*By Christian Smith*
Congressman Ro Khanna wants to inspire companies to do better by their workers.
"It's absurd that you have multi-billion dollar companies, trillion-dollar companies that aren't able to pay their workers $15," Rep. Khanna said Friday in an interview on Cheddar.
That's why the prominent House progressive, who represents California's Silicon Valley, is teaming up with ex-presidential candidate and Vermont Sen. Bernie Sanders to introduce legislation that would place a tax on large corporations ー money that is equivalent to the amount of federal benefits their low-income employees receive to make a livable wage.
Rep. Khanna's House bill is called the "Corporate Responsibility and Taxpayer Protection Act" and targets large companies across industries, including tech, retail, and fast food, he said.
Sanders was a little more pointed with his version, dubbed the "Stop Bad Employers by Zeroing Out Subsidies Act." That's Stop BEZOS, if you didn't notice.
Rep. Khanna said that Amazon has responded to the Sanders bill, saying the company creates safe working spaces for employees and offers competitive benefits. But the Congressman said the point of benefits is a separate matter.
"They're still not addressing the fundamental point," Khanna said.
"Why can't they just come out and say they're going to pay every employee in our company at least a $15 wage so they can have a livable wage?"
For full interview [click here](https://cheddar.com/videos/congressman-ro-khanna-wants-major-corporations-to-improve-worker-pay-or-pay-more-in-taxes).
In the plan called "A Welcoming and Safe America for All," Sanders said he will use executive action if Congress does not enact the "commonsense immigration reforms supported by the vast majority of Americans."
The Family Friendly Schools Act introduced by Sen. Harris (D-Calif.) would create a pilot program to provide schools the resources needed to stay open until 6 p.m. and provide additional care on many days that schools are otherwise closed.
The ordinance, which passed with roughly 70 percent of votes, puts limitations on the number of short-term rental units in residential buildings and mandates safety inspections and an array of other compliance measures.
While estimates vary, the IPO is expected to value Saudi Aramco at roughly $1.5 trillion, making it the most profitable company in the world. Shares are expected to begin trading on the Tadawul, the stock exchange in Riyadh, in the coming months.
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In its monthly jobs report released Friday, the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) also reported that unemployment last month remained largely unchanged at 3.6 percent or 5.9 million people.
The leaders of both nations were set to ink the so-called "phase one" trade agreement at the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) summit in Chile next month. However, the summit was canceled due to civil unrest in Santiago, Chile's capital.
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