Obama to raise minimum wage for some federal workers

• President Obama will raise the minimum wage for federal contract workers
• Obama will urge Congress to pass a minimum wage bill for all Americans
• The president delivers the State of the Union Address on Tuesday night

WASHINGTON — President Obama plans to stress executive action in Tuesday night's State of the Union speech, including an order to raise the minimum wage to $10.10 an hour for some federal contract workers, administration officials said.

Obama will pledge to work with Congress on legislation to increase the federal minimum wage for all workers from $7.25 to $10.10, said administration officials who disclosed the plan on condition of anonymity so as not to pre-empt the president's speech.

"The president is using his executive authority to lead by example and will continue to work with Congress to finish the job for all Americans by passing the (congressional) bill," a White House statement said.

Obama will deliver his annual State of the Union speech Tuesday at 9 p.m. ET.

The minimum wage debate highlights a speech in which Obama is likely to call on Congress to pass a major immigration bill and to outline his domestic and foreign policy agendas for the year ahead. That includes a variety of executive orders on items such as job training and assistance to the long-term unemployed.

Obama's minimum wage order will cover people who perform services, such as janitors or construction workers, and make less than $10.10 per hour.

David Cooper, an economic analyst at the Economic Policy Institute (EPI) in Washington, said the announcement of the pay hike is "a good step going forward" but is limited in its reach.

"It's not going to have the same impact that Congress increasing the federal minimum wage for all workers would have, and because it only applies to new contracts or contracts that are renegotiated, it may take a little while before current employees of federal contractors see the increase in their pay," said Cooper, whose organization has advocated for a minimum wage increase.

In a call with officials at the Economic Policy Institute on Monday night before the announcement, Jason Furman, a top economic adviser to the president, told the group that the White House believes the executive action could impact roughly 250,000 people, according to Ross Eisenbrey, vice president at EPI.

Though the order might be limited in its reach, supporters who have urged Obama to take executive action for low-paid federal contractors welcomed the news. The decision follows a push by liberal lawmakers for Obama to take action as well as a series of one-day strikes by fast food workers at the Pentagon and Smithsonian who called on Obama for a hike in wages.

"This is a testimony to how much it means for people who work hard to appeal to their government," said Rep. Keith Ellison, D-Minn., who pressed the White House on the issue.

A statement from Ellison and other lawmakers included a comment from Luis Chiliquinga, 65, a McDonald's Smithsonian Air and Space Museum worker, who earns $8.32 an hour: "After risking it all to go on strike for a fair wage, I'm proud to have a president who will stand up for a living wage because the workers themselves decided to take a stand."

In his address to a joint session of Congress, Obama will make it clear he is prepared to take executive action in a variety of areas if Congress — including the Republican-run House — does not pass legislation.

"You can be sure that the president fully intends to use his executive authority — to use the unique powers of the office — to make progress on economic opportunity," said White House spokesman Jay Carney, who declined to discuss details of the speech.

Obama is likely to discuss pledges his team has solicited from major corporations, asking them not to discriminate against the long-term unemployed.

Another likely speech topic: growing income inequality.

After Obama's speech, the Republican response will be delivered by Rep. Cathy McMorris Rodgers, R-Wash.

Kirsten Kukowski, spokeswoman for the Republican National Committee, said Obama's speech will only be more of the same: "From health care to the economy, Americans aren't happy with where Obama has brought this country, and we're not sure another rerun of his same speech is going to change that."

Obama will pledge to work with Congress on a comprehensive minimum wage bill proposed by Sen. Tom Harkin, D-Iowa, and Rep. George Miller, D-Calif., according to the White House statement. The bill would raise the federal minimum wage in stages from $7.25 to $10.10, and index it to inflation thereafter.

Last year, Obama called for an increase in the minimum wage to $9.

The White House statement praises businesses that support a minimum wage increase, including Costco. Obama will follow up his State of the Union speech with remarks Wednesday morning at a Costco store in Lanham, Md.

In the coming days, Obama will speak at a steel plant in West Mifflin, Pa., near Pittsburgh; a General Electric gas engines plant in Waukesha, Wis., near Milwaukee, and a high school in Nashville.

House Speaker John Boehner, R-Ohio, said Obama probably has the power to increase the minimum wage for federal contract workers but questioned how many people it would actually help. The top House Republican warned Obama against overreaching on other issues, saying, "We're just not going to sit here and let the president trample all over us."

Members of the Republican Attorneys General Association said they would push back against what they called intrusion into their states' affairs. Florida Attorney General Pam Bondi criticized "an overreach by the federal government that has never been seen before."

The State of the Union speech comes at a difficult political time for Obama. Over the past year, his approval ratings have fallen to record lows in the wake of problems with the health care law and an uneven economic recovery.

This State of the Union comes less than 10 months before congressional elections in which Republicans are likely to pick up House and Senate seats.