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datetrain4 · 2 years

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Green Cleansing For Covid

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#清潔公司

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astoldbygingersnaps · 4 years

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On Petco and COVID-19:

I’ve seen a lot of stories and reports about various companies and how they are treating their employees poorly in the wake of COVID-19, but to my surprise I haven’t seen anything about my company, Petco. I suppose it makes sense, given that Petco isn’t as large a company as Target, Starbucks, or Walmart, but I believe people should know what we as partners have been dealing with since the outbreak really picked up steam in the US.

Before I detail exact what my personal struggle with the company has been, I’d like to make one thing clear: I am a hard worker. I have spent five years of my life--half a decade--dedicating myself to this company. I am both a dog trainer and a keyholder, and I take both of those duties very seriously. Nothing means more to me than taking care of pets and their people, and I pride myself on providing the best care and service to our guests as possible. So when I say that this entire situation is forcing me to abandon my job out of disgust for the way I and my fellow workers have been treated, I want you to understand how much that means.

I love the work that I do, but that does not change the fact that I, along with many other Petco partners, have been exploited, dismissed, and outright lied to during this crisis. While I understand that we are living in a dangerous and chaotic time that is difficult to navigate, such a fact makes it all the more necessary to treat people with dignity, compassion, and respect. I do not enjoy putting an organization that I have given so much of my heart and soul to on blast, but the events of the previous month have made it clear that Petco as a company does not care whether or not its employees or even its customers are harmed or killed because of their negligence.

For almost a month our concerns have been ignored, belittled, and redirected, and the little action that has been taken has been incredibly delayed and led to even more confusion. Furthermore, we’ve had little clear guidance on what we, as partners who work in retail stores, should be doing to take care of ourselves and our guests.

It is also worth noting that our CEO, Ron Coughlin, was sending out emails to Petco Pals Rewards members in the beginning of March claiming that stores would be instructed to disinfect and clean regularly, but no such instructions were ever given. We never received any emails or forms of internal communication telling partners on how they should be cleaning, and because of this my own store took time out of our day to develop a cleaning schedule and shared our template throughout the district. Again, this is something we did OURSELVES, NOT something we were explicitly told to do. So, if you don’t care about how retail workers have been treated, at least care that you, as a customer, have been lied to.

From the beginning, there has been a very clear divide in how store partners have been treated compared to corporate/office workers. While corporate/office workers have the luxury of working from home with full benefits and are allowed to perform social distancing to the CDC’s guidelines, we are not so lucky. Again, I understand this, to a point: because of their positions they are able to perform their jobs from home while we are not. But such a decision was consistently framed as “difficult” and “emotional,” which, frankly, is bogus. What’s so hard about giving your employees access to work from their personal computer? And what’s so difficult for them anyway considering they’re not the ones who have to come in contact with the public day after day?

Through the second week in March, numerous communications were spread throughout the company on our internal Workplace service, each one more inadequate and inefficient than the last. The worst was a ten minute long video where our CEO repeatedly stated that “pets are our main priority” and described over and over again how we simply MUST stay open for our customers. It wasn’t until the very end of the video that any mention was given to partners at all. The entire post was incredibly off-putting and made me, as a partner, feel incredibly undervalued.

What made things worse, however, were the comments under the video. Floods of partners shared their concerns and disappointments. Many of them cited having young children or older relatives at home, or were immunocompromised themselves, and worried about the danger that working in a retail environment put themselves and their loved ones in. And what was the company’s response? To tell these people over and over to simply “partner with their district manager if they were worried.” That’s it. No direction, no guidance, no words of comfort. Nothing. One person was even accused of simply not having a desire to work rather than, I dunno, A FEAR OF CONTRACTING AND SPREADING A DEADLY ILLNESS.

The post in question (all names have been blacked out to respect privacy):

It was some of the most vile behavior I have ever witnessed, both from upper management and lower-level employees like myself who were displaying an almost slavish devotion to a company that was so ready and willing to dispose of them. Multiple people stated they were proud to work for our company in this moment, which was utterly baffling to me, as I had never felt more worthless to Petco than I did seeing those messages.

So! Let’s talk about partnering with your local leader! (Spoiler alert: it’s fucking useless)

On March 15th, my direct supervisor and I made a call to our district leader to “discuss our concerns.” What followed was thirty minutes of our life wasted where we were told the exact same thing as we had been told via the Workplace post: no partner would lose their job for taking time off if they displayed symptoms or came into contact with a person who had COVID-19 (the absolute bare minimum, in my opinion), but they would be required to either take a fourteen day unpaid medical leave or use their personal PTO and sick time to cover the cost. Around this time I was both showing symptoms (dry cough, fatigue, shortness of breath) and learned that my fiancee, whom I live with, came into direct contact with someone with the illness via her work. The possibility of contracting COVID-19 was especially worrying for us, as my fiancee has severe asthma and I have scarring on my lungs from chronic bronchitis; were we to get sick, the consequences could be severe. It’s even more concerning given that the state we live in, Massachusetts, has one of the highest rates of infection in the US and hospitals are in danger of becoming overwhelmed. Therefore, I decided to make what I believed was the most responsible and ethical decision, and went on leave.

Fortunately, I am lucky; as a full-time worker who has been with the company for many years, I have accrued enough PTO and sick time to cover the weeks that I would be gone for. But many people who work for this company are not so lucky. Many are part-time workers who are not entitled to benefits, and some are full-timers who may have already burned through their paid time off as it resets on the anniversary of your hire date. So now these workers, like many other workers across the country, are being asked to choose between taking care of themselves and their community or putting food on the table. It is absolutely inhumane, especially given that last time I checked our CEO is worth more than two million dollars--yet the rest of us are forced to worry about paying our rent and feeding our families while we do the dirty work on the front lines.

Since I initially took leave, this has been amended, and employees who have been affected by COVID-19 have been given access to 40 hours of sick time, regardless of their status as full or part-time. But that only covers one week of the mandatory self-isolation period, meaning partners are still at risk of losing money.

Time and time again we have been told how much our overlords value us. We have been thanked, we have been praised, and we have had so many meaningless words and tiny gestures thrown at us. Sure, our store hours have been cut and we’re offering curbside pick-up to reduce foot traffic in certain stores (my store, a smaller Unleashed location, doesn’t qualify for curbside pick-up, because of our size). Sure, changes have been made to the dog training program to freeze classes and puppy playtime for the time being. And sure, there has been a partner assistance fund opened to support partners in these ~trying times. I applaud the company for making these necessary changes and for putting their money where their mouth is when it comes to donating directly to us.

But in a lot of ways, it’s too little, too late, and so many of these services remain inaccessible to all partners. Hell, partners have even been policed about when they can actually utilize their own personal sick time even though we are in the middle of a global health crisis.

Even for those of us who have done everything exactly as we were supposed to, we are still getting screwed. Currently, I’m battling with Petco HR to get paid for the first week of my self-isolation as, even though I submitted all my time off requests accurately, none of it was reflected in my paycheck; because we get paid by-weekly, I have yet to see whether my second week will be covered, but I suspect I will have to battle for that as well. As a person who lives paycheck to paycheck in one of the most expensive cities in the country, I quite literally can’t afford this right now. But, of course, the HR team is off work right now because of COVID-19, because unlike us they have that luxury.

In addition to this, I’ve also been prevented from coming back to work because our Leaves Coordinator now claims I need a doctor’s note to return to work even though I have it in writing, from paperwork directly from the Leaves Department, that I do not, as evidenced here:

I would also like to note that I confirmed that I would be returning to work on the afternoon of March 27th and received an automatic reply that I would hear from a representative in 24 to 48 hours. I did not, in fact, hear back from a representative until March 30st at 11:59pm EST, ten hours before I was scheduled to return to work, as you can see here (again, I am hiding my personal information as much as possible to try and avoid retaliation from my employer):

While I understand delays given that our HR and Leaves Departments are no doubt bogged down given how many employees are currently in the same boat as me, it does not change the fact that I am suffering because of their lack of action.

It would be one thing if the facts had been clearly communicated from the very beginning, but as you can see that’s very much not the case. Instead, I’ve been jerked around, lied to, and, again, had my pay withheld. Every day I spend at home fighting with these people is another day of pay I lose and cannot get back. Words cannot express how terrible this whole experience has been. I’ve cried nearly every day and been so anxious and depressed I’ve literally vomited from the stress. All the years I’ve spent building my career and taking care of clients while earning money for this company and this is the thanks I get in return. It is quite literally sickening.

Throughout this entire process I and many of the Petco employees in my area have been treated like absolute garbage. The stores in our district are running on fumes because so many partners are sick and/or on leave. Employees are running entire stores on their own and not getting breaks because we’re so short-staffed. One store in our district even closed down because a groomer tested positive for COVID-19 leading to the entire store shutting down and being professionally cleaned... and then re-opened almost immediately, causing even more of a burden on the remaining employees scrambling to cover all these near-empty locations. Our technology is over-loaded and crashing because it can’t bear the weight of our increased Buy Online, Pick Up In Stores (BOPUS) and curbside pick-up orders. It’s absolute insanity and it needs to stop.

I am not the first person to say this, nor will I be the last, but the crisis we are currently experiencing has starkly exposed how broken our economic and social structures truly are. Along with doctors, nurses, and medical care professionals working in hideous conditions to keep the rest of us healthy and safe, the people who contribute the most to our communities are those that have traditionally been looked upon as unskilled and overall less-than: janitors, housekeepers, garbagemen, cashiers, shelf-stockers, etc. Very quickly public perception has turned, and now society as a whole knows what those of us who work these types of jobs have always known: we are essential. We have the power in society. And we should use that power to defend ourselves and each other, which is why I’m writing to you now. By shining a light on the flaws and failings of this company, I believe we can hold them and others like them accountable and demand better, because we absolutely deserve it.

The bottom line is this: if you care about workers’ rights, if you value the safety and lives of your fellow humans, and if want to slow the spread of this disease that has upended everything we hold dear, don’t go to Petco. Don’t reward this company’s bad behavior with your money because they have proven they do not deserve it.

#petco

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lockdownuk · 4 years

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Lockdown Diary Part 3

A personal account during the lockdown in the UK due to the Covid-19 outbreak.

23/03/2020 8:30pm Boris Johnson, UK Prime Minister, gives a live address to the nation to, effectively, put the country on lockdown to stem the spread of the deadly coronavirus strain, Covid-19.

Many of us have been self-isolating for days but this latest development within the UK in reaction to the pandemic feels very serious and very scary. I decided to keep a simple diary and where better but online.

Day 61: Writing this in the afternoon on day 62. An exercise driven day. Two walks and stair climb as usual plus I popped round Jeff’s early evening. First time I’ve been to his house, 1 Garden Row, Elmington. It’s further than I thought so, with walking there an back, I managed a daily total of 14km. It was good to see him and have a social (but social-distanced) beer. When I got home, @9:45pm, I made thai green chicken curry, watch The Report (a great, if worrying film) and then TikTok-ed until gone 5am!

Day 62: Typing this on day 64! Beer round Karen’s. Missed Sam’s quiz.

Day 63: Typing this on day 64! Beer round Karen’s. Again! Well, it is bank holiday Monday! Had dirty pizza for tea and watched The Heat. Again! It is the most piss funny film.

Day 64: Well, I have been feeling guilty about treatung the bank holiday w/e l;ike a bank holiday w/e. It’s dawned on me that that guilt is way too self-disiciplned. I got up about midday, usual two walks and stair climb but that’s it. I need to clean the house from top to bottom, get on top of my online courses, get the garden done, get the car fixed, go shopping…fucking hell - if only I had the time…

Day 65: Today I swapped Amazon prime free trial for about the 5th time in my life. Same card and address - will they get wind of my skullduggery. This is all so I can finish watching Hunters and catch Homecoming S2. I went shopping at Asda near Raunds. I wish I hadn’t, it’s no good for a comprehensive shop. Received an email from RCI inviting me to a Zoom meeting with Pal Mulcahy for a business update. I fear the worst. And it’s at 10:00am, FFS!

Day 66: Logged in an attended zoom forum with Paul Mulcahy and over 250 RCI staff this morning. The message was that there is going to be redundancies. I expected this and expected to fall victim. All staff that are going to be put through cionsultation would be contacted today. I however wasn’t! Very, very surpised. meanwhile, Nick Reilly asked to connect via LinkedIn (including become a LinkedIn staff team member - that’s new to me so I’ll see what it is but I accepted the invitation) Later, I WhatsApp-ed him and asked who has been affected from IT. All he could tell me was no one on Jon Rodger’s team is under threat. Also, Mark C emailed - I’ll respond tomorrow. I got up at 09:00ish and had my mornming walk before the 10:00am meeting. I am now, at 09:30pm, fucking knackered. Dinner and then bed, methinks but not before one more episdoe of Hunters!

Day 67: Typing on Day 68. Got pretty drunk last night. I’ve got blisters from walking (new boots) so I don’t think I’ll walk tomorrow (well, today!).

Day 68: I did fuck all today. Got up after 1pm, no walking. I did manage to clean the bathroom (and smash my little mirror) and do my 26 stair climb. I am typing at 9pm and I feel whacked!

Day 69: I have an abscess. It’s not too painful (today) but I am going to call the dentist tomorrow (Monday). I think antibiotics are in order. I watched a film, which I actually started yesterday, called The Voices starring Ryan Reynolds, Gemma Arteton and Anna Kendrick. Fuuuuuuuuuuuucking weird. The closing credits are the most bizarre, in context, I’ve ever seen. But, in general, a very good film. Back to normal exercise regime today plus hovered the hall and stairs. Get me. It’ll be interetingh to see my Google Fit figures for May tomorrow.

Day 70: Contacted the dentist who advised salt water rinsing and ibuprofen. But, tbf, it’s a lot better today and the swelling has gone right down. The dentist I called was the Oundle House (Rodericks) one. I was not hopeful since last time I saw them they referred me to their Northampton clinic for root canal work which was quoted at over £600. However, the dentist was very nice, had my x-ray to hand from that last visit and seemed more interested in making sure I’m OK than gaining a paying customer. He still wants to see me when possible though! I must mention the weather. It has been glorious weather nearly every day throughout May (it’s June 1st today). Seriously sunny and like a holiday every day. The news mentioned it today - the level of sunshine throughout the transition from spring to summer is unprecedented, apparently. My T shirt tan is, quite frankly, ridiculous!

Day 71: Today’s ‘must mention’ is what’s going on in the US and it’s not particularly related to Trump. There was a black man killed while under arrest. George Floyd died Monday 25th May (8 days ago) A policeman, who knelt on his neck for minutes while he complained of not being able to breathe, has been charged with murder. Now there are riots and curfews and military intervention all over the country. It’s similar to the English riots of 2011. It’s worrying, sad, scary and not what the fight against the pandemic needs. Most of all, it’s racism rearing its ugly head yet again. I’ve had a normal-ish day. received an email from Jim checking in, talked to a recruiter about a promising job lead (although the hours are 8-5 which I am not happy about), talked to Barry across the road and sent Barzzy a WhatsApp. And I logged in Shaw Academy and started lesson one of module 2 of web Design. It’s been a while, so long overdue, but I only did about 15 minutes. Must try harder / do better! As I type, late (10:10pm) I have dinner cooking and a strange pain in my left side and am in the middle of No Country for Old Men. Don’t think I’ve seen it since the cinema (13 years!)

Day 72: As soon as (well, within a couple of days) I mention the weather, it turns. It’s rained a little and is a lot cooler (15° rather than mid-20s). Much better for walking, I have to say. I finished Hunters today (Amazon Prime series). While I enjoyed it, it got too surreal at the end. It is loosely based on the real story of Nazi hunters in the US in 1977 but the straying from loosely based to down-right ridiculous fiction annoyed me. If it goes to S2, I will watch it, however. Received some of my rental deposit back today (the law changed so that only 5 weeks rent can be demanded as deposit). Over £600. Nice.

Day 73: I made a short video for Marc and Clare’s 26th wedding anniversary. I ‘dressed up’ for it. I enjoyed doing it and I think it was appreciated.

Day 74: Typing on Day 75 for no other reason than I couldn’t be bothered on day 74! I received a letter either today or the day before (well, yesterday or the previous day!) from Mr Minos at the eye clinic informing me that, while there is some stuff going on in both eyes (garnered from the photo scans done at the last hospital appointment), he wants to see me in three months. Always a refief when that happens. Been getting into two series on Amazon: Alex Rider and Modern Love. One is a male Hanna, the other is soppy affairs of the heart based on real life stories (from essays written in the NY Times). Both enjoyable for totally different reasons.

Day 75: Lazyish day. Well, not really, just that I only went for one walk, alebit 6km andI got pissed on. Wehn the rain hit, it was also fucking freezing! Some of the clouds were stunning today, made for great photos. As I type, it’s 21:12, I’m listening the wonderful Phoebe Bridgiers. Now, I’m gonna make some tea and sup a few ales, I reckon.

Day 76: Done lots of walking today (over 13,000 steps) I made sausage casserole with too much chilli (scotch bonnet and birdeye). I had an online (fb) debate with Sam over whether the George Floyd murder was a racial.

Day 77: Received a new (used) wing mirror for the car. £18 with delivery, I reckon that’s a bargain. I cashed in £20 from Prolific as well, so I’m satisfied at the financial full-circle. Dropped the car off at Barnwell (Nene Valley Body Shop) and walked back - 7km. Just about to dive into tea - finishing the blazing hot sausage casserole from yesterday. Then I’m going to do some more Rubik’s cube practice with my recently acquired GoCube.

Day 78: Lots of daily walking, 26 stair climb, press-up and late nights watching TikTok (gone 3am this morning) are making for a constantly knackered Tim Stubbs. Today I made veg soup and cooked up some meatballs. Both are delish. How did I ever to learn how to conjure up such stuff? The Rubik’s cube learning is coming along except that I need good daylight to distinguish between the yellow and white faces on the flipping thing!

Day 79: Listening to Radio 6 most the day and the news is making for dire listening. Forecast of severe recession, especially if there is a second peak of the virus, which I think there will be. Plus, an offshoot of the George Floyd murder and the #BlackLivesMatter movement, institutions and town councils are being lobbied by campaigners to remove statues of anyone associated with things like slavery (one was toppled in Bristol at the w/e) and rename buildings etc. that were named after historical characters with any links to something that now is deemed wrong or offensive. I agree with it but it’s not pleasant to hear amongst other bleak news. Walked to Barnwell to collect my car - front trim reseated and new wing mirror fitted, £20 - bargain (I source the replacement wing mirror). But, also, forked out £165 on car tax! Cleaned the lounge from top to bottom. Knackering!

Day 80: Chatted with Dad and Rita - he’s pissed off with the slavery backlash but otherwise they are both OK. I saw Baz in the Tesco queue where I mentioned my disgust at the Thursday market being allowed (I found I could not maintain 2m at all times just walking to Tesco’s!) and that I really don’t want to catch Covid19 as I will probably die. Maybe a bit dramatic but he messaged me later today to say he’d been thinking on what I said and offered to shop for me. I replied that I am OK to shop but am scared at how people are taking things so much less seriously than when lockdown started yet the virus is still out there just as it was then! I am very touched at his massage. I thoroughly cleaned the bedroom and changed the bedclothes today. House work really knackers me out!

Day 81: Spare room cleaned today. Not much else to type about. It’s Friday, I making curried mince and I don’t feel like a beer. How I’ve changed!

Day 82: I did have beers last night. Ended up going to bed with daylight and dawn chorus for company. Today, when I woke, gone 1pm, I have been greeted by what can only be described as thoroughly depressing news from every quarter. This includes violence in the capital, further virus outbreak in Beijing. Fog’s political posts on FB make for depressing (but vaild) reading. I’m feeling thoroughly fed up today. Not even music can lift my mood…

…but, I am currently listening to Craig Charles on BBCR6 and, I have to say, he’s putting in quite an exceptional effort - there may be hope that my mood might lift, even at gone 8pm! I might have a beer or two and grab something postivity and enjoyment from the day after all.

Day 83: Another late one last night but up before noon today. Started watching something called Condor on Sky One. It’s OK - there’s stuff I wanna waytch on Amazon Prime but, more often than not, it keeps telling me there’s ‘a problem’ when I try to play anything. Pissing me off. I just checked and I have two weeks of the initial 12 of furlough to go. I shall started asking the questions about what might happen on the Connections website.

Day 84: Typing this on Day 85. On the way back from dropping off some shoes for Sean Davies at his brother’s (martin) I met Karen and she said why not pop round for a beer so I did. Certainly not used to a drink on a Monday so that, and the genral upheaval to my evening, while good fun and a nice change, put pay to my usual diary entry! I sorted Amazon Prime out by leaving the TV turned off for over an hour. Day 85: Tim did the garden today and it looks great. The pipes in the bathroom have been knocking loudly, on and off, for a couple of weeks now. Last night, they were so loud that today I took it upon myself to resolve it or ring Woodfords. So, having turned off the water, run the taps dry to get rid of any trapped air and then turned the water back on slowly, I discoved it’s the cistern and its pipes. Woodfords are arranging Corvee to visit. Meanwhile, leaving the water turned off at least stops the noise which is, otherwise, costant and unbearable! I emailed HR a couple of days ago about what’s happening in a couple of weeks time in terms of furlough when the 12 weeks will be up. Sue Cockimngs got back to me attaching an email Deryn sent on 15th May which I never received. Basically, they’ll extend furlough if need be and an update should be forthcoming late May/early June. Well, that time has passed, so who knows what is going to happen. The furlough scheme (CJRS) has been changed by the govenment, I’ve read, and it looks like any new people would have to have been furloughed by June 10th (it’s the 16th today) so no furlough rotation, which is annoying. The CJRS ends 1st October with employer contributions required from 1st August - that’s D-Day as far as I am concerned….so job hunting will have to step up a notch! Day 86: Pete’s birthday and he bought himself the same speaker as me. When I asked if it lived up to his expectations he mentioned it’s better through WiFi than Bluetooth. That confused me as I haven’t got WiFi available on mine…..long story short, I bought the wrong fucking speaker. I got a AudioPro AddOn T10 instead of C10. To say I am fucked off is an understatement. To think I was so pleased at the cheap price I paid. Now I feel like I have wasted €200. Bollocks.

Day 87: Finished Alex Rider last night. Another series that started off so well and ended a litte weak but, overall, not bad. I’ve started keeping strange meal times…lunch very late (4pm) and dinner really late (11pm). I need to sort it ‘cos it’s playing havoc with my sugar levels. I had a huge hypo while having my second walk today, second day on the trot that’s happened. My late dinner was Chinese chicked curry with a quarter of a scotch bonnet and two birdeye chillies. Delish.

Day 88: I have managed to be bitten yesterday or the day before on one of my walks. There are strange, itchy lumps on my right inner forearm. And I do mean itchy. I trimmed my sideburns today, I was very pissed off with them. My hair looks just a little less shit. I did a shop at Tesco in Corby today. Mainly booze as follows: 20 cans Sam Miguel £18 18 cans Stella £15 20 bottles Bud £10 8 cans Tyskie £9 3 lrg bottles Warsteiner £5 £57 Bargain.

Day 89: Lazy day. One short walk and usual stair climb. Howard and Sue popped round to give me a pressie - bottle of Monkey Shoulder. I’m building up quite a collection of whisky!

Day 90: Dad called and we chatted for an hour or so. I had to apologise for not sending a father’s day card! Dan messaged me and offered to pay for a pizza delivery which I declined.

Football has started again this past week…Prem and Championship only. L1 and L2 season was cut short and Posh missed out on the play-offs by one place. As I type, Everton v Liverpool is on Sky Sports on a Sunday evening - it’s very strange with no crowd. There’s crowd noise being played thorugh the tannoy.

#Diary #Tumblr diary #lockdown #covid19 #lockdownuk

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alamorcd · 3 years

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All of 2020 They struggled with the dangers of COVID 19.... In 2021.... they are still struggling THEN The POLAR FREEZE HIT! 🔸🥶🔸 We are Seniors, in our 80s My husband has Cancer and I am disabled. We were fine at the start of the BIG Freeze then......🥶🥶the electricity was off for hours. Our home went down to 45 degrees inside. We bundled up. The electricity went on and off..... ❄️❄️It snowed and sleeted. We ate what we had in our pantry..... 💦💦💦 then our water pipes gave in and our neighbor had to come check our well pump. Pipes were broken out there too.....OH My! 🥶🥶🥶 When will it end‼️‼️ 🥶🥶🥶 Our little mobile home is devastated with broken pipes, we have electricity now but our heating system is just blowing cold air...... 💨💨💨 We are nearly out of food.....our neighbor went to HEB and the shelves are empty.....OH! WHEN WILL IT END??? ❤️ 🥶 💦 💨 ⚠️We have been communicating with our 159 Senior Families during this Polar Freeze and the above was repeated to us in so MANY levels of hardship and need. When you are elderly, have a chronic illness and live marginally on a limited income.......THIS POLAR FREEZE has a devastating effect!!! Our Seniors needed help before the FREEZE because of COVID but NOW..... things are even worse. 💨 💦 ❤️ 💢Please give now!!! We have $1000 to begin our POLAR FREEZE SENIOR RELIEF FUND but that is only a drop from a frozen faucet..... OUR Seniors need you! ❤️❤️Please give now at www.alamorcd.org or send in a check to Alamo RCD Area Inc to the address in our bio. ❤️ 🥶 ❤️❤️With your help we can assist many Seniors as they struggle to protect themselves from the Pandemic AND survive the Polar Freeze. 💦 💨 ❤️ #waterlandyou, #repairs #utilities #rent #waterpipes #heater #waterwell #heating #medicines #aging #aginginplace #homerepairs #giving #helpingothers https://www.instagram.com/p/CLiglTzltsR/?igshid=13m4y4lmop954

#waterlandyou #repairs #utilities #rent #waterpipes #heater #waterwell #heating #medicines #aging #aginginplace #homerepairs #giving #helpingothers

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dippedanddripped · 4 years

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The past few weeks have seen fashion companies reckoning with their track records of in-house diversity, which in many cases have been less than stellar. There are a number of factors that contribute to fashion’s whiteness, particularly in the upper levels of management, and it starts at the bottom rungs of the company. One factor stifling diversity is unpaid internships.

Many internships are unpaid, only a certain subset of people — typically white and wealthy — can afford to work part- or full-time for free. The median wealth of the average American white family is 12 times higher than Black families, according to the Economic Policy Institute. By filtering out those candidates who can’t work for free, fashion companies are undercutting diversification before it can even start. Internships are a valuable entry-point for people new to the industry. Paid internships lead to full-time jobs 65% of the time, while unpaid internships only 39% of the time, according to the National Association of Colleges and Employers.

Glossy spoke to a young Black woman, who has had three internships in the industry in the last year, to talk about what effect unpaid work has on fashion’s diversity problem and on the young generation of future fashion workers. She is a recent college graduate who has interned with two major fashion stylists and at a mid-size fashion brand. She asked that both she and the places where she worked not be identified, so as not to burn any professional bridges.

Are you interning anywhere right now? I was, but I’m not currently because of Covid. I moved to New York last year while I had a few online classes left to finish before I graduated. I figured I could intern and get some experience while I do that. It really sucks that so many companies rely on free labor, because New York is not a cheap place to be. A lot of the places I’ve interned required at least a three-day-a-week commitment, which is a lot of time to be working for free. Not only that, but there’s [also] this unspoken thing. They make you feel like you have to go above and beyond, or else you’re not giving your all and they’re less likely to give you a full-time job.

What was your experience like? It varies. At two of them, I was doing PR work or picking up deliveries around the city for photo shoots, or dropping things off. At one place, [a fashion brand,] I was basically a glorified maid. People asked me to do things that had nothing to do with the skills I was there to learn. I didn’t feel like I was learning or growing or anything like that.

It was all unpaid, of course. No pay, no stipend. The brand I worked at did have a kitchen with little stuff for me and the five or six other interns, but if you wanted to eat a real meal, you were on your own.

Once, I was going to go to a photoshoot where Bella Hadid [was the model], but I had a bad feeling about it and I didn’t go. It turned out that the shoot was outside in the winter, and it was freezing that day. I just remember my boss being so baffled that I didn’t want to go stand in the cold for free. I’m worth more than that. And it can be demoralizing to be forced to do all this grunt work for free. And then I look like a bitch for saying no to demoralizing things like that.

Does the fact that it’s unpaid affect who can work those jobs? Absolutely. You have to already have money in order to be able to work things like that. It really hurt to talk to some of the other assistants and interns, who were talking about going out and doing this and that, and having to tell them “I can’t do that” because I couldn’t afford it. It sucked. And they didn’t really care or realize that sometimes.

At one place, [interning for a stylist and editor at a major fashion magazine,] I was interning part-time for free and working part-time at another job to pay rent. I ended up quitting that job, and when I told my boss, she was like, “Great, now you can come intern for us five days a week.” And I had to say no, because I can’t afford to work full-time for free!

There’s another element to all this. I’m Black, and at a lot of the places I’ve interned, I was the only [Black person], or there’s only a few people and everyone else is white. No one ever said or did anything explicitly racist, but there’s just this uncomfortable energy sometimes. Once, I had to go pick up some expensive watches from the Upper East Side for a shoot, and the people in the boutique, I could just tell they didn’t believe me. They didn’t believe I was who I said I was. I also have a pretty white-sounding name, so I can see on people’s faces that they’re surprised by what I look like when they meet me. It all contributes to this culture where, if you’re not rich and white, it’s a lot harder.

How has all this affected your desire to keep working in fashion? I want to keep working in the industry. Right now, it’s really difficult, but hopefully once things settle down, it will be easier to get back into it. But it’s hard to keep working for free. Last September, I met this guy who got me a little work on a shoot at Fashion Week that ended up in a big magazine, and I got my name in the credits in the magazine, which was great. But I didn’t get paid anything for it. There are just a lot of barriers to entry.

#fashion internships #internships #fashion blog #streetwear blog #black woman

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nyfacurrent · 4 years

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COVID-19 | A Tenant’s Guide into the Unknown

What you need to understand eviction, rent, and contracts in this time of uncertainty, courtesy of Tin-Fu (Tiffany) Tsai, Esq.

In response to the COVID-19 crisis, New York Foundation for the Arts (NYFA) and the Pro Bono Steering Committee of New York State Bar Association’s Entertainment, Arts and Sports Law Section (EASL) are collaborating to offer a series of free online workshops to support creative communities. This post draws insights from a webinar led by Tin-Fu (Tiffany) Tsai, Esq., Co-Chair of EASL’s Pro Bono Steering Committee, that addressed questions including: Can my landlord evict me? Do I need to pay rent? and What strategies can I use when negotiating with my landlord?

Please note that this article is a guide, and is for general informational purposes only. It does not provide any specific legal advice nor create an attorney-client relationship.

When Negotiating with Your Landlord

Before speaking, prepare and read the fine print.

Talk to your landlord early. Don’t just wait for them to reach out. Landlords will always prefer to keep a good tenant, so work with them.

Be creative: think and speak long-term when considering your options. Offer whatever you can, considering rent forbearance, rent reductions, and rent deferments as potential tools. You could offer to extend your lease to account for money lost during reduced or deferred rent.

Put the agreement in writing, for future reference and for the purpose of evidence if needed.

What follows is what you need to know specifically about eviction, rent, and contracts in order to have these conversations.

What You Need to Know: Eviction

If you have a lease, you can only be evicted if your lease is up, you owe rent, or you have seriously violated your lease. Your landlord cannot evict you without advance notice, which is 30 to 90 days based on the length of your lease term if the lease is up or 14 days for owed rent.

The landlord cannot evict you without going to the court first, which requires them to file a petition to start the court proceeding. The tenant has the right to ask the court to postpone the case for at least 14 days if they are not ready for it.

After the landlord gets a judgment, the landlord must give the Court Clerk a warrant of eviction. After the warrant of eviction is signed, the landlord needs to hire a Marshal, Sheriff, or Constable to take steps to evict the tenant. They will give you at least 14 more days to move. Moreover, the eviction must take place on a business day, during the day. One way to stop the eviction is by paying the full amount of rent due to the court before the eviction is executed.

In New York State, Governor’s Order No. 202.8 instituted a 90-day eviction moratorium. Courts stop accepting eviction filings but continue to address essential cases. Marshals/Sheriffs may not evict until further notice. Note that the stay was extended for another 60 days through mid-August and banned late fees for missed payments during the moratorium.

On the federal level, the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) Act imposes a 120-day moratorium on eviction filings and charging fees for non-payment of rent for most of the affordable housing properties. The landlord may not ask a tenant to vacate for any reason without a 30-day notice, which cannot be issued during the 120-day period.

Properties covered under the CARES Act include those participating in the federal assistant program or subject to federally backed mortgage loans. Check your lease documents to see if this includes your property.

What You Need to Know: Rent

Do I have to pay rent right now? The short answer is yes: the eviction moratoria do not excuse tenants’ duty to pay rent. After it ends, tenants who do not pay may still face financial and legal liabilities.

So far, Governor Cuomo’s actions suggest that he feels the eviction moratorium is sufficient in and of itself. There remain proposed rent cancellations such as the below, but none have been passed yet.

New York State Senate Bill 8125A, which was introduced on March 23, 2020, proposes cancellation of rents for 90 days for individuals and small businesses

The Rent and Mortgage Cancellation Act, which was introduced on April 17, 2020, proposes a nationwide cancellation of rents from March 13, 2020 and would last for a year. This is only for primary residences, no double-dipping on multiple properties.

Rent Freeze

New York City also provides rent freeze programs for seniors and tenants with disabilities who qualify to have the rent frozen at the current level and be exempt from future rent increases. All details on rent freeze are available on the Department of Finance’s site.

For market-rate tenants, landlords can ask tenants to pay more but should give up to 90 days notice if rent increases over 5%.

Late Fees

A rent payment is late only when received more than five days after it is due, and the landlord must provide written notice for late fees.

The amount of late fees is limited to $50 or 5% of the monthly rent, whichever is less. People who live in properties covered by the CARES Act cannot be charged late fees for 120 days starting from March 27, 2020.

What You Need to Know: Contracts

Force Majeure

A force majeure is an event that prevents someone from doing something that they agreed to do. This can include acts of nature, acts of man, and anything unforeseen, and is a contractual provision that is interpreted narrowly by New York courts.

Whether COVID-19 qualifies as a force majeure event is case-by-case and depends on the terms of your contract, and it must be proven that failure to perform is specifically caused by the pandemic.

Impossibility

Impossibility is a common law defense that applies to an unforeseeable non-performance of a contract, and means that something is objectively impossible. For example, if one’s lease for a building where a business operates demanded that they operate continuously, the mandated shutdown of businesses would make COVID-19 a trigger of impossibility in court.

Economic hardship is usually not enough by itself to invoke the doctrine of impossibility.

Constructive Eviction

Constructive Eviction is when a landlord doesn’t physically evict a tenant but takes action that substantially interferes with the tenant’s use and enjoyment of the premises. For example: failure to provide heat in the wintertime or barring tenants from the premises.

Most leases include provisions that require tenants to pay rent even when the landlord isn’t providing certain services. In order to prove that constructive eviction has taken place, tenants need to demonstrate a wrongful act on the landlord’s part.

About Tin-Fu (Tiffany) Tsai, Esq

Tsai has in-house and law firm experience both in the U.S. and Taiwan. Currently, she leads the legal department of Arris Properties Group LLC, a New York-based real estate development company, and advises on various transactional and litigation matters. A Co-Chair of the Entertainment, Arts and Sports Law (EASL) Section of the New York State Bar Association, Tsai is excited to combine her passions in art and law by helping professionals in the creative world navigate legal issues and use regulations to their advantage.

- Recap Authored by Kyle Lopez, REDC Fellow

This program was presented by NYFA Learning. Sign up here to receive NYFA News, a bi-weekly organizational email for upcoming awards, resources, and professional development. NYFA Learning also offers the monthly Con Edison Immigrant Artist Program (IAP) Newsletter if you are interested in opportunities, professional development, events, and tips and advice specific to immigrant artists.

If you need resources, please check our Emergency Grants page on NYFA’s website. We are updating it regularly as new funding comes in. You can find more articles on arts career topics by visiting the Business of Art section of NYFA.org.

Image: Rachel Granofsky (Fellow in Photography ’19), Reno (Guts), 2016, pigment print and painted wood frame

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easyfoodnetwork · 4 years

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For Restaurants Fighting to Stay Open, Landlords Prove a Major Hurdle

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Some landlords are offering monetary relief, while others are leaving things intentionally vague — possibly to leave the door open to future eviction

As soon as Ted Hopson, chef and co-owner of the Bellwether in Studio City, California, heard the governor talking about coronavirus in early March, he knew it would be bad for business. On March 16, Hopson sat down and emailed his landlord. Business was down, he wrote. “We are hoping you would be willing to work with us, maybe defer our rent to a later date, since we have zero income right now.” Two days later he got a response in the form of an official letter included in an email attachment. Essentially, the landlord said, Hopson wasn’t the first to contact him about this, and he didn’t have the financial means to change anything about the rental contract.

The Bellwether has stayed open for delivery and take-out but is operating at 10 to 15 percent of its normal business. “If we want to keep serving food, we have to make sure [our suppliers] sell us food,” Hopson says. The little bit of income coming in is going to pay food suppliers and the few remaining employees. “We didn’t send a [rent] check on April 1,” Hopson says. “We expected to hear something but it’s been crickets.” (Eater reached out to Hopson’s landlord but did not get a response by press time.)

By mid- to late-March most dine-in businesses closed throughout the country, and now most businesses that make their living from dine-in orders are struggling. Under normal circumstances, most restaurants try to keep rent expenses to less than 10 percent of gross sales. When sales are down, restaurants can adjust expenses like food costs or staffing, but rent — without help from the landlord — remains the same. Restaurants that temporarily closed due to COVID-19 were left scrambling to figure out how to pay April rent and beyond, resulting in sometimes tense negotiations between restaurant owners and their landlords, and elsewhere, calls for a national rent strike.

The Cheesecake Factory made headlines for announcing it would not be paying rent on any of its 294 locations in April. If a massive chain like the Cheesecake Factory — which took in $694 million in revenue in the last three months of 2019 alone — can’t pay rent, it’s hard to imagine how an independent restaurant can. Widespread business closures have led 22 million people to file for unemployment in the last four weeks alone. As a result, many states like Oregon, Utah, and California have put a moratorium on residential evictions and encouraged landlords to allow tenants to defer rent; in most cases, this does not apply to commercial businesses. San Francisco has also put a freeze on evictions for small- and medium-size businesses but, at the government level, orders like this seem to be an outlier. As a result, tenants and landlords are left to negotiate each case individually.

The Portland Hunt + Alpine Club in Portland, Maine closed on March 16, two days before the official order came from the government: The cocktail bar is only 2,500 square feet and was designed to fit roughly 60 customers close together; social distancing was out of the question. Staff was able to apply for unemployment before the remainder of the restaurant industry, says Andrew Volk, who owns the restaurant with his wife. In addition to other creditors and vendors, Volk reached out to his landlord, a local management company with 19 properties. “They said, ‘Let’s talk as the month progresses,’” Volk recalls. The day before rent was due, the management company sent a tenant-wide letter mentioning small business owners would receive resources through the CARES Act and that not paying rent shouldn’t be the first line of defense against reduced cash flow. “There wasn’t a demand of ‘pay rent,’ but the tone was very much ‘we’re not here to float you guys,” Volk says. He managed to pay April��s rent with money from the Paycheck Protection Program — albeit a few weeks late. The landlord was understanding of the delay. (Eater reached out to the bar’s landlord for comment but did not get a response by press time.)

But the tenor of conversations between landlords and their bar/restaurant tenants is changing as the effects of COVID-19 become more widespread. Katie Button, chef and owner of Cúrate and Button & Co. Bagels in Asheville, North Carolina is in a different position from most restaurateurs because she owns the space where her restaurants are located. But, she still rents office space from a company called Wicker Park Property Management (WPPM). In March, she reached out to WPPM to ask for rent relief. “The response we received has been cold and unhelpful,” she posted on Instagram on April 2. Vendors, insurance, and other businesses to which Button owed money were all “willing to defer payments except for WPPM,” she shared. Button saw a flood of support from the community as well as posts from other restaurateurs who were having similar experiences with their landlords. Within a few days, she was contacted by WPPM, who said they were willing to work with her after all.

Though mortgage and rent payments represented 5 percent of the restaurant group’s net revenue in 2019, its profit margins are only somewhere between 5 and 10 percent. “Any increase in fixed costs as a percentage of revenue will put our business in jeopardy,” Button explained to Eater. With no income coming in, the only way to keep the business alive is to somehow find a way to lessen those fixed costs.

Luckily for Button, on April 9, WPPM came up with a plan for its restaurant tenants: total rent abatement for May, and in June, WPPM would allow each tenant’s security deposit to cover their rents — with the understanding that the latter would eventually be repaid. (Eater reached out to WPPM for comment but did not get a response by press time.)

“The conversations happening today are very different from the conversations from two weeks ago,” says Chad Mackay, CEO of Fire & Vine Hospitality, which runs 12 restaurants in Washington and Oregon. “There’s now a recognition that this is everywhere. It’s not just us deciding we aren’t going to pay April rent.”

Particularly generous landlords might abate rent altogether or give a rent reduction, knowing they will never be repaid in full. Some landlords are choosing to simply not respond, leaving owners to figure out whether or not to pay rent. If the businesses don’t pay rent, these landlords are leaving themselves the option of evicting those tenants later on.

Many other landlords are simply offering momentary relief. Nick Cho, founder of Wrecking Ball Coffee, says all three of his landlords gave him a variation of “pay 50 percent now with the balance due either next year” or at “some unknown future date,” as one landlord wrote in an email Cho shared with Eater. “The fundamental idea is that eventually we will pay 100 percent of our rent,” Cho says. Landlords may not get paid now, but eventually they’ll be made whole.

“There’s going to be heroes and villains that come out of this,” says Mackay. “Some landlords are going to be terrible. When this is all over, they may not have us as a tenant,” he says, referring to the restaurant industry as a whole. Many restaurant owners are counting on the awareness that there will be few new businesses to make potential tenants when the threat of coronavirus is over. “Landlords need to be willing to make sacrifices that lead to a temporary loss of revenue because they’re playing the long game and want to make sure they have tenants,” says Button. Better a 50 percent loss of income now than no rental income at all for months at a time.

Many landlords are suggesting that business owners get loans through the Small Business Administration’s Paycheck Protection Program (part of the CARES Act), or other state-level funds for small businesses and pay rent that way. Unfortunately the PPP and many similar loan programs are tailored toward keeping people off unemployment, and appear to be a particularly bad fit for restaurants. On April 16, the PPP ran out of funds and is no longer accepting new applications. For those restaurants who applied and were approved in time, the loan can be forgiven in total, but that will only be done if all employees are kept on payroll for eight weeks following loan disbursement. “It is anticipated that not more than 25 percent of the forgiven amount may be for non-payroll costs,” a public affairs officer with the SBA says.

“Restaurants shoot for 30 percent payroll costs,” says Volk. “The PPP doesn’t leave enough money for the majority of our operating costs,” things like utilities, insurance, and — of course — rent that restaurants are required to keep paying even when closed. (Tips further complicate the payroll question since restaurants, of course, pay only a small percentage of front-of-house staff wages.) And, importantly, what happens to that loan forgiveness if he can’t hire back his full staff? Restaurant owners have endless questions about how these programs will work for them and, so far, the SBA and government have given few answers.

Button, like most restaurateurs, has applied for PPP and is planning to take it despite not knowing how helpful it will be. “You’re having to take a leap into the air, having no idea if there’s going to be a safety net to catch you and no idea if the PPP program in the end is going to mess you up or screw you over. But you have to do it because if you don’t have those funds, you’re done,” Button says.

“Our hope is that we can not pay rent until we get stable and start paying as soon as that happens,” Hopson says. “We hope that [our landlord] will work with us. It’s either that or he’s suing us.” The restaurant is doing a little delivery business and working with World Central Kitchen to provide free meals for families in need. “We’re here and that’s good, but what if one of the people who comes to pick up is sick and we get sick?” Hopson conjectures. “Then this stops, and if it stops, there’s no chance of getting it going again.” Hopson knows there’s a chance he and his restaurant will be evicted for non-payment when this is all over. “But I have a million other things to worry about between now and then.”

Tove Danovich is a writer based in Portland, Oregon.

from Eater - All https://ift.tt/2xBO4Q1 https://ift.tt/2xLKqms

Shutterstock

Some landlords are offering monetary relief, while others are leaving things intentionally vague — possibly to leave the door open to future eviction

The Portland Hunt + Alpine Club in Portland, Maine closed on March 16, two days before the official order came from the government: The cocktail bar is only 2,500 square feet and was designed to fit roughly 60 customers close together; social distancing was out of the question. Staff was able to apply for unemployment before the remainder of the restaurant industry, says Andrew Volk, who owns the restaurant with his wife. In addition to other creditors and vendors, Volk reached out to his landlord, a local management company with 19 properties. “They said, ‘Let’s talk as the month progresses,’” Volk recalls. The day before rent was due, the management company sent a tenant-wide letter mentioning small business owners would receive resources through the CARES Act and that not paying rent shouldn’t be the first line of defense against reduced cash flow. “There wasn’t a demand of ‘pay rent,’ but the tone was very much ‘we’re not here to float you guys,” Volk says. He managed to pay April’s rent with money from the Paycheck Protection Program — albeit a few weeks late. The landlord was understanding of the delay. (Eater reached out to the bar’s landlord for comment but did not get a response by press time.)

Tove Danovich is a writer based in Portland, Oregon.

from Eater - All https://ift.tt/2xBO4Q1 via Blogger https://ift.tt/2XSXBwB

#Blogger #cooking #Eater #food #recipes

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ibilenews · 4 years

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'Nothing left': Venezuelans head home amid coronavirus pandemic

Bogota, Colombia - Richard de Jesus walked along a highway leading out of Colombia's capital city, along with his pregnant wife. They carried their belongings on a small baby stroller covered by a sheet of cardboard that read: "We are going back to Venezuela … any help you can give us will be a great blessing."

The couple said they had been on the road for five days, travelling about 400km (248 miles) from Cali, where they started their journey. They had more than 600km (373 miles) to go before reaching the Colombian-Venezuelan border.

"There is nothing left for us to do here" said de Jesus, a Venezuelan migrant who had been living in Cali for the past year selling sweets on buses. A three-week lockdown imposed by Colombia to slow the spread of the coronavirus left him without any customers, and with no cash to spare.

"We were going to be evicted from our apartment," he said. "What could I offer my wife and child if we stayed?"

Thousands of Venezuelan migrants who work in the informal economy have lost their jobs - and in some cases been evicted from their homes - as Colombia and other nearby countries impose strict social distancing measures.

With no other options, some are starting to make the journey back to Venezuela on foot or rides from cargo trucks as their savings give out and they find no other options to return to Venezuela. Public transport between cities has been shut down in Colombia due to the coronavirus lockdown.

'Tough road ahead'

The groups of Venezuelans now trudging along Colombia's roads underscore how vulnerable migrant workers have become during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Those heading home must now cross through several humid tropical valleys, a steep canyon and a freezing plateau, located 4,000m above sea level, to make it to the Venezuelan border.

"We realise that there's a tough road ahead," said Christian Garcia, a construction worker who lost his job as the lockdown began, who was walking towards his hometown of San Cristobal in Venezuela. "But in Venezuela, we will not have to pay rent."

Alba Pereira, a humanitarian worker who runs a soup kitchen for migrants in the city of Bucaramanga - one of the main stops on route to the Venezuelan border - said that last week, at least 400 migrants and refugees had slept in a local park, begging authorities to get them buses to cover the most difficult leg of the journey.

Colombia's national immigration agency said that early on Saturday more than 500 Venezuelans in Bucaramanga were loaded on "at least 20 buses" provided by the government that took them through the 4,000m high Berlin Plateau and down into the steamy border town of Cucuta, where they were escorted by police into Venezuela.

But migrants who return to Venezuela will not have it easy when they get home. Nicolas Maduro's government has also imposed a national lockdown, after reporting more than 150 cases of COVID-19. That number could quickly increase thanks to economic and political crises that have devastated the country for years.

Basic necessities like soap are out of reach for many Venezuelans. Some do not have water at home to wash their hands. According to a study conducted last year by the World Food Programme, four out of 10 homes in Venezuela suffered from daily water cuts. The public health system is short of doctors and nurses, as thousands have left the country due to low salaries. Food distribution has been hampered by severe shortages of gasoline.

Nevertheless, Pereira estimates that at least another 3,500 migrants are on their way to Venezuela this week. And those numbers could grow, she said.

"People are being evicted and are losing their income," Pereira said. "There will be a steady flow of people coming through."

'More help'

More than 4.7 million people have left Venezuela since 2015, according to the United Nations, with many fleeing poverty, food and medicine shortages, crime, hyperinflation and political and economic crises.

About a third of these migrants and refugees settled in Colombia, with large numbers also in Peru, Ecuador and Chile.

Approximately 60 percent of Venezuelans living in Colombia have no work visas or legal resident status, which makes them particularly vulnerable to the novel coronavirus.

Hugh Aprile, the Colombia director for Mercy Corps, said humanitarian groups working in the country were trying to help these undocumented workers by ramping up cash distribution programmes.

Mercy Corps, Save the Children, the International Rescue Committee and World Vision are currently prepared to provide debit cards to 100,000 Venezuelans through the end of the year, Aprile said. He added that his organisation was doubling payments this month to help migrants and refugees cope with the crisis.

"It's going to be a difficult time for everyone working in the informal economy" Aprile said. "Migrant populations are particularly vulnerable because they are in temporary housing situations that demand they make money in short cycles."

Colombia's government last week revealed a six-point plan for the Venezuelan migrant population that included guaranteeing access to health services and distributing food to about 800,000 migrants in 40 municipalities.

But there is no specific plan to help those facing eviction from their homes. In Bogota, which is home to more than 400,000 Venezuelan migrants, officials have fined tenants who evict vulnerable people. But evictions continue to happen according to community leaders, and the mayor said on Thursday that there was no money to help migrants pay for rent.

"We need more support from the national government," Bogota mayor Claudia Lopez said. "We already cover the health and educational expenses of thousands of migrants. We help them with daycare, with jobs. I'm sorry but we cannot pay their rent."

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brajeshupadhyay · 4 years

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Bankers are rarely popular, attracting scorn and envy in equal measure. But lately, bank shares have acquired a new fan base. The private investor clients of platforms such as Hargreaves Lansdown have been snapping up these stocks, persuaded that they are set to recover from their current lows. In particular, they hope that Lloyds shares will sparkle when a new chief executive takes over from António Horta-Osório, who will be standing down next year. Investors hope that Lloyds shares will sparkle when a new chief executive takes over from António Horta-Osório (pictured right) , who will be standing down next year However, it is hard to see how any of the banks can rapidly or easily break free from pandemic-induced adversity. Inflation is subdued and interest rates are close to zero, conditions that erode bank profit margins. A No Deal Brexit represents another threat to revenues. Moreover, the Government has compelled the banks to protect businesses and consumers from the pandemic’s wrecking ball. Some analysts say that they have been treated almost like nationalised entities, although the Treasury now only has a stake in RBS as the Government holding in Lloyds has been sold. Almost a million companies have received bank loans under Coronavirus support schemes. The Government guarantees part of this lending, but some of the recipients would not under normal circumstances have been seen as a reasonable credit risk. Close to two million homebuyers are benefiting from mortgage holidays, and people have been allowed temporarily to freeze their credit card and other repayments. In the spring, banks were also compelled by the Government to suspend £8billion in dividend payouts. This move provoked anger among investors in Asia, HSBC’s most profitable area of operation. HSBC also controversially backed the Chinese regime’s new security laws covering Hong Kong, despite opposition from both the UK and American governments. In light of such problems, its poor performance is of little wonder. Its shares stand at 378p, lower than in 2009 at the nadir of the global financial crisis. Donald Trump is contemplating a crackdown on Hong Kong that would cause more pain for HSBC and Standard Chartered, which likewise makes most of its money in Asia. Other bank shares have also been left behind in the bounce back that followed the March market rout. Barclays has fared a little better, however, because its investment banking arm has been involved in £3.3billion worth of fundraising drives for major firms. RBS shares have been hard hit since lockdown, but longer term, there are high hopes for its new chief executive, Alison Rose. Russ Mould of AJ Bell sums it up: ‘The banks have horribly underperformed.’ He contends that the pressures will not lessen, since interest rates may turn negative, and regulators are most unlikely to slacken surveillance of the industry. Challenger banks will also be seizing business from the major High Street names. In the worst-case scenario, Mould fears that the UK sector could face the same dispiriting fate as the Japanese banks, whose share prices remain near their 1989 levels. Of course, the big banks are trying to respond. Lloyds, the owner of Halifax and Bank of Scotland, is Britain’s largest mortgage lender. This leaves it exposed to a house price downturn. But it has a joint venture with Schroders which could be the perfect platform for a major push into wealth management. This type of diversification may now be possible, given that the bank’s £22billion PPI mis-selling debacle appears finally to have been resolved. It has to be acknowledged that pre-lockdown, Lloyds and the other banks were in a far more solid financial state than before the global financial crisis of 2008. Investors pursuing bank shares may also suspect, like Andy Haldane, the Bank of England’s chief economist, that the recession will be V-shaped, with a sharp descent, then a swift recovery. Yet even if recovery turns out to be rapid, analysts point out that the banks would still be left with the bad debts of the companies that have failed in past weeks. As a result of such factors, Mould does not see bank shares as a long-term hold. ‘They are stocks to rent and trade, for those who regularly monitor their holdings.’ He adds that it is possible that banks could announce a dividend this year, payable in 2021. Anyone who leaves stock selection decisions to the professionals may be relieved to learn that global equity managers have been retreating from bank stocks, shunning HSBC in particular, according to Copley Fund Research. But bank shares still make up as much as 17 per cent of the portfolios of some well-known funds. Morningstar data shows that Schroder Recovery, St James’s Place UK Growth and Jupiter UK Alpha hold 15-16 per cent. Jason Hollands of Bestinvest explains that some managers bought these holdings post-election when it seemed the Government’s majority would help secure a decent Brexit deal and facilitate the levelling up of Britain. Bank shares would be boosted if such goals are met, but the magnitude of the challenge is now so huge that investors need not only patience but also lots of luck. Popular shares – Ocado Ocado is one of the biggest risers in the FTSE 350 since the Covid-19 pandemic struck. The online supermarket’s shares have jumped nearly 90pc since late February as demand for deliveries soared. Investors will be looking for signs of further progress when it reports half-year results on Tuesday after cheering the City with impressive 40 per cent revenue growth during lockdown. Its website was so popular it introduced virtual queuing, paused the app and prioritised loyal and vulnerable customers. Overall half-year sales growth is expected to be around 27 per cent, according to Peel Hunt. Next week investors will get the first opportunity to see how that sales growth translates into profit. Costs will rise because of the need to accelerate the building of warehouse capacity, buy vans and employ more drivers. But some money will be saved on marketing, which is no longer needed as families flock to Ocado’s website, and reduced offers in lockdown will help margins. The City will also look for an update on the Marks & Spencer deal, which launches in September, after claims this week that new customers could be barred from joining by the ongoing capacity constraints. Some links in this article may be affiliate links. If you click on them we may earn a small commission. That helps us fund This Is Money, and keep it free to use. We do not write articles to promote products. We do not allow any commercial relationship to affect our editorial independence. The post INVESTMENT EXTRA: Can investing in banks make you a tuppence or two? appeared first on Shri Times.

http://sansaartimes.blogspot.com/2020/07/investment-extra-can-investing-in-banks.html

#SEO #Local SEO training #daily news paper #daily news india #daily news newspaper #technology news a

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alamorcd · 3 years

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The POLAR FREEZE HIT! We are Seniors, in our 80s My husband has Cancer and I am disabled. We were fine at the start of the BIG Freeze then......🥶🥶the electricity was off for hours. Our home went down to 45 degrees inside. We bundled up. The electricity went on and off..... ❄️❄️It snowed and sleeted. We ate what we had in our pantry..... 💦💦💦 then our water pipes gave in and our neighbor had to come check our well pump. Pipes were broken out there too.....OH My! 🥶🥶🥶 When will it end‼️‼️ 🥶🥶🥶 Our little mobile home is devastated with broken pipes, we have electricity now but our heating system is just blowing cold air...... 💨💨💨 We are nearly out of food.....our neighbor went to HEB and the shelves are empty.....OH! WHEN WILL IT END??? ❤️ 🥶 💦 💨 ⚠️We have been communicating with our 159 Senior Families during this Polar Freeze and the above was repeated to us in so MANY levels of hardship and need. When you are elderly, have a chronic illness and live marginally on a limited income.......THIS POLAR FREEZE has a devastating effect!!! Our Seniors needed help before the FREEZE because of COVID but NOW..... things are even worse. 💨 💦 ❤️ 💢Please give now!!! We have $1000 to begin our POLAR FREEZE SENIOR RELIEF FUND but that is only a drop from a frozen faucet..... OUR Seniors need you! ❤️❤️Please give now at www.alamorcd.org or send in a check to Alamo RCD Area Inc to the address in our bio. ❤️ 🥶 ❤️❤️With your help we can assist many Seniors as they struggle to protect themselves from the Pandemic AND survive the Polar Freeze. 💦 💨 ❤️ #waterlandyou, #repairs #utilities #rent #waterpipes #heater #waterwell #heating #medicines #aging #aginginplace #homerepairs #giving #helpingothers https://www.instagram.com/p/CLfedLfF4t5/?igshid=1hs9ab64etj5l

#waterlandyou #repairs #utilities #rent #waterpipes #heater #waterwell #heating #medicines #aging #aginginplace #homerepairs #giving #helpingothers

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global-news-station · 4 years

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LONDON: Consumers in difficulties due to the COVID-19 pandemic will have more time to ask for a temporary freeze on their credit card payments, Britain’s Financial Conduct Authority said on Wednesday.

Measures introduced in April to offer temporary relief to customers with credit cards and interest-free bank overdrafts were due to end this month.

The FCA said that customers yet to request a payment freeze or an arranged interest-free overdraft of up to 500 pounds, will have until Oct. 31 to apply.

“For those who are now in a position to restart payments, it will be in their best interests to do so. But for those who still need it, the package we are confirming today ensures there is help and further support,” said Christopher Woolard, the FCA’s interim chief executive.

Firms should contact customers coming to the end of a first payment freeze to find out if they can resume payments – and if so, agree a plan on how the missed payments could be repaid, the watchdog said.

The FCA also said on Wednesday that temporary curbs on how banks charge for overdrafts during the pandemic would not be extended.

“Firms that do choose to increase their charges from this temporary level should give customers impacted by coronavirus an opportunity to seek extra support before any changes take effect,” the FCA said.

Wednesday’s statement does not apply to other forms of consumer credit including motor finance, payday loans, pawnbroking, rent-to-own and buy-now pay-later products whose COVID-19 related measures will be updated soon, the FCA said.

The post Britain extends pandemic credit card relief appeared first on ARY NEWS.

https://ift.tt/2ZpWaVD

#World News

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bettydgunter90 · 4 years

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The Effects of COVID-19 for Landlords

The novel coronavirus has rocked economies across the globe. Stay-at-home orders have affected businesses and millions of Americans’ jobs, with projections that the unemployment rate could be nearing the 15% mark — the highest level since 1940. For real estate investors and landlords this has a very real impact — businesses and residential tenants may have trouble paying rent, and sadly, many retailers won’t be able to sustain the effects of the pandemic.

Effects on Commercial Property

Changes in work style

Those who previously commuted to an office everyday have been asked to work remotely. With many companies realizing their employees can complete their jobs at home — and employees enjoying doing so — it may change the future of the office job. Now that they have seen remote working in action, businesses may be looking to reduce overhead by limiting those who physically come into the office. This may be especially true for companies that have suffered a loss as the economy tanked.

Discounted properties available

There’s good news for investors in all this. Owners who may have been collecting only a portion of rents due to their tenants lost sales may be ready to sell. There could be a fire sale on commercial properties. But, snatching up these retail and office spaces doesn’t come without risk. It may take months — or years — for the tenants you inherit in the sale to regain financial stability. You should be prepared for not all tenants to be able to pay the full amount of rent for some time or be willing to evict them.

Communication is key

For current commercial property managers and owners, be proactive. Put together a plan with your tenants, but make sure you have your lawyer involved and get everything in writing. It is also a good idea to review your existing loan documents — some lenders require that you get their permission prior to amending leases. You would be prudent to review a tenant’s financial statements in order to prove the need for rent relief. You may also wish to draw up an amendment in which the tenant agrees to abide by guidelines from the Center for Disease Control (CDC) and indemnifying yourself from liability related to COVID-19 in connection with the premises or tenant’s use.

Effects on Residential Property

Increase in foreclosures

As many homeowners lose their jobs, are furloughed, or experience a reduction of hours for several months, they may be unable to pay their mortgage payments and dip into savings. Considering the amount of underfunded emergency savings in the United States, these homeowners may find themselves in foreclosure. For investors, this provides an opportunity to find great discounts on properties.

Tenants may be unable to pay rent

According to previous research by Clever, Americans were already $14 trillion in debt before COVID-19 swept across the nation. On March 31, 2020, Clever surveyed 1000 Americans and found that almost half of renters surveyed had less than $500 saved for emergencies prior to the pandemic. Half never had an emergency fund to begin with or have already spent it, leaving them concerned about how they will pay rent in the near future.

While some protections — like a moratorium on evictions — are offered via the recently passed CARES Act, they generally only cover properties that carry a federal mortgage (think Fannie Mae, Freddie Mac, or FHA). This covers about 12% of single-family rental properties and about half of all multifamily properties. However, the protections aren’t simple — they’re laid out in a 350-page document — and can be tricky to apply. It may be difficult for renters to know what type of mortgage their landlords hold and if the moratorium applies.

Work with tenants

As landlords, you will be best served by working with your tenants. This is an unprecedented circumstance and your tenants may be stretched too thin through no fault of their own. While they may have been able to float a month or so of no income because of savings or their federal stimulus check, things may begin to get more dire.

You can help your tenants by pointing them in the direction of available resources, like unemployment or other relief. As a last resort, you may consider offering a payment plan — if they can only pay half of next month’s rent, divide the shortfall by the remaining number of months on their lease. Be sure to put everything in writing if you make any changes or addendums to the lease.

Strategize your next move

If you’re carrying too much debt on your investment properties and lack of rent coming in is making things too stressful, you might consider offloading some of your properties to increase your cash on hand. Cash is king during a recession, so you can weather the storm without being forced to sell (or foreclose) properties in your portfolio.

Consider selling your properties with the least amount of cashflow and listing with a discount real estate agent to keep more of your profit. Some experts expect the market to temporarily slow down, which would be an opportunity for investors looking for deals, so offloading property now could yield success.

Of course, property owners will want to crunch the numbers with a rental property calculator to make sure selling is the right move. You’ll want to hold onto property that’s recession proof, i.e., property where you aren’t experiencing vacancies or rent freezes during the pandemic.

The post The Effects of COVID-19 for Landlords appeared first on Think Realty | A Real Estate of Mind.

from Real Estate Tips https://thinkrealty.com/effects-covid-19-landlords/

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terribleco · 4 years

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RBL Spot Interview

DIY skateparks have exploded in popularity over the last 10 years. I'm unsure whether it's a response to the growing number of people using skateparks, as people look for a more secluded spot to skate, or whether it's a natural extension of the creativity and freedom of skateboarding - but DIY parks have become a staple part of modern skateboarding. One spot which is thriving in this area is the RBL Spot, at an undisclosed location in Essex. The spot has been growing organically with an impressive level of professional finish and a great selection of obstacles to skate. I spoke to Will, who heads up the effort for the DIY spot, about how it came about, and how building there got him into the middle of a manhunt straight out of Police Interceptors.

Can you introduce yourself and tell me how long you've been skating for? My name is Will. I started skateboarding in summer of ‘01, aged about 10-11.

What inspired you to start building the RBL Spot? I've wanted to make a street style spot for a while. I tried 6 months before in an underpass which is lit up all night, but had some trouble with the graffiti writers who captured the space first. When I found this spot, I knew it was perfect. It was a BMX spot before, but as they built it out of wood, it all got burnt down by local chav kids - a constant plague to the spot.

What does RBL stand for? RBL means “rubble”. If you follow the hashtag #rubblespot back, you can see the earlier wooden BMX park and the concrete bits they had on the building before it was burnt and then knocked down. It used to be a good spot for graffiti and urban exploration, so the name was pretty set, I just gave it a slight rework.

What was on the site of the RBL Spot before you moved in to build the DIY park and before the BMX spot? It was a sport and social club, with tennis courts, football and bowls pitches. The red tile areas of the spot are where the shower rooms used to be. It had a large function room you could rent out for parties and events. Some of the skaters remember playing football there when they were really young. The club was subject to arson in 2013, and then I believe the building was demolished in 2015.

Did you set out to build the spot because of a lack of decent skateparks nearby, or because you were after something a skatepark can't offer? We have some OK parks locally, but there's something special about DIY spots: a sort of no rules freedom. There are not many DIY's that are all street. We're 20 miles away from Urbside, who have the transition covered! Scooters are a real issue in my local park: It's very small, and I've grown quite tired of waiting for the council and their 2 million pound lottery grant funded upgrade. I've been trying to work with them and local police on this for the last 18 months.

Which famous spots did you take inspiration from when building obstacles at the spot? As far as the inspiration for the obstacles, layout etc - it's all from my love of plaza skating. Early 00s street was the best! Spots like Love Park, Carlsbad and Pier 7 are all hugely influential which is pretty obvious! Also 4 months before we started building, I visited Barcelona. Seeing the locals at Sants inspired me: their style, consistency and love for their spot.

Are there any other DIY parks out there that you use as an ideal benchmark for what you would like RBL to become? I really like the Bodila Project in Barcelona, the guys are super helpful and friendly too. Clemente DIY in Grand Rapids, Michigan is awesome too: kinda raw East Coast vibes. I love all the spots with a real sense of community, which is a big part of what I'm trying to create here.

You mentioned the chavs being a plague on the spot - Has anything super sketchy happened to you down at the spot whilst building or skating? Funny you should mention the chavs – I caught two of them just after the shed at the spot was kicked in for the 2nd time, and one of them ran away without his bike. I kept it hostage for a few hours until he went and got his Mum and Dad to scout it out for him.

By far the most memorable sketchy incident happened on a Sunday night in January. I'd been down there building on my own all day, and except for this crew of mosher kids who hang about near the spot, I'd seen no-one all day. I'm finishing a zoot, waiting to do the final pass on this triangle patch of concrete, when I hear a screech of a car from the top of the hill, and the loudest, clearest voice shouts out “freeze, put your hands up!”. I grab my phone, thinking 'Oh shit, this could be some good content!'. Next thing I know, there's loads of blue lights, sirens, and loud chatter from the road. More old bill turned up, and the whole thing was looking pretty heavy, so I started packing my shit up.

One of the cars started driving down real slow past me, lights on. They stopped at the bottom of the hill, and they got out with a fucking huge dog, with lights shining over towards me and across the spot. They slowly walked towards where the moshers throw bricks and shit.

At this point, I thought "Fuck this, I'm out - I'm not getting caught up in this and bringing attention to the spot". Touch wood: we have had no trouble from the police, local residents or businesses yet. So I grabbed my stuff and started waddling down the road between a load of police at the top and the parked, flashing police car at the bottom. When I say stuff, I mean a huge backpack, 2 tote bags, a tripod with a video light still on it, a shovel and a sledgehammer.

FUCKING HELL. I thought you were gonna say the worst thing you encountered was some kids vandalising the spot but that's much crazier than I expected. How I didn't get stopped I don't know, and I never got to the bottom of what happened!

The spot seems like a real community effort. How many other people have helped with the build? 4 of us started it, but I’ve had probably 20 other people help mix cement, or donate some money on the GoFund. Myself, Wes, Sam, Mark, Daryl (our buddy who came up from London for the build days, bless him), then also big shout outs to Rob and Matt who also helped on the big builds. It's awesome, as Mark and I skated Rob & Matt's DIY warehouse spot in Brentwood about 10 years ago, and now it's gone full circle.

How has the lockdown from COVID-19 affected the build? Dramatically. For starters, Wickes are not selling sand and cement as they're not essential items, so getting materials has been a mission. Fortunately a small family-run builders merchant got me sorted. With the local skateparks officially taped off and police monitoring them, we've had more skaters visit, in small groups luckily. Downside of this is the ground is getting more worn day by day! We've also had more non-skater visitors than ever, with the residents of the local houses nearby all coming over to take a look, and they've all been very supportive when I've spoken to them. I've got to know one guy who heads down there every morning to work out; it's great to see the space being used by everyone.

What have you got planned for the spot in the future? Currently in build is a new 7 stair with a low, long round handrail, and importantly, a BBQ. I've got plans to finish tidying the last bit of the edge and bank down to the lower panel. I'd like to add a long flatbar in the side section. And finally I'd like to extend and join the far end with a bank, making the whole layout a complete L shape, which is a lot of work! We really need to work on a lot of the holes in the floor too, and also dig away at the sides. The more you dig, the more room you have to skate but 95% of the digging has ended being by me! We really need to borrow a digger from the site opposite.

What's the sickest trick to go down at the spot so far? For me, seeing Neil Smith shred it up the other week. He did a nollie heelflip down the gap in a line and nollie heelflip fs crook on the little ledge. Not enough from our lot: we spent more time building than skating last summer, so hopefully this year we’ll enjoy skating it more. This has gotta be the worst one:

View this post on Instagram

A post shared by @hallofmeat on Oct 5, 2019 at 11:33am PDT

Other than Neil Smith and Thrasher's Hall Of Meat, have you had many high profile skaters visit the spot, or show interest in it? Nah. Smithy is pretty local. The future of the spot is pretty uncertain so we keep it pretty low key. If you know, you know. But obviously I’d love to see people come shred it up.

What advice would you give to anyone looking to start a DIY spot? Pick the right spot. Never stop researching, stuff like mix designs, tools, techniques – all knowledge is good. Preparation is everything, it's better to take two days doing it really well than rushing it in 1 and having to fix it half a year later. Invite trustworthy people, and be prepared for everyone to slate what you've built. Everyone has ideas but not many will put the time, money, effort, blood, sweat and tears in!

Anyone you want to thank? @mr_radman for teaching me everything, all the support and encouragement to build the rubble spot, and the many hours he spends behind the camera capturing us all. @wjstringer for all the help and support from day 1, likewise @meerington_ for the many hours of help and all the sick sessions we've had skating recently. Shouts to @kit1 and @redbulluk for showing support for me last year and sending over a pallet of materials.

Big up everyone who's donated and helped out, and come along for a session. Let's hope we can have a few more soon!

#interview #skatepark situation

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instantdeerlover · 4 years

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For Restaurants Fighting to Stay Open, Landlords Prove a Major Hurdle added to Google Docs

For Restaurants Fighting to Stay Open, Landlords Prove a Major Hurdle

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Some landlords are offering monetary relief, while others are leaving things intentionally vague — possibly to leave the door open to future eviction

The Portland Hunt + Alpine Club in Portland, Maine closed on March 16, two days before the official order came from the government: The cocktail bar is only 2,500 square feet and was designed to fit roughly 60 customers close together; social distancing was out of the question. Staff was able to apply for unemployment before the remainder of the restaurant industry, says Andrew Volk, who owns the restaurant with his wife. In addition to other creditors and vendors, Volk reached out to his landlord, a local management company with 19 properties. “They said, ‘Let’s talk as the month progresses,’” Volk recalls. The day before rent was due, the management company sent a tenant-wide letter mentioning small business owners would receive resources through the CARES Act and that not paying rent shouldn’t be the first line of defense against reduced cash flow. “There wasn’t a demand of ‘pay rent,’ but the tone was very much ‘we’re not here to float you guys,” Volk says. He managed to pay April’s rent with money from the Paycheck Protection Program — albeit a few weeks late. The landlord was understanding of the delay. (Eater reached out to the bar’s landlord for comment but did not get a response by press time.)

Tove Danovich is a writer based in Portland, Oregon.

via Eater - All https://www.eater.com/2020/4/21/21228316/restaurants-cant-pay-rent-fighting-landlords-lease-coronavirus-covid-19

Created April 21, 2020 at 10:09PM /huong sen View Google Doc Nhà hàng Hương Sen chuyên buffet hải sản cao cấp✅ Tổ chức tiệc cưới✅ Hội nghị, hội thảo✅ Tiệc lưu động✅ Sự kiện mang tầm cỡ quốc gia 52 Phố Miếu Đầm, Mễ Trì, Nam Từ Liêm, Hà Nội http://huongsen.vn/ 0904988999 http://huongsen.vn/to-chuc-tiec-hoi-nghi/ https://drive.google.com/drive/folders/1xa6sRugRZk4MDSyctcqusGYBv1lXYkrF

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preciousmetals0 · 4 years

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Powell Stimulates Nonstop; When Voltron Meets Hoth

Powell Stimulates Nonstop; When Voltron Meets Hoth:

The Most Stimulating Man in the World

You want stimulus?

You can’t handle all the stimulus the Federal Reserve is pumping out right now.

In a move that almost lifted the markets into positive territory this morning, Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell announced unlimited stimulus — yes, unlimited.

“Aggressive effort must be taken across the public and private sectors to limit the losses to jobs and income and to promote a swift recovery once the disruptions abate,” the Fed said in a statement.

I think it’s safe to say that Jerome Powell is the most stimulating man in the world right now. I’m glad at least someone in Washington is taking COVID-19 seriously. But what are the details?

As part of its effort to save the U.S. economy, the Fed will purchase an unlimited amount of mortgage-backed securities and Treasurys, offer $300 billion in new lending programs and set up three new emergency lending programs:

The Primary Market Corporate Credit Facility will issue new bonds and loans.

The Secondary Market Corporate Credit Facility will keep liquidity in corporate bonds.

The Term Asset-Backed Securities Loan Facility will allow securities backed by auto loans, credit card loans, student loans and Small Business Administration loans.

The Fed even announced that it would expand its Money Market Mutual Fund Liquidity Facility to aid local governments and municipalities.

That’s a lot to take in, so here’s the short story: Debt and credit, for both the government and businesses, is all a-fluster … and the Fed set up a few groups to handle the $*%# show.

The Takeaway:

It certainly seems like the Federal Reserve covered all its bases. This level of action is unprecedented — even in the midst of the 2008 financial crisis. I mean, unlimited stimulus? It’s unheard of.

So why, then, did stocks go from green to red once the market officially opened?

Because, while the Fed clearly has its head in the game and understands the severity of the problem, lawmakers do not.

The thing is, you can throw money at Wall Street all day long, but that only treats the problem’s symptoms. And investors know one crucial thing that Washington has yet to grasp: Viruses don’t care about money.

Yes, shoring up businesses is important. However, if consumers can’t leave their homes, go to work or take care of themselves in the midst of this crisis … what good is that money?

Perhaps a better way to put it is this: If the stimulus is to help cover missed rents, late mortgage payments, late bills, et cetera, for how long is this money good?

Easing up on the stay-at-home advice from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention won’t fix this problem. In fact, it may make things much worse.

We need a solid plan to test, quarantine and treat COVID-19 sufferers. We need solid support for regular Americans … the average Joe, if you will … the people who make the U.S. economy turn.

When Washington finally pulls its head out of the partisan sand pit…

When it finally passes legislation that treats the COVID-19 problem and not the symptoms…

When it reassures people that it has their best interests at heart, and not corporate bailouts…

Only then will the markets finally begin to find a bottom. Until that day, we must take matters into our own hands.

Remember this: It’s you, me and the average Joe next to you keeping America ticking forward to a better future.

If Washington won’t look out for the guy on the street, you can bet that Great Stuff does. We won’t leave you out on your own.

As we speak, the groundwork for America’s future is being laid — petty partisan politics aside. In fact, Banyan Hill expert Paul Mampilly has been screaming about a “rebuilt America” for weeks now, even in the midst of this volatility.

Paul believes America will emerge from the coronavirus stronger than ever … no matter how long it takes. And the mega trends that he follows (such as 5G and precision medicine) won’t die to market panic.

Click here to learn about Paul Mampilly’s vision for a new, rebuilt United States — America 2.0.

The Good: Testing … 1, 2, 3?

In order to treat COVID-19, you have to know who has it. And that means testing. Lots and lots of testing. But tests can take hours or even days at overworked labs, exacerbating the problem.

Over the weekend, we heard that the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approved a 45-minute test for the coronavirus. But Aytu BioScience Inc. (Nasdaq: AYTU) has a test that’s even faster.

The biotechnology company announced this morning that the FDA approved its COVID-19 IgG/IgM Rapid Test. How rapid is this rapid test? Professional care providers can get results in between two and 10 minutes!

That’s faster than the drive-thru at McDonald’s Corp. (NYSE: MCD)!

Aytu said that it expects to deliver its first 100,000-test shipment this week. With the demand for COVID-19 testing skyrocketing as the U.S. deals with continued virus spread, Aytu could be sitting on a gold mine.

The Bad: As Cold as Ice

When I ran across news about Hoth Therapeutics Inc. (Nasdaq: HOTH) and its deal with Voltron Therapeutics Inc., my ’80s pop culture meter went through the roof. I mean, we’re leveraging Star Wars and Voltron here … what ’80s pop geek wouldn’t love this combo?

After reading through the news, however, I’m considerably less jazzed. Hoth entered a joint deal with Voltron to develop a self-assembling vaccine (SAV) to prevent COVID-19. That sounds impressive … most impressive. SAVs sound just as futuristic as Hoth and Voltron.

But … SAV technology is still in the “proof of concept data” phase, according to the report. In other words, if this technology proves viable, it’ll be great … someday. But not today.

As I’ve warned before, it’s all too easy to fool investors with vaccine promises these days. Despite the companies’ longer-term outlook, HOTH shares surged on the news today.

Don’t buy into this hype. Your portfolio will freeze before you reach the first profit.

The Ugly: Unlimited iPhones?

Last week, Apple Inc. (Nasdaq: AAPL) announced that it would limit the number of iPhones consumers could purchase via its online stores. The company was concerned it wouldn’t be able to meet demand due to a slow ramp-up at its Chinese production facilities.

However, those concerns appear to have fallen by the wayside. Today, Apple dropped the two-device limit across the board on iPhones. (Some devices remain limited, however, such as certain MacBook models and iPads.)

The question is this: Are Apple’s Chinese supply lines really near full strength? Or did demand fall off a cliff to where limits don’t matter anymore?

As in all things, its probably a combination of both factors. Supply probably ramped up enough to cover the weak demand that Apple sees for iPhones right now.

Apple has yet to comment on the lifted limit. But let’s be real here: U.S. consumers are far more worried about finding toilet paper and hand sanitizer right now than buying iPhones.

I can’t jump in front of the microphone and push him down. OK, he said it. Let’s try and get it corrected for the next time.

— Dr. Anthony Fauci

If you’re not familiar with Dr. Fauci yet … what rock have you been living under?

(Seriously, what rock? Because that sounds like a really safe place to ride out the coronavirus … I’ll bring the drinks if you have toilet paper.)

For those who haven’t come out of their safe place, Fauci is the director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases. He’s also a member of the White House Coronavirus Task Force.

Fauci recently interviewed with Science Magazine, where he addressed questions ranging from “How are you managing to not get fired?” to “We’ve had all this pandemic preparedness. Why did this fail? What went wrong?”

If you’d like a better insight into the COVID-19 situation and President Trump’s reaction — as told by the No. 1 virus expert in the country right now — this interview is an excellent read.

Great Stuff: Catchin’ up With Y’all

Last week, I asked you your thoughts on bailouts, buybacks and stimulus — oh my!

I’ll say this: If the Feds can’t deliver in this trying time, you sure do, dear reader. With how many emails flooded the Great Stuff inbox over the weekend, you’d think millions of Americans were stuck at home looking at their screens or something. Wait…

(I know, I know … not all of our readers are stateside — I see you writing in from the great white North, Ashley H.!)

I just wanted to take a second today to thank all of you for writing in to share your thoughts on the U.S. viral reaction. Keep writing in! Great Stuff appreciates every email we read … and yes, we do read every last one of them. That said, our overflowing inbox is sure to make for rip-roaring Reader Feedback later this week. Just you wait!

In the meantime, write in to [email protected] if you haven’t already. We’d love to hear your thoughts on the market volatility, the Fed fun house and the quarantine in your neck of the woods.

And if you need some reassurance or an extra bit of positive oomph, remember to check out Paul Mampilly’s vision for a new, rebuilt America 2.0 — viral markets be damned! (Click here.)

Otherwise, you can always check Great Stuff out on social media: Facebook and Twitter.

Until next time, good trading!

Regards,

Joseph Hargett

Editor, Great Stuff

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