One of the orders will expand food assistance and deliver stimulus checks to Americans in the lowest income brackets. The other will raise the minimum wage from $7.25 to $15 for the federal workforce, a fight that organizers have been. With the new executive orders, Biden is also directing the Department of Labor to establish that unemployed people can refuse to take jobs they worry will jeopardize their health and still qualify for unemployment benefits, which has previously not been the case.
Additionally, the government will begin to provide funds to replace the lack of free or reduced-price meals that families in low-income communities have lost because of school closures. The order will direct the department to potentially allow states to increase food stamp benefits for approximately 12 million people who did not receive emergency benefits earlier in the pandemic.
"The American people can't afford to wait. And so many are hanging by a thread. They need help, and we are committed to doing everything we can to provide that help as quickly as possible,” said Brian Deese, the National Economic Council director, on aFriday. He noted that at least 30 million people in America are currently experiencing some level of food insecurity, and worse.
While the executive orders are being signed fairly early on in Biden's term, the effects won't take place immediately. For example, the minimum wage increase won't happen just yet.
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