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Fix Overtime For Latinos

08/21/2015 Nativegrl77

The Obama Administration’s Proposed Overtime Rules Would Benefit Millions Of Latino Workers

We’ve said it before and we’ll say it again: the middle class could use a raise. The Obama administration’s proposed new rule to raise the overtime threshold would do just that. Raising the overtime salary threshold is like raising the minimum wage for the middle class. And like raising the minimum wage, the Latino community would see disproportionately large benefits from the new overtime rule.

Here are a few numbers showing the impact the new overtime rules would have on Latino workers:

34.4 percent: the percent of all salaried Latino workers—2.1 million total—who would directly benefit from the new rule.
$50,070: the new annual salary threshold to guarantee workers overtime pay under the proposed rule, up from the current threshold of $23,660.
15.5 percent: the percent of all salaried workers who would benefit from the new rule who are Latino. For comparison, Latinos make up only 11.6 percent of the salaried workforce but 15.5 percent of all workers who would benefit from the proposed rule.
48 percent: the percent of all Latino women workers who are currently exempt from overtime pay who would gain coverage under the new threshold.

Strengthening overtime rules will ensure that Latino workers are fairly paid for all the hours that they work. Reforming overtime protections is a crucial step in increasing economic security for Latino workers, but it won’t happen on its own. That’s why we need your help. We need to let the Department of Labor know that support for the rule is strong. If you haven’t already, go to FixOvertime.org or MisHorasExtras.org to submit a comment.

BOTTOM LINE: Latino workers make up a disproportionately large percentage of all workers who would benefit from the new overtime rules, but ensuring that a hard day’s work earns a fair day’s pay is good for all workers. More money in the pocket of workers means more money put back into the whole economy.

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compare contrast check … 2nd hand & consignments

08/21/2015 Nativegrl77

I will be keeping all names confidential …

I went on a thrift buy and to be quite honest – to scope out what other small business owners of “thrift” are selling etc. I set out to compare, contrast and what I found was surprising, a bit disappointing. I live in an area that could cross the line of middle toward upper middle class.

I was not sure what price point I would be facing. I was looking forward to going to my favorite 2nd hands, but I only went to four shops as one of the most popular went out of business right around the 2008 economic crisis and the other; the biggest and the oldest in my area decided they were done with the whole 2nd hand business

I parked my car ready to be amazed but was overcome by the smell and ok, yes some 2nd hand/consignments stores may mean accepting some cleaning odors and this shop has great vintage items like women’s hats dated back to the 1920’s. They had some great looking vintage luggage, but then they decided to dedicate a whole section maybe half of the store to very new trendy items that were very ethnic and expensive. I found most of my own comparable 2nd Act/consignment items that were competitive or in slightly better shape and of course as a vintage/consignment shop, they offered a wide range from a house dress look some of our moms probably wore to some very beautiful vintage jewelry. I spotted some sheet music but that was not on the list. I walked a few blocks down to what used to be a favourite 2nd hand/consignment shop for designer clothes because of the abundance of smaller sized clothing. It was packed though unlike the first shop, it was in transition with a tag sale making room for recent donations. Good golly the smell!

looked at my phone and had to get going, the walk down to a very small store was wonderful as the weather was just as fabulous as the metro parking space … free. I admit I drive past this store all the time but the hours are not usually conducive as they have limited weekday hours. It was open, thank goodness though somewhat dark as most of the clothes are designers in black, gray and white. I used to love this store and since most people wear black white and gray etc. the biggest issue for me was size not that the clothes weren’t great but the sizing just did not seem correct and all sales were final which makes sense, sometimes the risk works out, but … I took a pass.

It was a great morning to go hunting for deals and great surprises and while I came home without a 2nd hand/consignment item. I did find out that one of my favourite farmers market moved across the street.

It was not a failed trip by any means.

So, after a couple of hours of what turned out to be an eye opening experience … safe to say everything at http://www.beaseedforchange.org offers is clean, fresh fab finds, not tried on by hundreds of people and we are not against negotiating our prices.

Sometimes bigger is not always better and more inventory isn’t either unless of course it‘s about viable repeats, furniture, tiles and kitchen stuff …

Stay tuned

Be a Seed for Change

Buying from Be a Seed for Change makes you a part of our movement to Recycle Reuse Reclaim Reduce – The amount of materials going into Landfill and your Eco-Footprint

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SBA Reporter – are you prepared for chip card technology switch Oct. 1?

08/21/2015 Nativegrl77

Prepared for the Chip Card Technology Switch? Attend Free Webinar Aug. 26

Did you know that an important shift is occurring with card payment technology that will most likely impact your business?

Most small businesses are now required to switch from traditional stripe card readers to card readers that require chip card readers, and those business owners will be more often than not be required to purchase the equipment on their own.

Keeping up with the newest, most secure card payment technology is very important for small business owners. That’s why SBA has teamed up with Square to help small businesses navigate the upcoming transition from magnetic stripe to chip card technology (also known as “EMV” – for Europay, MasterCard, and Visa).

EMV 101: What Small Businesses Need to Know
About the Switch to Chip Card Technology
Wednesday, August 26
11 a.m. to 12 p.m. PT
Registration is free, but required

Participants will learn:

What the transition to EMV chip card technology means for small businesses
What EMV chip card technology is and why it’s more secure
How to prepare for new fraud liability rules impacting merchants beginning October 1

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The Iran Deal …

08/21/2015 Nativegrl77 2 Comments

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the 2006 essay from Ron Paul … just a reminder

08/21/2015 Nativegrl77

Rethinking Birthright Citizenship

by Ron Paul

first posted 11/2011

A recent article in the Houston Chronicle discusses the problem of so-called anchor babies, children born in U.S. hospitals to illegal immigrant parents. These children automatically become citizens, and thus serve as an anchor for their parents to remain in the country. Our immigration authorities understandably are reluctant to break up families by deporting parents of young babies. But birthright citizenship, originating in the 14th amendment, has become a serious cultural and economic dilemma for our nation.

In some Houston hospitals, administrators estimate that 70 or 80% of the babies born have parents who are in the country illegally. As an obstetrician in south Texas for several decades, I can attest to the severity of the problem. It’s the same story in California, Arizona, and New Mexico. And the truth is most illegal immigrants who have babies in U.S. hospitals do not have health insurance and do not pay their hospital bills.

This obviously cannot be sustained, either by the hospitals involved or the taxpayers who end up paying the bills.

No other wealthy, western nations grant automatic citizenship to those who simply happen to be born within their borders to non-citizens. These nations recognize that citizenship involves more than the physical location of one’s birth; it also involves some measure of cultural connection and allegiance. In most cases this means the parents must be citizens of a nation in order for their newborn children to receive automatic citizenship.

Make no mistake, Americans are happy to welcome immigrants who follow our immigration laws and seek a better life here. America is far more welcoming and tolerant of newcomers than virtually any nation on earth. But our modern welfare state creates perverse incentives for immigrants, incentives that cloud the issue of why people choose to come here. The real problem is not immigration, but rather the welfare state magnet.

Hospitals bear the costs when illegal immigrants enter the country for the express purpose of giving birth. But illegal immigrants also use emergency rooms, public roads, and public schools. In many cases they are able to obtain Medicaid, food stamps, public housing, and even unemployment benefits. Some have fraudulently collected Social Security benefits.

Of course many American citizens also use or abuse the welfare system. But we cannot afford to open our pocketbooks to the rest of the world. We must end the perverse incentives that encourage immigrants to come here illegally, including the anchor baby incentive.

I’ve introduced legislation that would amend the Constitution and end automatic birthright citizenship. The 14th amendment was ratified in 1868, on the heels of the Civil War. The country, especially the western territories, was wide open and ripe for homesteading. There was no welfare state to exploit, and the modern problems associated with immigration could not have been imagined.

Our founders knew that unforeseen problems with our system of government would arise, and that’s precisely why they gave us a method for amending the Constitution. It’s time to rethink birthright citizenship by amending the 14th amendment.