Jobless Benefits to Run Out?

Unemployment benefits provide the jobless with their much-needed help in their finances while they are still looking for a job.

However, these benefits are not always available as there is a time period allotted to jobless workers before their benefits run out.

Before the federal extensions have been approved, a person will only receive these benefits within the 26-week-period after his claim has been granted. But, because of the extensions, the workers will receive a total of 99-week worth of benefits. Unfortunately, this too will change.

Some 454,000 jobless workers in the state of California alone won’t be receiving their benefits before Christmas if the Congress won’t do anything about it.

The California Employment Development Department announced that they are trying to inform all of the beneficiaries about the looming end of jobless benefits. The EDD is the state department responsible for administering the jobless benefits.

With how the economy is going, it is almost impossible to provide all the jobless workers with opportunities to earn income. So, if the congress won’t act on the approaching end of jobless benefits, then, it is almost inevitable that a lot of families won’t have a happy holiday.

Jobless benefits are designed to supplement the needs of a person while he is still looking for a job. But, with the budget deficit that the government is facing, they may have no choice but to stop the extensions to accommodate other needs of their citizens.

Oprah’s OWN Faces Discrimination, Wrongful Termination Charges

The Oprah Winfrey Network (OWN) is being sued by one of their former employees for allegedly discriminating against her because of her medical condition.

Catherine Dunn filed the lawsuit at the Los Angeles Superior Court alleging discrimination and wrongful termination by the network as she was allegedly treated with hostility because of her autoimmune disease, Multiple Sclerosis.

Dunn was an executive assistant in the network back in August 2008 when she was presented with a hostile work environment because of her medical condition.

In the lawsuit, Dunn claimed that the hostility caused her condition to worsen and she was forced to take leave of absence and stress leave.

The lawsuit did not specify the amount of damages that Dunn is seeking.

Oprah may have not been made aware of Dunn’s working condition at the time, but, she should have made sure that her employees are well treated to prevent lawsuits like this that can result to big amounts of damages.

Budget Cuts Triples Backlog in Narcotics Lab

The Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department said recently that the reduction of employee’s overtime resulting from budget cuts is slowing down the analysis of evidence in their narcotics lab.

Sheriff Lee Baca wrote a report to the LA County Board of Supervisors stating that the department is experiencing problems in the support and investigative units as a result of the budget cuts to aid the $128 million gap.

It has been reported earlier that the average backlog last year of 256 unanalyzed cases has ballooned to around 920 cases. The expert analysts who used to handle these cases were not allowed to work on overtime because of the budget restraint.

Other local law enforcement agencies are also affected in the said delays as they send evidence to the narcotics lab to be analyzed.

Tractor Hits Farm worker in Fresno

A farm worker operating a tractor was recently injured after he was run over by the vehicle near Sanger. The worker was airlifted to Community Regional Medical Center where he was treated for his injuries.

He is said to be the field crew boss and appeared to be in his 40s. His identity is yet to be released.

Reports show that the man was operating the tractor when he got off it while it is still in gear to get water. The tractor then rolled away as the man tried to chase it down. The man then slipped causing him to be run over by the tractor.

The man can file a claim for worker’s compensation as he was injured while on the job. If he does this, he waves his right to sue the company for the accident. Either way, the man can recover his medical expenses for his injuries.

Wal-Mart Agrees to Pay $27.6M Settlement in Dumping Case

Employers are required to take care of their employees by making sure that they will not be exposed to hazardous waste materials.

Wal-Mart Stores Inc. will now have to pay $27.6 million just to settle claims that it improperly dumped and handled hazardous waste at its stores all over California.

According to reports, this move ended a five-year investigation, which was done to see if allegations that the company improperly disposed aerosols, paint, fertilizer, and other types of chemicals are true.

The lawsuit claimed that 263 Wal-Mart distribution centers and stores violated environmental regulations and laws.

Reports said the controversy started in 2005, after a San Diego County Department of Environmental Health worker saw a Wal-Mart employee dispensing bleach through the drain.

Local, state, and federal authorities were all involved in the investigation.

A Wal-Mart employee defended the company’s reputation, saying that it has already implemented improved practices after it became aware of the said violations.

In addition, workers in all of its branches were taught how to handle hazardous products properly.