Statement from AFL-CIO President Liz Shuler on the Federal Reserve’s decision to increase interest rates:
The Federal Reserve’s decision today to raise interest rates by .75% will have a direct and harmful impact on working people and our families. The Fed’s actions will not address the underlying causes of inflation—the war in Ukraine, climate change’s effect on harvests and corporate profits, and an increase in the chances that the United States enters a recession.The Fed seems determined to raise interest rates, though it openly admits those rates could ruin our current economy as unemployment remains low and people are able to find jobs. A recession would instead cause companies to hire fewer people, making it harder for young workers, workers of color and others who have greater barriers finding jobs, and put downward pressure on the wages of all working people who will bear the brunt of an overactive monetary policy. Increasing interest rates signals to working people that the government thinks we have too much money and we should have less money to spend. The Fed sides against programs to ameliorate the pains of falling real wages, like indexing Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) benefits, or restoring the fully refundable child tax credit, or empowering workers to fight for higher wages.
Working people should not be the target of lowering inflation—it should be corporations that are earning record profits.
Contact: Liz Vlock, 202-637-5018