Statement: Delegate Scott Lingamfelter Is Against Virginia’s Working Families
Delegate Voted Against Increasing Minimum Wage
VIRGINIA– This week, fast-food workers in Virginia went on strike to demand a livable wage of $15 an hour and the right to form a union. The workers decried Virginia’s minimum wage of $7.25 an hour, saying they couldn’t support their families with that pay.
Unfortunately, Republican Delegate Scott Lingamfelter seems unconcerned about the living conditions of Virginia’s workers. Del. Lingamfelter has regularly blocked workers’ demands for increased pay by voting for legislation like HB 1371, a bill introduced in 2016 to prohibit Virginia’s cities from increasing minimum wages above the federally mandated minimum wage of $7.25.
“Increasing the minimum wage to $15 an hour will improve the lives of Virginia’s families and help strengthen the state’s economy,” said Anna Scholl, Executive Director of Progress Virginia. “Even though Gov. McAuliffe vetoed HB 1371, Republican state legislators like Scott Lingamfelter proactively obstruct the advancement of workers’ quality of life. Voters in Lingamfelter’s district should hold him accountable for his position.”
Concerned residents from Lingamfelter’s district won’t have an opportunity to bring up increasing Virginia’s minimum wage with the delegate since he’s refused to appear in a Town Hall event scheduled for Sept. 28 with his opponent for office, Democratic nominee Elizabeth Guzman.
Research from the Economic Policy Institute found that 1.3 million workers in Virginia would benefit from a minimum wage of $15 an hour. A poll released by Roanoke College at the beginning of the year found that nearly two-thirds of Virginia’s voters support increasing the minimum wage. According to the National Conference of State Legislators, 29 states and DC have minimum wages above the federal minimum wage of $7.25 an hour.