Sponsors present HB 349 to protect call-center jobs and require notice before offshoring

Sponsors presented House Bill 349, the Consumer Protection Call Center Act, as a workforce and consumer-privacy measure that would curb state-subsidized offshoring of call-center jobs.

"Call centers have really been a backbone of Ohio's economy," a sponsor said, noting more than 90,000 Ohio workers hold customer-service representative jobs and that the bill would require an employer intending to relocate operations overseas to provide 120 days' notice to the Department of Job and Family Services. The measure would also establish a public list of companies that offshore call-center work, make such companies ineligible for state grants, loans and tax incentives for five years, and require repayment of benefits already received in some cases.

Sponsors said the bill targets larger employers (a 500-employee threshold was noted in testimony) and includes carve-outs and a waiver process for situations where disqualification from incentives would cause substantial job loss or significant economic harm. Lawmakers asked whether any state agencies currently employ offshore call-center staff; sponsors said they were not aware of any.

Committee members also pressed sponsors for data on the number of affected jobs and the anticipated net job gains if offshoring is reversed; sponsors said they track offshoring losses but that precise estimates of regained jobs would require additional analysis. Vice Chair Workman asked how the director would detect unreported offshoring; sponsors said enforcement would rely on reporting, complaints and public information such as local media coverage of major closures.