Senator Bernie Sanders Praises Amazon For $15 Per Hour Minimum Wage Hike

(RTTNews) - Vermont Senator Bernie Sanders has praised Amazon.com Inc.'s (AMZN) CEO Jeff Bezos on Tuesday after the online retail giant increased its minimum wage for all US workers to $15 per hour.

"It is no secret that I have been a harsh critic of the wage and employment practices of Amazon and its owner Jeff Bezos. It has been my view that the middle class and working families of this country should not have to subsidize Mr. Bezos, the wealthiest person on Earth because many of his Amazon employees earned wages that were so low that they were forced to go on government programs like food stamps, Medicaid and subsidized housing."

"Today I want to give credit where credit is due. And I want to congratulate Mr. Bezos for doing exactly the right thing. Today he has raised the minimum wage at Amazon and Whole Foods effective next month. This applies not only to full-time workers, but part-time workers and temporary workers as well.

Last month, Sanders had introduced legislation named the Bezos Act that would require large corporations like Amazon and Walmart to pay to the government for every dollar their low-wage workers receive in health-care benefits, public housing or food stamps.

Sanders has been fighting for several years to increase the minimum wage in the country to $15 per hour.

Sanders also thanked "the many hundreds of Amazon workers who contacted my office and the Fight for $15 movement which has been leading this effort for years."

Sanders also said he expects "other profitable corporations in the fast food industry, the airlines and retail" to follow Amazon's suit.