Back when I was working on state-level
policy in Ohio, and Ted Strickland was a newish member of Congress, he
spoke to a group of Cincinnati progressives (no, it’s really not an
oxymoron) interested in policy issues that I helped to found. I
wouldn’t have said he was “stimulating” exactly – but definitely smart
and thoughtful about social issues. (Plus, he was one of the speakers
who went out with us after the event – our favorite kind of presenter.)
Now that he’s governor, Strickland has been taking some innovative steps to strengthen the economy.
For example, he’s implementing a policy idea that surfaced in our national scan, New Ideas and Strategies for Better Jobs:
creating democratic workplaces with state level policy. These policies
address the system of leadership and decision-making within workplaces,
particularly in employment sectors that have traditionally been
excluded from activities such as collectively negotiating better
working conditions.
Last summer, Governor Strickland gave home health care workers the
opportunity to organize and negotiate over work conditions. Last week,
he extended this option to about 8,000 home-based child care workers.