Matt Rourke/AP toggle caption Matt Rourke/AP Demonstrators call for a union and $15 minimum wage at a McDonald's in Charleston, S.C., in February 2020. The U.S. Senate has voted to prohibit an increase in the federal minimum wage during the pandemic. Matt Rourke/AP President Biden's push for a $15 federal minimum wage appears to be on hold for now. As part of a marathon session of voting on amendments to Biden's $1.9 trillion coronavirus relief package, the Senate late Thursday approved by voice vote a measure prohibiting an increase of the federal minimum wage during the global pandemic. "A $15 federal minimum wage would be devastating for our hardest-hit small businesses at a time when they can least afford it," said Sen. Joni Ernst, a Republican from Iowa, who brought up the amendment.