US Sen. Sherrod Brown of Ohio urges worker reforms, wage hike as 2018 looms

COLUMBUS (AP) — Ohio’s leading Democrat this week pushed a package of pro-worker policies, including a boost in the minimum wage, that he said are aimed at reframing the national conversation about what drives the economy.

U.S. Sen. Sherrod Brown of Cleveland released his 77-page report, “Working Too Hard for Too Little,” at Ohio State University’s John Glenn College of Public Affairs in Columbus on Friday. He argued that common thinking that strong businesses make for a strong economy is misleading.

“It’s not businesses who drive the economy, it’s workers,” Brown said. “We grow the economy from the middle class out.”

Armed with extensive research compiled by his office, Brown made his case for such changes as increasing the minimum wage to $15 an hour; improving workers’ bargaining rights; creating a national paid leave fund; requiring corporations to reimburse taxpayers if low-wage employees have to rely on federal assistance to make ends meet; strategies for helping workers boost retirement savings; and offering corporate tax breaks to companies that commit to staying in the U.S. and providing good wages and benefits.