Maryland bishops call for veto override, $1 increase in minimum wage

Published: 2006-01-04

BALTIMORE (CNS) -- Calling it a matter of economic justice, the Catholic bishops of Maryland have released a pastoral statement urging Catholics to contact their state lawmakers in support of an increase in the minimum wage. The Maryland state Senate and the House of Delegates approved legislation in 2005 that would have provided a $1 boost in the minimum wage to $6.15 an hour, but the measure was vetoed by Gov. Robert L. Ehrlich Jr. As the Maryland Legislature reconvenes in mid-January, the bishops are throwing their support behind a push to override the governor's veto. "The church teaches that the economy must serve the people, not the other way around," the bishops said. "Work is more than a way to make a living; it is a form of continuing participation in God's act of creation." The bishops said those who work full time at the current minimum wage earn $10,712 a year -- nearly $5,400 below the $16,090 federal poverty guideline for a family of three.

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