On December 30, 2010, The Wall Street Journal reported in “Claims of Good Jobs News Need Tempering” that despite the positive jobless claims reports, those continuing to receive unemployment remain high.
The Labor Department reported in late December 2010, a drop in new claims from 420,000 to 418,000 and a slowing in layoffs, but this could just be that employers did not want to put their employees out on the streets during the holidays. It is predicted that employers will come back in the early new year with pink slips.
The majority of people on unemployment are considered long term unemployed, out on the streets for nearly two years with no offers. These people have exhausted their initial 26 weeks of unemployment, and living off of their extended benefits. There is much anxiety for 2011 with less hope for any full time employment.
By going into year three of unemployment, many people have little to celebrate when it comes to the new year. These people have been taken advantage of by companies with piecemeal jobs. Some companies hire people as independent contractors paying them little cash for projects that take many hours to complete, and when the company does not like certain aspects of the deliverables, they request revisions with no extra pay. This is prevalent in writing assignments, and flies against the very essence of labor laws.
When people are independent contractors, they miss out not only on company benefits like insurance, but overtime, meal periods, rest periods, and other worker rights. Some companies mistreat independent contractors by demanding them to be at the work place. Independent contractors should be aware that they can work wherever they want and not be forced to drive to any workplace. They do not have managers and once a company begins supervising, the independent contractor can report to EDD that they are really being treated as employees and be considered for insurance benefits or unemployment when the work ends.
One software company in Brisbane, CA manipulated workers engaged as independent contractors by giving them the expectation that if they worked hard, they might be offered full time employment. During quarter ends, workers would work overtime with no overtime, succumb to driving to the office, only to be told that their contracts won’t be extended or that the company has hired from the outside for full time positions. Workers should be wary of such manipulation and not expect more than what’s in their independent contractor agreements.
When people do not look at the real facts of their relationships and get manipulated by companies who take advantage of the poor economy in labor relations, they may end up with no job, no backup income, and bankruptcy.
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Tags: 2010, Jobless Claims
Posted February 8, 2011 by Imogen Lay under Credit Report