Brown introduces bill to improve federal program

Staff report

YOUNGSTOWN

U.S. Sen. Sherrod Brown of Cleveland, D-Ohio, introduced a bill to extend and improve Trade Adjustment Assistance for workers.

The federal program helps workers prepare for new careers if their hours or wages are reduced or they lose their jobs as a result of increased imports. More than 20,000 Ohio workers between 2009 and 2014 have benefited from TAA.

Brown’s bill would expand coverage to workers who lose their jobs to countries such as China, which does not have a free-trade agreement with the U.S.

“Wrong-headed trade deals have displaced too many Ohioans. Workers who lose their jobs due to foreign trade shouldn’t be left to fend for themselves,” Brown said in a statement.

Brown’s office released a list of Ohio companies that are affected by foreign trade and whose workers used TAA benefits to help train for new jobs.

More than 40 companies in the Mahoning Valley were on the list.

“We must put an end to short-term fixes for this program and pass a long-term extension to give Ohio families more security and support,” Brown said.