‘Pay them more’: Joe Biden’s response to labor shortage issues | Sharp response from the President of the United States

“Pay them more. “ This is how the American president replied Joe biden (Photo) before the questions about labor shortage at a press conference where the president announced a massive infrastructure investment plan after months of negotiations between the White House and Congress.

“I’m not criticizing you, I really mean it. They ask me, ‘Well, you know what? Employers cannot find workers, ”said the president, referring to questions that have raised the manpower shortage. “I told them, ‘Pay’ em more,” Biden said in a mock whisper. “It is now a bargaining chip for employees,” he added.

The plan is supported by more than $ 1,200 billion in investments in eight years (973,000 million in the first five years), said the White House. Some $ 312,000 million is for transportation, including roads and airports, and $ 266,000 million for other infrastructure such as drinking water service or high-speed internet.

While this is a big step forward, this agreement does not mark the end of the talks. “I have no guarantee” of getting the votes to pass this bill in the Senate, Biden admitted, although he was optimistic. “None of the parties got what they wanted,” he said, assuring that this is the price to pay for reaching a consensus.

At the end of March, Biden had proposed to invest about $ 2 trillion in infrastructure over eight years, in order to create “millions of jobs” in the United States, to stay ahead as a global economy ahead of China. and also to fight against the climate. change.

The main agreement between Republicans and Democrats concerns the financing of this vast infrastructure project. Republicans have rejected a corporate tax hike proposed by Biden, while the White House has rejected new taxes – such as gasoline – on households that receive less than $ 400,000 a year.

The agreement finally envisages a plan to strengthen tax controls to reduce fraud and redirect the funds released in 2020 to fight the pandemic that have not been used., among other measures.