full time in this country, you should be able to afford to live. But wages are so low that parents work 60 hours a week and still aren’t sure whether they’ll have lunch money for their kids,” Murphy said. “Our economy is not working for people, and we have to put forward solutions that are as big as the problems American families are facing.”

Saru Jayaraman, president of One Fair Wage, a worker advocacy group that worked with Murphy on the bill, said the measure is supported by liberal and MAGA voters alike. The $25 figure was drawn from MIT living wage calculations that account for costs such as food, child care, health care, housing, and transportation.