A fight over pay for heroes in harm's way
| EDITOR'S NOTE
Hello,
Veteran CNBC politics reporter Jacob Pramuk is in charge of today's editor's note. He will focus on the issue of hazard pay for front-line workers – and Congress's inaction on the issue so far. Take it away, Jacob:
You've probably heard the word "hero" tossed out a lot the past two months.
In the halls of Congress, lawmakers have hailed the people who leave their homes during the coronavirus pandemic to treat patients, stock grocery shelves and deliver mail. But among the millions of essential workers facing a higher risk of infection just by doing their jobs, most have not received a hazard raise from their employers.
Even some of the workers who got a wage bump at companies such as Amazon and Kroger will see it expire later this month — though Covid-19 has no plans of going away then.
Bipartisan support for a federal hazard pay law has picked up in Congress. In part this is because many essential employees make less than the $15 per hour labor advocates consider a living wage even when Americans are not working in the shadow of a pandemic. On Friday, House Democrats plan to pass a $3 trillion coronavirus relief bill that includes a $200 billion "Heroes Fund" to offer those workers a raise.
Once the bill passes the House, Senate Republicans plan to block it. Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell has not yet supported a hazard pay plan, even though one GOP senator, Mitt Romney, has made a proposal of his own. So there is still no legislation in Congress with a legitimate shot at becoming law that would give essential workers a raise during the crisis.
Thoughts? Email me at CNBCPolitics@nbcuni.com.
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