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Heinrich Concerned Fed Rate Hike Pulls Rug from Job and Wage Growth

WASHINGTON, D.C. – U.S. Senator Martin Heinrich (D-N.M.), Ranking Member of the Congressional Joint Economic Committee, released the following statement regarding today’s decision by the Federal Reserve’s Federal Open Market Committee to raise interest rates:

 “I want to be clear about what the Federal Reserve’s decision to raise interest rates today does: it pulls the rug out from under job and wage growth.

 “After decades of stagnation, American workers have only begun to see wages grow overall in the recent few years, though job and wage growth has yet to return to many parts of the country. By suppressing wage growth, the Fed’s decision risks locking-in the economic losses suffered by America’s working families since the start of the Great Recession and limiting which Americans can share in the benefits of a growing economy.

 “The Federal Reserve’s policymaking independence remains essential for its ability to conduct America’s monetary policy, but Fed Governors must pay greater heed to how their decisions impact the livelihoods of Americans who don’t measure their financial health in terms of stock market gains.” 

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 For more information, please contact Latoya Veal at Latoya_Veal@jec.senate.gov or 202-224-0379.