Biden says he does not expect minimum wage hike to be in COVID-19 relief bill

US President Joe Biden said in an interview released on Friday he does not expect his proposal for a hike in the minimum wage to $15 an hour to be included in his $1.9 trillion Covid-19 relief bill because of Senate rules.

“My guess is it will not be in it. But I do think that we should have a minimum wage, stand by itself, $15 an hour,” Biden said in an interview with the CBS Evening News.

Increasing the minimum wage may run afoul of Senate rules on reconciliation, a tool Democrats plan to use to pass Biden’s coronavirus relief bill without Republican support in the closely divided Senate.

Read More: Iran urges Biden to lift sanctions affecting medicines as it fights Covid-19

Biden said he would be prepared to negotiate the wage rise separately and the increase could be phased in.

“No one should work 40 hours a week and live below the poverty wage. And if you’re making less than $15 an hour, you’re living below the poverty wage,” Biden said.

The current federal minimum wage is $7.25 an hour.