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Sherrod Brown outlines new bill on call-center jobs
By DANNY RESTIVO
NILES
U.S. Sen. Sherrod Brown spent time here outlining new legislation that would help keep call-center jobs in the United States.
“This is all about American jobs, and bringing work back into this country,” said Brown, D-Avon.
The Democratic senator, who is seeking re-election in November, spoke Tuesday about the U.S. Call Center Worker and Consumer Protection Act at United Steelworkers 2115 union hall here.
The proposed legislation, which is still pending approval, would require the Department of Labor to maintain a list of businesses that relocate call centers overseas.
The bipartisan bill would make such companies and employers ineligible for federal grants, and require call-center employees to disclose their location to callers.
Along with Brown, the bill is sponsored by U.S. Reps. Tim Bishop, D-N.Y., and David McKinley, R-W.Va., in the House, and Bob Casey, D-Pa., in the Senate.
Brown spoke alongside workers from the AT&T call center in Boardman and members of Communications Workers of America, a customer-service union that represents about 1,000 call-center employees in Ohio. AT&T and CWA are lobbying for the new legislation.
Don Harshbarger Jr. has worked at the AT&T call center in Boardman for seven years, and he voiced his appreciation for the legislation. “This bill helps protect my job, my family and my community,” he said.
According to CWA statistics, U.S. businesses have outsourced more than 500,000 call-center jobs in recent years. Harshbarger said customers are susceptible to stolen credit-card numbers and identity theft when using call centers in foreign countries. He also believes the customer service in the U.S. is better suited for Americans, as there is no language barrier.
“I can’t tell you how many times I have had customers who talk to me say, ‘Thank you for being an American,’” Harshbarger said.
About 198,000 Ohioans work at call centers, with 500 of them answering calls in Boardman, said Ronald Gay Jr., vice president of CWA AFL-CIO 4300. He thinks the bill will ensure those jobs stay in the U.S. and increase in number.
“We look at this as very common-sense legislation, in that we would like to keep call-center jobs in America,” Gay said, adding that would be accomplished by eliminating tax breaks and government grants to businesses that outsource those jobs.