(Bloomberg) — New Jersey Governor Chris Christie has "got his head in the sand" when it comes to the plight of minimum-wage earners in his state, U.S. Labor Secretary Tom Perez said.

"I've met with minimum-wage workers in New Jersey," Perez said today at a Bloomberg News event in Washington. "I've met with folks who — the only raise they got, they're baggage handlers at Newark Airport, and the only raise they got was when the voters increased the minimum wage."

President Barack Obama and his administration have been pushing Congress to raise the federal minimum wage to $10.10 an hour from $7.25. Most Republicans in Congress and many Republican governors, including Christie, oppose the increase. The Democratic-led Senate has tried and failed repeatedly to advance the issue, and House Speaker John Boehner has said his Republican-led chamber won't consider it.