By Miriam Raftery

March 27, 2020 (Washington D.C.) -- President Trump has signed a $2 trillion economic stimulus bill, the largest in American history, stating, “I want to thank Democrats and Republicans for coming together and putting America first.”  The package includes direct payments, loans and grants.

The action comes after the U.S. surpassed China and Italy with the most COVID-19 coronavirus cases of any nation on earth. Worldwide over half a billion people have been infected with the virus. In the US there are over 95,000 confirmed cases and more than 1,450 people have died.

The Senate coronavirus bill will include help for:

By Jacqueline Garcia and Jackie Botts

Jacqueline García is a reporter with La Opinión. CalMatters reporter Jackie Botts contributed to this article. This article is part of The California Divide, a collaboration among newsrooms examining income inequity and economic survival in California.

Photo:  undocumented immigrants often work in construction. Photo by La Opinión

March 24, 2020 (San Diego) - More than 2 million undocumented workers, who do not quality for many state and federal benefits, are among the hardest hit Californians as the economy is battered by the coronavirus pandemic.

By Miriam Raftery

March 23, 2020 (Sacramento)—The State Public Health Officer has listed a detailed 14-page list of “essential critical infrastructure workers” allowed to continue working under the Governor’s executive order, which mandates that most Californians stay home due to the COVID-19 emergency.  

View the full list:  https://covid19.ca.gov/img/EssentialCriticalInfrastructureWorkers.pdf

The list provides much more detail than the original executive order.  For example, appliance repair stores, mortuaries, mental health and substance abuse workers, cannabis clinics, veterinary and animal care facility workers, postal and shipping companies, plumbers, electricians, exterminators, auto repair shops, home improvement and appliance stores, attorneys and accountants helping to meet statutory requirements, farm workers, food suppliers and farmer’s markets, laundry services, IT professionals/computer repairs, construction workers, critical tribal positions, suppliers of critical industries and manufacturers of critically needed products such as hand sanitizers are among the many occupations added on the expanded list of businesses that can remain in operation.

Photo credit: Michael Uyeda

• Document Recording Services (only by mail and through E-Recording)
• Vital Records Requests: Birth, Death, and Marriage Records (by mail or online)
• Fictitious Business Name Statements (by mail)
• Property Assessment Services
• Copies of Official Records (by mail or online)
• Notary Public Registrations (by mail)
• Authentications (by mail)

At-Home Service Company Launches Free Car Repair Program for Car Owners in Need; Ramps Up Technician Hiring and Fleet Service for Businesses

Source: PR Newswire/Repair Smith

March 20, 2020 (San Diego)--Today, RepairSmith announces it will donate $100,000 in free, 'No-Contact Car Repair' to the communities it serves. The company is introducing a series of initiatives to support members within the community who are facing hardship because of the coronavirus.  

Starting today, in California and Las Vegas, free car repairs are available to car owners who are severely impacted by COVID-19, either via loss of employment or acting as a frontline worker to their community.

This includes government workers, service workers, delivery drivers, healthcare professionals, employees of grocery stores and pharmacies, volunteers and others who require the use of a functioning car, in locations where RepairSmith currently operates, including San Diego County.

By Rebecca Jefferis Williamson

March 18, 2020 (San Diego’s East County) - Coronavirus has disrupted the job market across California, including all of San Diego County. Governor Gavin Newsom has waived the one-week waiting period to file for unemployment and ordered an extra week of benefits for people out of work due to the COVID-19 emergency.

By Miriam Raftery

Photo: Gy Kirk, new co-owner of Sheldon's Station in La Mesa, says his restaurant is offering curbside take-out immediately and willl soon offer a home delivery service.

Read official health order here.

March 16, 2020 (San Diego) – Alarmed by news of 55 COVID-19 cases countywide—a nearly seven-fold increase in the past four days – San Diego County officials today announced tough new restrictions that will impact daily lives of virtually all residents and businesses. A new fund aims to help those adversely impacted.

Effective midnight Tuesday through March 31, the following rules are imposed countywide:

• All gatherings of 50 or more are prohibited, including public and private events.
• All non-essential gatherings, regardless of size, are discouraged.
• All bars and other businesses serving alcohol without food must shut down.
• Restaurants may offer only delivery, pick-up or drive-through service. On-site pickups must include social distancing of at least six feet.
• Schools of all levels, public and private, must cancel any on-campus classes.
• Businesses must not require doctor’s notes for sick time or other leave.
• Businesses must allow telecommuting if possible and adopt social distancing for on-site workers, along with increased cleaning.
• Hospitals and health care facilities should preserve resources including cancelling elective and non-emergency procedures when feasible.
• Only essential personnel may enter hospitals and long-term care facilities—and any essential personnel with symptoms of COVID-19 are prohibited from entering.
• Hospitals, commercial testing labs and all healthcare providers must report COVID-19 test results to the county’s public health officer immediately after receiving results.
• Travelers arriving in San Diego County should self-quarantine at home for 14 day if they traveled from or through nations on the Centers for Disease Control Level 3 list. The list currently includes China, Iran, South Korea, and most European nations.
• Self-quarantine at home is strongly recommended for people over age 65, as well as those with chronic underlying conditions or compromised immune systems.
• Everyone with mild to moderate COVID-19 symptoms should self-isolate at home before seeking medical treatment.
  

East County News Service

March 10, 2020 (El Cajon) -- The San Diego East County Chamber of Commerce will begin endorsing candidates for elective office in the November 2020 general election, those found to be aligned with the Chamber’s goals of promoting business in East County.

The Chamber will consider endorsements for candidates to elected offices that serve the East County region. 

Candidates seeking endorsement should submit a statement of no longer than 500 words that should address the question, “Why should the Chamber endorse you?”

Candidate statements should be submitted to Diana Senica by email at events@eastcountychamber.org, no later than May 1, 2020.

East County News Service

March 7, 2020 (Lemon Grove) — FASTSIGNS® of Lemon Grove - La Mesa, a locally owned and operated sign and graphics company, is now open under the direction of franchisees, Cheryl and Jayson Aurelio. 

East County News Service

March 5, 2020 (Ramona) – Ramona resident Chris Anderson, a realtor with Coldwell Banker West (CBW), was recently honored by the Greater San Diego Association of Realtors (SDAR) with the 2019 Realtor of the Year Award.

A national version of AB 5 is slated, which radically revises employment laws, is slated to be voted on in the House of Representatives this week with backing of California's two Senators

By Miriam Raftery

Image courtesy of #FightForFreelancers, which is battling a measure similar to California's AB 5 law. The seriously flaws legislation in our state is being emulated across the nation even as lawsuits, reform and repeal measures are pending in California.

February 4, 2020 (San Diego) – State Senator Brian Jones (R-Santee) is  coauthoring multiple bills to repeal and/or reform Assembly Bill 5, which took effect January 1, decimating independent contractors in a wide range of fields as well as the businesses and nonprofits that have long relied on freelancres.

AB 5 was introduced by Lorena Gonzalez-Fletcher (D-San Diego), a former labor leader who touted it as a way of cracking down on companies such as Uber and Lyft for exploiting workers and forces even small businesses and nonprofits to make most workers employees rather than independent contractors.

But the costs of doing so are prohibitively high for many businesses and organizations, putting their futures at risk. The law has also had devastating effects on freelancers across at least 150 fields including musicians, writers, artists, actors, dancers, nurses, consultants, translators, photographers, teachers and other independent contractors who value their freedom and flexible schedules and don’t want to be employees.

Some are now unable to find work due to AB 5, as out of state companies cancel gigs with California freelancers, unwilling to risk criminal penalties and huge fines for misclassifying workers under the convoluted, complex and confusing terms of the law. Other freelancers have shelled out high costs to start their own companies in order to qualify for business-to-business exemptions in the bill, but receive no benefits for those expenditures.

Celebrate vegan lifestyle with all-vegan eats, drinks, music and more

By Miriam Raftery

January 10, 2020 (La Mesa) – The La Mesa Chamber of Commerce has inked a deal with Grossmont Center to host a beer garden at all of the center’s First Friday markets starting February 7th through the end of this year. The beer garden will feature featuring Mike Hess Brewing Company and Local Roots kombucha.

The markets are held on the first Friday of each month from 5 p.m. to 10 p.m.in the shopping mall’s parking lot between Chuze Fitness and Fuddruckers. The  market celebrates the vegan lifestyle with all-vegan foods, sweets, drinks, goods for sale and live music. Grossmont Center is located at 5500 Grossmont Center Blvd., La Mesa. 

The beer garden will have a seating area beneath lighted tents for dining and drinking under the stars.