"Last year, the New Direction Congress enacted the first minimum wage increase in a decade - which is being implemented in three steps... The previous Republican-controlled Congresses blocked minimum wage proposals from being considered. In 2006 alone, Republicans blocked minimum wage legislation from coming to a vote 11 times. The minimum wage increase passed by the Democratic-led Congress is the first pay raise for working Americans in almost 10 years. This raise is part of our New Direction towards shared prosperity, and is a down payment on a broader American agenda for working families."