Democratic State Representative Mike Foley is sponsoring a bill requiring Ohio retailers who have pushed their "Black Friday" sales to Thanksgiving day to pay their workers triple overtime. And Foley says employees who do not want to work Thanksgiving should be allowed to take the day off.
Foley sponsored a similar bill last year that went nowhere in the Republican-controlled General Assembly. Economic researchers expect holiday retail sales in Ohio to increase over last season due to job gains and lower gasoline prices. The University of Cincinnati Economics Center projects 14.5 billion dollars in retail spending, a 4.5 percent increase over last year. The forecast uses sales data, consumer confidence and other factors. The National Retail Federation has predicted a 4.1 percent increase nationwide.