Congressional Lawmakers Make $608 Per Hour For Eight Days of Work

Members of Congress will earn $608-an-hour during the eight days they will be in session between August and November, according to The Hill.

The figures, developed by liberal activist Ralph Nader, represent a pro-rated calculation based on members' $174,000 annual salary. House Speaker John Boehner, meanwhile, will earn an estimated $781 per hour, based on his salary of $223,500, The Hill reports.

"While millions of Americans are working more and more for less and less, you and your House of Representatives seem to have no problem working less and less for more and more," Nader wrote in a letter to Boehner, according to The Hill.

The House adjourned for a five-week recess on Aug. 1 and returned Sept. 8. It went into recess again last Thursday and is not due to return until Nov. 12. Many members plan to use the break to campaign for the midterm elections.

Nader added in an interview with the Hill, "You are paid by the taxpayer to work in Congress at least a 40-hour week. If you want to do anything back home after that, that's discretionary time. They don't pay you to campaign for your reelection."

Some lawmakers agree with the idea that they should spend more time in Washington.
Florida GOP Rep. David Jolly wrote to the House Rules Committee suggesting a new rule be adopted to force Congress to stay in session longer.

"I write to strongly advocate for a permanent rule change that would formally require the House to be in session significantly more days during the 114th Congress, which will convene in January 2015," he wrote.

"The House of Representatives, the 'People’s House,' simply cannot address the many priorities of the nation if we are not in session more days," he added.

Related stories:

• Harry Reid's Senate Hasn't Had a 5-Day Workweeks All Year
  
• Short Congressional Work Weeks Become the Norm