Washington, DC – The Senate voted against a Democratic Bill to raise the federal minimum wage for 25 million hard working Americans. Needing 60 votes to pass, the Senate fell 6 votes shy of passing as Senate Republicans blocked consideration of the measure that would raise the federal minimum wage to $10.10 per hour. With the poverty rates rising and high cost of living expenses, the current minimum wage of $7.25 per hour is simply not enough for working class Americans to support their families. Moreover, the tipped minimum wage has remained stagnant at $2.13 per hour for over two decades.

​President Obama signed an executive order in February raising the minimum wage to $10.10 per hour for federal contractors and urged Congress to do the same for all workers. Despite the support of the President and the general public, many Republican Senators remain skeptical of the benefits of raising the minimum wage. Sen. Bob Corker of Tennessee was the only Republican to vote in favor of the bill. Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid and other Democrats plan to bring the bill back to the floor and will continue to keep this issue in the national spotlight. APALA chapters and members will continue to put pressure on Congress to raise the minimum wage for the working class. 

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Washington, DC: While President Obama visits Asian countries this week to promote the Trans Pacific Partnership (TPP), the Asian Pacific American Labor Alliance (APALA) urges caution. “We know that opening up Asian markets, particularly along the Asian Rim, as well as establishing a US regional presence via the Asian Pivot, is an important priority for this administration,” said APALA National President and Special Assistant to Executive Director of UDW/AFSCME Local 3930, Johanna Hester. “However, we are distressed about hearing about the lack of focus on workers’ rights in TPP discussions, and very concerned about the unprecedented level of secrecy that negotiations have been conducted in.”

“We’re tired of trade policy that benefits the 1% and hurts working and middle class families,” added Gregory Cendana, Executive Director of APALA. “It’s time that trade policy worked for the average American worker. We want fair trade, not free trade. We want domestic job creation, not more job outsourcing. We’re not going to get that with fast-tracked trade deals that benefit Wall Street.”

APALA is concerned about workers’ rights violations in some Asian countries, as well as protecting workers’ rights in the US. To make sure workers benefit from the TPP, APALA believes the public needs to see what’s proposed. Instead, Congress has been urged to fast-track the biggest global trade deal in world history with language that’s kept secret from the very body authorized to set trade policy – Congress. If TPP is fast-tracked, neither Congress nor the American people will be able to voice concerns or add any pro-worker language.

“Who will benefit from such a secretive deal that was shaped not by Congress, but by 600 corporate lobbyists behind closed doors? Corporate interests designed this deal that will hugely alter and impact domestic and global policies and have very real consequences for us all. These policies will far exceed just trade issues, and will have a very wide range of impact on workers’ daily lives,” said Ryan Mariategue, APALA National Executive Board member.

“We’ve already learned our lesson from 20 years of NAFTA. Trade agreements that put corporate profits over American workers cost the US millions of jobs and our industrial base. NAFTA exacerbated inequality in Mexico and spurred economic migration to the US. As it stands now, the TPP would be NAFTA on steroids--exponentially more dangerous for American and other workers. We weren’t able to protect workers during NAFTA negotiations but we’re not going to let that happen again,” said Sally Kim, APALA Young Leaders Council member and UAW, Global Organizing Institute Project staff.

​To protect the interests of American workers, APALA urges Congress to oppose fast-track authority, and allow the public and our Congressional representatives to view current TPP text and have a voice in the process.

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