Clinton and Schumer Call on President Bush to Reverse Suspension of Davis-Bacon Act in Wake of Hurricane Katrina

Press Release

Senators Underscore Importance of Fair Pay for Work

Senators Hillary Rodham Clinton and Charles Schumer today called on President Bush to reverse his short-sighted decision to suspend the Davis-Bacon Act in the Hurricane ravaged areas of Alabama, Louisiana, Mississippi and Florida. The law requires that employers pay the local prevailing wage to construction workers on federally financed projects.

"It is critical that those affected by Hurricane Katrina receive fair wages as they struggle to get back on their feet and rebuild their lives," said Senator Clinton. "We have a moral obligation to do everything we can to help put these families on the road to recovery. Instead, the President is putting a road block in their path."

"The President's decision will only hurt the hard working men and women affected by this tragedy. We need to be taking every step possible to ensure that we are putting people back into the workforce with wages that will allow them to support themselves and their families as they try to pick up the pieces from this devastating storm," Schumer said. "This is a step in the wrong direction."

In a letter to President Bush, the Senators noted that it would have been unthinkable to suspend the Davis-Bacon Act in the wake of September 11 as workers stayed around the clock, day after day, to help with the recovery and clean up effort. The Senators underscored that this situation is no different and the workers in the Gulf deserve no less respect.

"The failed response to the disaster in the Gulf Region plainly revealed that the people in the affected areas need our support. Last Thursday in your address to the nation you pledged that 'the government of this nation will do its part.' Undermining one of America's core worker protection laws in the midst of such a crisis undermines our nation's commitment to helping the workers of the affected region. We urge you in the strongest possible terms to reverse this ill-advised and harmful decision," the Senators wrote.

The text of their letter to President Bush follows.

The Honorable George W. Bush
President of the United States
Washington, D.C. 20500

Dear Mr. President: We urge you to immediately reverse your decision to suspend the Davis-Bacon Act in the affected areas of Alabama, Louisiana, Mississippi, and Florida because of the disastrous consequences this act will have on the local economy and the economic prospects for workers from the disaster zone and their families.

As you know, the protections of Davis-Bacon require federal contractors to pay mechanical and construction workers a prevailing wage for their work in their locality. In the Gulf region, this often amounts to as little as $9 per hour. The individuals who lost their homes and jobs as a result of the hurricane need and deserve every chance at a secure future. Surely, you do not think $9 per hour is too high a wage to pay to people who have lost everything.

The Davis-Bacon protections ensure that workers get fair pay for a hard day's work. Prevailing wages ensure that workers can afford the rising price of gas as well as the increasing costs of health care, food, tuition, and other essentials.

After September 11th, as we all remember so well, the workers stayed around the clock day after day to help with the recovery and cleanup effort. They did it out of grief and love for their hometown and fellow workers. In New Orleans and throughout the affected region, we have seen an equally passionate commitment among the workers to rebuilding their community. Yet, suspending Davis-Bacon was unthinkable in the wake of September 11th. At the heart of the government's response, it would have been a grievous affront to the people who had already suffered a severe blow. This situation is no different and the workers in the Gulf deserve no less respect.

The failed response to the disaster in the Gulf Region plainly revealed that the people in the affected areas need our support. Last Thursday in your address to the nation you pledged that "the government of this nation will do its part." Undermining one of America's core worker protection laws in the midst of such a crisis undermines our nation's commitment to helping the workers of the affected region. We urge you in the strongest possible terms to reverse this ill-advised and harmful decision.

Sincerely,

Charles E. Schumer
Hillary Rodham Clinton

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