The essential workers include all health care providers, caregivers, hospital personnel, along with manufactures, warehouse operators, and distributors of medical equipment and devices. One response came from Eric Hodge, a commercial fisherman in Ventura. Crouch said he submitted the proposal to the California Department of Human Resources March 13. Sign up for California Today here and read every edition online here. Not long ago, my colleagues in The New York Times’s Food section reached out to essential workers, to see how they were getting through the pandemic. Families across California can now search for open child care programs on a new state website — though essential workers are the only ones who can take advantage under the state’s shelter-in-place orders.. Governor Newsom Announces More Essential Worker Protections On Friday, Governor Gavin Newsom announced that additional protections will soon be in place for essential workers in California, along with expansions of regional and local programs that have shown success in mitigating COVID-19. In response to COVID-19, California Gov. The California Correctional Peace Officers Association did not respond to a request for comment. We’re trying to find some recognition for those folks.”. California Delivers Hard Choices for Essential Workers. The guidance, however, does not state that essential workers must work. Video “We’re trying to make the point that you’ve got to balance out the equity of this,” said Steve Crouch, the union’s director of public employees. The issue: technological and oversight failures that led to breathtaking pandemic unemployment insurance fraud. Microsoft may earn an Affiliate Commission if you purchase something through recommended links in this article. Some local governments have already elected to provide an incentive to their front-line workers. [The Fresno Bee], Tanya Roberts, who starred in “That ’70s Show” and, before that, opposite Roger Moore as a Bond girl, died Monday at Cedars-Sinai Medical Center in Los Angeles, after her publicist prematurely announced her death and then corrected the error. Workers supporting restaurant carry-out and quick serve food operations, including food The biggest line item is $1.5 billion to accelerate the state’s shift to clean cars by funding more charging stations and rebates for clean-car buyers. Californian Essential Workers' Stories of COVID-19 . On Tuesday, Gov. She said the state could start by processing special raises that she said still haven’t been paid to certain groups of workers, including EDD call center employees and case records analysts in the state corrections department, that were included in the contract the union reached with the state last year. “Our members are working side by side, they’re treating, they’re screening people that now have (COVID-19) cases,” Pizzotti said. Four months ago at the Los Angeles Zoo, a chick emerged from a shell into the hands of a California Condor Recovery Program worker. But “every month there’s a new E.D.D. [The New York Times]. “The COVID-19 pandemic has hit California families hard – especially families of color who were already disproportionately impacted by the ongoing affordability crisis. But he and his children are far from the only Californians struggling with hard financial choices, even with the $900 billion stimulus package Congress passed in December. Except in connection with essential travel, Californians should avoid non-essential travel to any part of California more than 120 miles from one's place of residence, or to other states or countries. Similarly, the Alameda County Board of Supervisors on March 17 approved an hour of administrative leave for each hour worked by its essential employees for a three-week period, according to an email to employees. The International Union of Operating Engineers, which represents state maintenance workers, has put in a more aggressive proposal as the union bargains for a new contract. The nominees, chosen by the condor keepers, are “Cali,” “Wallace,” Timoloqin” or “Yurok.” Participants have until 11:59 p.m. Thursday to vote here. In California, employees in the cannabis industry are deemed essential. Mr. Newsom last month appointed a new director of the state Employment Development Department, which handles unemployment. He also proposes fee waivers for bars, restaurants, barbershops, manicurists and other hard-hit businesses. If they become ill with COVID-19, they often can’t afford time off to isolate themselves. Among the most at-risk essential workers are California's 800,000 agricultural laborers. Flight attendants, pilots, mechanics and meat workers have also asked for priority in getting the COVID-19 vaccine. The proposed “Heroes Fund,” as envisioned by the Democrats, would include state workers along with federal and private-sector employees. Since February, before the pandemic hit, unemployment has more than doubled to 9.3 percent. No individuals in these counties may leave their houses to go to work unless they work at an “essential” business, except to maintain “minimum basic operations.” Most of these orders extend until April 7 or 8. California Today is edited by Julie Bloom, who grew up in Los Angeles and graduated from U.C. He was 86. Show full articles without "Continue Reading" button for {0} hours. Faculty members and students are aghast. LouAnne Brickhouse/Greater Los Angeles Zoo Association, $1.5 billion to accelerate the state’s shift to clean cars, lay off its in-house supermarket delivery drivers. Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC. Nearly a week ago, the House passed The Heroes Act which provides $200 billion in hazard pay funding for essential workers… He said CalHR told him this week the department is still reviewing it. Today we have a dispatch from students at the University of California, Berkeley, Graduate School of Journalism. California Gov. Before then, though, Mr. Maxcy and his staff think #LA1720 should have a name that’s catchier than the serial number of its egg. Extra pay for essential workers? ©2020 The Sacramento Bee (Sacramento, Calif.), Visit The Sacramento Bee (Sacramento, Calif.) at www.sacbee.com. Among the most at-risk essential workers are California’s 800,000 agricultural laborers. The UC Berkeley Labor Center estimates that up to half or more of California’s workers are considered essential, and most are paid low wages. This guidance allows those who work in essential services, such as hospital and health care workers, pharmacists, peace officers, firefighters, staff at skilled nursing facilities and residential care facilities for the elderly, and other essential workers to continue to work. An estimated two in three of eligible workers under this new expansion are essential workers – including workers in restaurants, grocery stores and the farm industry. He was 89. About Project. In the immediacy of the COVID-19 pandemic and the insufficient federal response, the State of California and the UC system have been praised for strong leadership, and clear messaging on early prevention. Gavin Newsom brought myriad county and city public-health directives under a single umbrella in one of the largest restrictions on civic life in American history. Getty. • Health … Walker said the discussion around additional compensation should include people such as custodians who are working abnormal schedules to clean offices and Employment Development Department workers she said are working 14-hour days to process unemployment insurance claims. Mike Maxcy, the zoo’s curator of birds, says it is too young to completely fledge but old enough to “kind of bounce around and flap its wings and pretend to fly.”. Convinced that they are immune, many Iraqis take heedless risks. Wet, pink and bald, #LA1720 wasn’t supposed to have lived. Gov. California Delivers Hard Choices for Essential Workers Wednesday: Proposals for state stimulus and “hero pay” vie with unemployment fraud and freezes. Workers who support the essential services required to meet national security commitments to the federal government and U.S. Military, including, but are not limited to, space and aerospace workers, nuclear matters workers, mechanical and software engineers (various disciplines), manufacturing and production workers, IT support, security staff, security personnel, intelligence support, aircraft and weapon system mechanics and maintainers, and sanitary workers who … (This article is part of the California Today newsletter. fiasco,” State Senator Scott Wiener told The San Francisco Chronicle on Tuesday, adding that he had received at least 50 complaints in recent days from constituents whose accounts were frozen despite legitimate claims. The national deal follows the November passage of a ballot measure that exempted gig employers from California’s far-reaching new labor law. Non-Essential Travel [i] 1. Californians have been flooding social media with complaints that unemployment checks have been suspended. U.S. Senate Democrats announced a proposal Tuesday that has been circulating at the state level in California for a couple of weeks: extra pay for workers who risk exposure to coronavirus. On the third week of March, he said, he got back from a black-cod trip and learned that the wholesaler who bought 65 percent of his fish was no longer biting. Luis P. Sanchez . California posted extensive information online Saturday to clarify the stay-at-home order and define essential workers during the coronavirus pandemic. The proposal calls for a pay increase of about $13 per hour through the end of the year for “front-line” workers including health and home care workers, first responders and others in public-facing positions. The City of Los Angeles and Long Beach are considering similar measures. We’re in the middle of it.”. Essential Workforce, if remote working is not practical: 1. Hazard Pay for Essential Workers. In a more familiar kind of workplace development, the Albertsons supermarket company, which includes Vons and Pavilions, confirmed it would lay off its in-house supermarket delivery drivers and outsource their work to the gig delivery company DoorDash. The union proposed essential workers receive one hour of administrative time off for each hour worked while Gov. Gavin Newsom at a coronavirus testing facility in Valencia in October. The state has enacted some of the most far-reaching measures in the country to protect its 40 million residents. A company vaccinating Ohio nursing-home residents lets 890 doses go bad. The California Association of Psychiatric Technicians, a union representing health care workers in state mental health institutions, has advocated for hazard pay or another incentive, said Coby Pizzotti, a lobbyist who represents the union. Berkeley. U.S. Senate Democrats announced a proposal Tuesday that has been circulating at the state level in California for a couple of weeks: extra pay for workers who risk exposure to … Tell us what you want to see: CAtoday@nytimes.com. 2. Mr. Schwarzenegger, the former governor of California, added that Georgia’s secretary of state, Brad Raffensperger, is “a true hero.” [The Economist], The 2021 Grammy Awards were postponed Tuesday because of concerns about Covid-19 in Los Angeles, where a limited, audience-less show had been scheduled for Jan. 31. I won’t spoil the rest of his tale. But The Los Angeles Times, also on Tuesday, was reporting a fresh outrage: Not only had bogus coronavirus relief claims allegedly been paid to death row inmates, year-old toddlers, a rapper and someone impersonating Senator Dianne Feinstein, among many others, but some $42 million in California claims had gone to fraudsters in out-of-state prisons and jails. You may book up to 9 rooms using this special rate. Essential Workforce • Workers providing COVID-19 testing; Workers that perform critical clinical research needed for COVID-19 response. California Today goes live at 6:30 a.m. Pacific time weekdays. Essential agricultural workers have been at the center of the COVID-19 outbreak in Monterey County and across the nation. Updated March 21, 2020, to include new details on essential workers. Organizers said they were aiming for a new date in March. The hours of administrative time off would allow them to take paid days off later. They heard from every link of the nation’s food supply. Wednesday: Proposals for state stimulus and “hero pay” vie with unemployment fraud and freezes. Subsequently, the California Public Health Officer issued a list of "Essential Critical Infrastructure Workers" to clarify what workers were allowed to continue to report to jobsites outside their homes. Had it been in the wild, it would have been stillborn. [The Orange County Register], George Whitmore, who made the first ascent of El Capitan in Yosemite National Park, died on New Year’s Day in Fresno from Covid-19 complications. “We’re not on islands. Sign up to get it delivered to your inbox. California state unions press for coronavirus incentives. The Long Beach, California City Council passed a resolution that would require "hero pay" -- an additional $4 -- for all frontline grocery workers in the city. Portraits of Essential Workers in California. [Politico], The San Francisco Art Institute is weighing the sale of a 1931 Diego Rivera mural valued at $50 million to cover its debts and operating expenses after years of declining enrollment, pricey expansion and now, pandemic costs. Guest column: Training California’s next generation of essential workers at Oxnard College. The head of the California Grocers’ Association called the measure “unprecedented” and “irresponsible.”. ), What was at stake for California in the Georgia senate election? Face time for Kamala Harris, confirmation for Xavier Becerra and more. View Comments. “Within 48 hours, I realized two-thirds of my market had just collapsed,” he told the reporter, Mahira Rivers. “I think it is absolutely the right conversation to have,” said Yvonne Walker, president of SEIU Local 1000, the state’s largest public employee union. Nearly half (48 percent) of immigrant workers are employed in these jobs and therefore at greater risk of workplace exposure to the coronavirus, compared to the 41 percent of US-born workers who are employed in these jobs. According to a report published on July 25 by the California … So the zoo has started a name-that-condor-chick campaign, with proceeds to benefit the condor recovery program. She was 65. Now #LA1720 is a three-foot, 15-pound toddler that feasts daily on regurgitated dead rats and rabbits. According to Newsom, next up on the state’s vaccine campaign will be Californians 75 years and older as well as essential workers in three categories — education and childcare, emergency … Were you forwarded this email? “However, if the State of California were to develop a hazard pay benefit for all California first responders, our membership would certainly fall into that category and as such, we’d pursue the matter on behalf of our members,” Lane said in an email. [Rolling Stone], A $500,000 donation from “Prov 3:9, LLC ” to the effort to recall Governor Newsom came from an Orange County donor named John Kruger who objects to California’s pandemic restrictions on indoor, in-person worship, the group’s accountant revealed Tuesday. Gavin Newsom’s emergency declaration remains in effect, up to 173 hours. Some, however, may not be so obvious. “What about the people out there on the front line who are still doing the jobs? Some California state unions have been advocating for incentives for employees who have to keep going in to work each day. Water department workers, considered essential, work in the Mission Bay neighborhood of San Francisco, California during an outbreak of the COVID-19 coronavirus in San Francisco, California… Workers supporting groceries, pharmacies, convenience stores, and other retail that sells food or beverage products, and animal/pet food, retail customer support service, information technology support staff, for online orders, pickup/takeout or delivery. [The New York Times], Renie Bardeau, the longtime Disneyland photographer whose work included some of the park’s most iconic images — and an estimated 100,000 Mickey Mouse photos — died Monday of complications from Covid-19. A new president takes office: the view from an I.C.U. Bay Area law enforcement stepping up with coronavirus compliance San Francisco sheriff's deputy tests positive for coronavirus. contract the union reached with the state. Aside from extra pay, the union has floated additional days off or temporary housing to help workers avoid spreading the disease to their families. The complete list of California's essential workers. Gavin Newsom proposed his own $4.5 billion stimulus package as part of state budget negotiations. In about a year, Mr. Maxcy said, after some months in a prerelease pen so that it can learn its pecking order, its keepers will release it to California’s Bitter Creek National Wildlife Refuge in Kern County, where it will become one of the more than 500 California condors in the wild now. Now it needs a name. Often, these Californians live in multi-generational housing, take crowded buses to … Your Turn. Plus, name that condor chick. Like us on Facebook to see similar stories, President Joe Biden executive order reverses Donald Trump ban on race and gender diversity training, Grim Tasks and Heartache for Divers at Indonesia Plane Wreck. [The San Francisco Chronicle], Arnold Schwarzenegger warned fellow Republicans in Congress that they “will live in infamy” if they don’t “step back from the partisan battlefield and accept the results of the election” today when Electoral College votes are counted. Carrie Lane, chief executive officer of the California Association of Highway Patrolmen, said the union doesn’t have the opportunity to make a hazard pay proposal since it isn’t in contract negotiations. Figure 5 shows the percent of workers in California employed in front-line essential jobs broken down by immigration status. Use the search bar above to find participating hotels. The Choice Cares rate is available to all workers and volunteers the Department of Homeland Security has identified as Essential Critical Infrastructure Workers. Plus, name that condor chick. But since 1982, when the species was so endangered that just 22 California condors remained on the planet, keeping condors alive has been part of the zoo’s mission. Some examples of essential businesses and workers are obvious, like hospitals, pharmacies, police and firefighters. In ordering California’s nearly 40 million residents to stay at home, Gov. The condor chick #LA1720 wasn’t supposed to have lived. Project Roomkey, agricultural worker housing expansions The City of San Francisco is giving front-line workers who must continue reporting to work an additional eight hours of paid time off for each 40 hours they work, up to 80 hours of additional floating holiday time, under a supplemental emergency proclamation from Mayor London Breed. 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