Many US families struggle financially

Far too many American families are still struggling financially and the American dream of getting ahead with hard work is in jeopardy, despite broad-based job growth last month, US Labor Secretary Tom Perez has said.
In a statement about the nation’s November jobs report, Perez echoed President Barack Obama‘s call for a federal minimum-wage increase to help narrow the vast income inequality in the US.
“When I worked for Sen. [Edward] Kennedy in 1996 when the minimum wage was increased, the economy didn’t really go into the tank,” he said. “It’s a simple matter of fairness. Nobody who works a full-time job should have to live in poverty,” he said. “Congressional support for increasing the minimum wage has historically been bipartisan.”
The official US unemployment rate fell three-tenths of a percentage point to 7 percent, the lowest level in five years, the Labor Department said Friday.
However, Perez said the numbers served a reminder “that far too many American families are still struggling to get by.”

“As the president underscored earlier this week, growing inequality and a lack of upward mobility has jeopardized middle-class America‘s basic bargain – that if you work hard, you have a chance to get ahead,” said Mr. Perez, referring to President Obama‘s Wednesday speech about income inequality.
On Wednesday, President Barack Obama pointed to the issue of income inequality and economic mobility during an economic speech in Washington.
Obama said income inequality “pose a fundamental threat” to the American society and the “challenge of our time” and vowed to focus on the matter during his final three years in office.
On Thursday, thousands of fast-food workers took to the streets to demand higher minimum wages in hundreds of US cities, saying the pay is too low to feed a family and forced most to accept public assistance.
AHT/DB
With permission
Source: Press TV