By Tom Wilemon
The Tennessean, April 30, 2014
The "Give America a Raise" bus arrived in Nashville and then left Tennessee as a bill to raise the minimum wage stalled in the U.S. Senate. The bill failed to get past a procedural roadblock, receiving 54 votes to go forward for debate when 60 were needed. Tennessee Sen. Bob Corker was the lone Republican voting to allow the bill to go forward.
"While I think the underlying policy is problematic, I think we should always debate ways to help improve the standard of living of Americans," Corker said. ..
Stephen Prince, a Nolensville employer who has increased the minimum wage for his workers to $12, said the decision was both moral and economic.
"It's a good economic decision," Prince said. " Why not pay people a wage that allows them to consume? Sixty-six percent of the American economy is driven by consumption."
... Sherry Stewart Deutschmann, the owner of a Nashville business, talked about working mothers trying to live on minimum wage.
"Back in 2009, she was making $7.25 an hour, but she was paying about $2.89 for a gallon of milk and about $1.87 for a gallon of gas to go to work," Deutschmann said. "Now, here we are five years later. She is still making $7.25, but the gallon of gas is twice what she was paying before and the gallon of milk has gone up about 28 percent.
"How in the world can you expect her to come to work and be focused on your brand and your customers when all she is thinking about is how is she going to pay her rent and buy groceries to feed her kids that week?" ...
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