WASHINGTON, D.C. – U.S. Senate Republican Leader Mitch McConnell made the following remarks on the Senate floor regarding Republican legislation that would increase opportunities for men and women in the workforce:

“The Obama Economy has had a devastating impact on the people we represent.

“It’s hurt millions in the Middle Class, and people from every region of the country and almost every walk of life.

“And when you consider this week’s debate in the Senate, a few statistics jump out in particular.

“Under this President’s watch, more than 3.7 million American women have fallen into poverty.

“The average American woman now makes about $730 less than when the President took office.

“And if she’s a college graduate, she’s actually seen her income shrink by about double that amount.

“In other words, when it comes to American women overall, what we’ve seen over the past five and half years is less income and more poverty. That’s the story Senate Democrats don’t want to talk about.

“Perhaps that’s why, for weeks now, they’ve blocked the efforts Republicans have made to improve this picture.

“Senate Democrats want to control this debate from start to finish — and basically do nothing to help with our efforts to expand opportunity and jobs for women and men. It would appear, as some have put it, that they have no interest in solutions or any concern for the consequences of their actions. We see that in how uninterested they seem in the statistics I just mentioned. And we can see it in some of the other policies they’ve been defending for months.

“Just take Obamacare’s 30-hour workweek rule, which is basically forcing employers to slash workers’ hours.

“Who’s impacted the most by it?

“Well, as one study pointed out, it’s women.

“Nearly two-thirds of those adversely impacted by this arbitrary provision of Obamacare are women.

“But Washington Democrats don’t seem to care about that.

“They don’t seem to care about the ways the people we represent are being hurt by their policies.

“And as I said, they continue to block all the innovative ideas that Republicans have been offering to turn the tide.

“Just look at what happened on the Senate floor yesterday.

“I, along with several Republican colleagues, offered a series of measures that would not only have helped improve the jobs picture in this country – they would have provided greater opportunities for men, women, and families desperate to get ahead. Had Democrat Senators not blocked these ideas, they would have passed.

“Why did Senate Democrats object to Senator Collins’ proposal to restore the 40-hour workweek?

“Do they think it’s fair that Obamacare’s 30-hour workweek discriminates against working women?

“Do Democrats think it’s fair to protect a rule that disproportionately reduces their wages?

“Why did they object to the workplace flexibility bill Senator Ayotte and I offered?

“Here’s legislation that would have given working Moms and Dads the option to take time off to help them find a better work/life balance — flexibility that’s more critical than ever now that Obamacare’s 30-hour work rule is forcing people to pick up a second or a third job just to scrape by.

“Why are Democrats so opposed to a policy that a lot of working women say they want, a policy that’s tailored to the needs of the modern workforce, and that many government employees already enjoy?

“Why did Senate Democrats object to our job-creation legislation, which includes so many smart ideas from so many different Senators? Here’s a bill that strikes right at the heart of what has ailed our country for five and a half years: a lack of jobs and opportunity. Passing it should have been a no-brainer.

“But Senate Democrats blocked all of it — every last one of our proposals.

“Just like they shut down the pro-worker legislation Senator Paul and I offered last week.

“Right to Work is smart policy that promises to boost competitiveness while advancing workers’ rights – ensuring that they aren’t limited by the dictates of a union. It’s similar to another bill I’m proud to co-sponsor: Senator Rubio’s RAISE Act, which would allow workers to get a raise even if union bosses don’t want them to.

“Take, for instance, a worker who outperforms her colleagues, and is then told by some union boss to sit down and accept less pay than she deserves – not a dime more than the coworkers she’s outperforming. It’s totally unfair. And workers like her shouldn’t be penalized by some archaic union rule dreamt up before the age of Mad Men.

“These are ideas that everyone who claims to stand for workplace fairness should want to help us pass.

“And yet, Washington Democrats always seem to find some excuse not to.

“Maybe the Big Labor union bosses they answer to are telling them they can’t. Who knows.

“Or maybe it’s the trial lawyers they seem to be so attentive to these days.

“It makes sense, when you consider what Senate Democrats have been talking about this week — legislation that even publications like The Washington Post, and The Chicago Tribune, and The Boston Globe have said is bad policy.

“At a time when the Obama Economy is already hurting women so much, this legislation would double down on job loss — all while lining the pockets of trial lawyers.

“In other words, it’s just another Democrat idea that threatens to hurt the very people it claims to help.

“Well, it’s time for Washington Democrats to stop protecting trial lawyers and start focusing on actually helping the people we were sent here to represent.

“We’ve already seen what five and a half years of Washington Democrat control has meant: more poverty and lower wages for women.

“So they need to stop blocking innovative ideas that would move us further along the path to opportunity.

“Because look: the college graduate who’s seen her annual paycheck decline by $1,400 over the past several years, she’s counting on Senate Democrats to change their game plan.

“And the part-time worker who can’t imagine how she’s going to make ends meet under Obamacare’s 30-hour work rule and she’s counting on Democrats to think outside the box

“The American people are tired of Washington Democrats’ five and half years of failed policies – and all the political games that helped get us here in the first place.

“Americans want solutions. Now. And we owe it to them to start passing the kinds of innovative ideas Republicans are committed to keep pursuing, no matter how many times the Majority tries to shut us down.”