March 28, 2024

Sen. Sinclair and the minimum wage vote

Iowa’s working families are struggling. That’s one reason why a record number of Iowa children, more than 40 percent, live in poverty.

On Tuesday, Feb. 24, state Sen. Amy Sinclair of Allerton had two chances to help working families. She voted no each time.

Senate File 269 would raise Iowa’s minimum wage to $8.75 an hour over two years. The other, Senate File 270, would strengthen our laws against wage theft, which costs Iowa workers $600 million a year.

Iowa’s minimum wage has been stuck at $7.25 an hour for the last seven years. All but one of Iowa’s neighboring states have higher minimum wage laws. Does Sen. Sinclair want Iowa to be a magnet for the very lowest paying employers, people who pay much less than Walmart?

While the legislation passed the Senate with bipartisan support, Sen. Sinclair refused to help boost the pay of 181,000 Iowa workers. A minimum wage of $8.75 an hour is worth $147 million more for minimum wage workers, money which would have been spent in our local communities.

Wage theft is everything from taking unauthorized paycheck deductions to shorting hours to flat out refusing to pay. Iowa’s current laws are so weak, they are impossible to enforce.

Senate File 270 would make Iowa’s wage theft laws more straightforward, would require employers to keep a written record of the terms of employment and protect whistle blowers from retaliation.

Almost all Iowans support the most basic right of every worker — the right to be paid what you are owed. Sen. Sinclair, however, voted against tougher wage theft laws.

I don’t understand why. Most businesses already keep written records of the terms of employment. Why not make it harder for dishonest employers to cheat Iowa workers and compete unfairly against honest Iowa businesses?

I’m writing because Sen. Sinclair said nothing when she voted against helping Iowa’s working families, the people doing some of the most difficult jobs in our communities.

Please ask Sen. Sinclair why she voted to keep Iowa’s minimum wage far below the new Walmart minimum wage and why she voted against helping Iowa workers get paid for the work they do.

If you’d like to know more, you can email me at thomas.courtney@legis.iowa.gov or call my cell phone 319-759-5334.