Commerford Legal

05/01/2020

Equality and Justice for EVERYONE.
Worker rights are human rights.
Let's keep society moving in that direction.
Happy International Worker's Day!

04/21/2020

Not covered by the federal paid sick leave laws?

California is trying to remedy that. Gov. Newsom just signed Executive Order (N-51-20) into law to provide COVID-19 related Paid Sick Leave for Food Sector Workers - Including Independent Contractors/Gig Economy Workers - working for entities with 500 or more workers.

More info here: https://www.dir.ca.gov/dlse/FAQ-for-PSL.html

04/16/2020

Self-employed, independent contractors, and business owners - Didn't qualify for unemployment benefits? Pandemic Unemployment Assistance may help!

California is implementing a new benefits program as a part of the Federal CARES Act Pandemic Additional Compensation program, which will be accepting applications starting APRIL 28.

You may be entitled to up to 39 weeks of benefits beginning February 2, 2020, through the week ending December 31, 2020, depending on when you became directly impacted by the pandemic. You may also be eligible for an additional $600 to each PUA weekly benefit amount.

More info here: https://www.edd.ca.gov/about_edd/coronavirus-2019/pandemic-unemployment-assistance.htm

04/14/2020

What should you do if someone in your family is sick and you have to miss work to care for them?

If you’re unable to work because you are caring for an ill or quarantined family member with COVID-19, you should file a Paid Family Leave (PFL) claim with the EDD.

PFL provides up to six weeks (this extends to eight weeks starting July 1) of benefit payments to eligible workers who have a full or partial loss of wages because they need time off work to care for a seriously ill family member or to bond with a new child.

For the purposes of PFL coverage, a family member is defined as seriously ill child, parent, parent-in-law, grandparent, grandchild, sibling, spouse, or registered domestic partner.

04/13/2020

💪Your rights to paid sick leave during the pandemic:

If you work for an employer with 500 or fewer employees, you are entitled to two weeks [80 hours] of Emergency Paid Sick Leave. If taking emergency paid sick leave to care for yourself, you are paid 100% your full rate of pay, up to $511 per day [$5,110 total]. When leave is taken to care for others or for other qualifying reasons, you are paid two-thirds of your full rate of pay, up to $200 per day [$2,000 total].

This leave is in addition to any other paid leave to which you are already entitled to. Your employer cannot require that regular sick leave or paid time off be used before, or instead of, using this emergency sick leave.

[If your employer has 50 or less employees, they may be exempt from these requirements.]

04/10/2020

Lost your health insurance due to being laid off or furloughed?

Federal and California COBRA laws require employers with at least two employees to offer continuation of the employer-sponsored health plan for up to 36 months at the same monthly rate your employer paid for the premium.

Laid off employees can also choose to enroll in a health plan offered through Covered California, where subsidies available under the Affordable Care Act may offer less expensive coverage than the employer’s COBRA plan. The Special Enrollment Period to enroll in a plan through Covered California lasts 60 days from losing job-based coverage. Due to the emergency, special enrollment is open for all Californians until June 30, 2020.

04/04/2020

💪 join us next Wednesday for tips on keeping your sanity👇

04/02/2020

😳Are you unable to work your normal hours because your child's school is closed and you have no other care options?

If your child’s school is closed, and you have to miss work to be there for them, you may be eligible for Unemployment Insurance benefits. Eligibility considerations include if you have no other care options and if you are unable to continue working your normal hours remotely. This also applies if your hours have been reduced - you may be eligible for partial wage replacement benefits. Apply here: https://edd.ca.gov/Unemployment/Filing_a_Claim.htm

04/02/2020

😫 💸Losing wages as an independent contractor because of Covid-19? Wondering if you qualify for wage replacement?

Workers are often misclassified as independent contractors, and may have the same rights to benefits as employees under recently passed California AB 5, even if their employer calls them an “independent contractor.”

The EDD has outlined how self-employed, independent contractors can qualify for unemployment insurance, check it out here: https://www.labor.ca.gov/employmentstatus/faq/

Additionally, the recently passed federal CARES Act specifically extends Pandemic Unemployment Assistance to self-employed individuals for up to 39 weeks of lost income between January 27 and December 31, 2020.

(FYI State Disability Insurance is only available for independent contractors who have enrolled in Elective Coverage.)

State of California

03/17/2020

🤷 Under what conditions are you legally protected from refusing to work? Know your rights! 👉https://www.osha.gov/right-to-refuse.html

03/15/2020

❓Questions about your legal rights as an employee or legal duties as an employer in California during this time? Start here 👇

State of California

01/09/2015

Outside the scope of my practice, but a very thought-provoking legal/moral/ethical situation. Thoughts?

http://www.npr.org/blogs/health/2015/01/09/376122022/are-teenagers-capable-of-making-life-or-death-decisions

The case of Cassandra, a 17-year-old who says she doesn't want chemotherapy for Hodgkin lymphoma, has sparked fierce debate. A medical ethicist says teenagers should be able to determine their fates.