Bringing The World Home To You

© 2024 WUNC North Carolina Public Radio
120 Friday Center Dr
Chapel Hill, NC 27517
919.445.9150 | 800.962.9862
91.5 Chapel Hill 88.9 Manteo 90.9 Rocky Mount 91.1 Welcome 91.9 Fayetteville 90.5 Buxton 94.1 Lumberton 99.9 Southern Pines 89.9 Chadbourn
Play Live Radio
Next Up:
0:00
0:00
0:00 0:00
Available On Air Stations

White House Continues Effort To Increase Minimum Wage

Obama spoke in Asheville last month about raising the minimum wage.
Randomsoleil, via Flickr, Creative Commons

The White House is continuing to take its effort to raise the nation's minimum wage on the road.  The proposed change was part of President Obama's message during his stop at an Asheville plant in February. He said it's time for an increase in the minimum wage "because if you work full time, you shouldn't be in poverty."North Carolina is one of 23 states where the minimum wage is the same as the federal rate of $7.25 per hour.  Acting US Secretary of Labor Seth Harris says he's been traveling the county pushing the president's plan to raise the minimum wage to $9.00 per hour.

"When you increase the minimum wage in a moderate way, you don't see a lot of people losing their jobs as a consequence," Harris said.  " So I think we can help these families.  We can put money in their pockets and in turn help small businesses in their community by giving them spending money that they're going to turn around and use at the local grocer and at the same time lift these folks out of poverty."

Opponents of the increase say it could cost employers more to hire new workers.  They say the increase could cause some inflation of prices.  Harris says the debate is still in the conversation stage but he feels there is support for it on Capitol Hill.

Gurnal Scott joined North Carolina Public Radio in March 2012 after several stops in radio and television. After graduating from the College of Charleston in his South Carolina hometown, he began his career in radio there. He started as a sports reporter at News/Talk Radio WTMA and won five Sportscaster of the Year awards. In 1997, Gurnal moved on to television as general assignment reporter and weekend anchor for WCSC-TV in Charleston. He anchored the market's top-rated weekend newscasts until leaving Charleston for Memphis, TN in 2002. Gurnal worked at WPTY-TV for two years before returning to his roots in radio. He joined the staff of Memphis' NewsRadio 600 WREC in 2004 eventually rising to News Director. In 2006, Raleigh news radio station WPTF came calling and he became the station's chief correspondent. Gurnal’s reporting has been honored by the South Carolina Broadcasters Association, the North Carolina Associated Press, and the Radio Television Digital News Association of the Carolinas.
Related Stories
More Stories