La voz december 2017 english

FA R M

L A B O R

I N F O R M AT I O N

B U L L E T I N

Voice of the Fields California

December 2017

FREE

Volume 27, Number 12

Employment Education and Outreach

T

HE EMPLOYMENT EDUCATION Outreach (EMPLEO) Program, is an alliance between community and non-governmental organizations, along with state, local, and federal agencies, and the Central American and Mexican Consulates, to provide information and assistance on employment related issues.

The program is a resource that can be helpful to workers to inform them about their workplace rights and standards. For workers who might be concerned about immigration status, it is important to note that the program does not distinguish between workers in status or not in status. The program is designed to help and provide support to workers that have experienced unfair workplace standards or conditions.

To help you identify situations in the workplace that are unfair, at right is a list of the top issues that workers experience.

If any of these issues happen to you or are present in your work place, you can get help by calling a toll-free hotline, 1-877-552-9832. Or you may also contact your local Consulate General’s Office for more information if you are a citizen of another country.

Most Common Unfair Workplace Employment Issues n

Discrimination of Any Kind

n

Not Paid Minimum Wage

n

No Overtime Payment

n

Unsanitary Working Conditions

n

Physical or Verbal Abuse

n

Sexual Harassment

n

Threats of Being Fired, Deported, or Turned into Immigration Authorities

Earned Income Tax Credit

E

ARNED INCOME TAX CREDIT (EITC) is a benefit for working individuals with low to moderate income. If you are eligible for this tax credit, you will be able to keep the money you deserve. If you qualify for the Federal EITC, you may also qualify for the same tax credit offered in California. These are both designed to put money back into the pockets of low-income individuals that are the backbone of our country and state.

see if you qualify by answering a few questions and to find out your filing status.

To claim EITC you must meet certain criteria: n Must Work and Have Earned Income n Must Have a Social Security Number n Must File a Federal Tax Return: Married Filing Jointly Head of Household Qualifying Widow or Widower Single n Must Meet Income Criteria

FEDERAL QUATLIFICATIONS

Resources

What is Federal EITC?

n

EITC provides a boost to workers, their families and the communities where they live. It helps with food, gas, clothing, saving for a rainy day and more.

n

Are you Eligible for Federal EITC?

To receive the credit, you must have income from work for your employer or someone else, work for yourself, a business or farm you own or operate, or some disability plans. And, you must either meet additional rules for workers without a qualifying child or have a child that meets all the qualifying child rules for you.

Use the EITC Assistant on www.irs.gov/EITC to

For answers to any questions regarding the EITC tax credit please go to the IRS website at www.irs. gov or call 1-800-829-1040.

Volunteer Income Tax Assistance (VITA): The VITA program offers free tax preparation help to people who generally make $54,000 or less, persons with disabilities, the elderly and limited English-speaking taxpayers who need assistance in preparing their own tax returns. IRS-certified volunteers provide free basic income tax return preparation with electronic filing to qualified individuals. For more information, please visit the website at www.irs.gov or call 1-800-906-9887.

Federal EITC Qualifying Chart Number of Qualifying Children

Single, Head of Household or Widowed

Married Filing Jointly

Federal EITC Maximum Credits

None 1 2 3 or more

$14,880 $39,296 $44,648 $47,955

$20,430 $44,846 $50,198 $53,505

$506 $3,373 $5,572 $6,269

2

CALIFORNIA QUALIFICATIONS

California EITC Qualifying Chart Number of Qualifying Children None 1 2 3 or more

What is the California EITC?

The California EITC tax credit is designed to put money in the pockets of low-income working families and individuals. Claiming this credit is easy.

Are You Eligible for California’s EITC?

This cash-back credit is applicable if you have work income, you can file and claim your EITC refunds, even if you don’t owe any income tax. Claiming your EITC is easy. Just file your state tax returns.

California EITC requires filing of your state return (form 540 2EZ or 540) and having earned income reported on a W-2 form (i.e. wages, salaries, and tips) subject to California withholding. Self-employment income cannot be used to qualify for state credit.

You qualify for Cal EITC for the 2017 tax year if: n You have wages, self-employment income and adjusted gross income within certain limits n You, your spouse, and any qualifying children each have a Social Security Number issued by the Social Security Administration that is valid for employment n You do not use the “married/RDP filing separately” filing status n You lived in California for more than half the tax year.

This year the California EITC is bigger and better.

Starting with the 2017 tax year, families earning up to $22,300 may qualify for CalEITC, which is a dramatic increase of the upper income limit over past years. Also those who earned self-employment income in 2017 may qualify. For the 2017 tax year, this credit is available to California households with adjusted gross incomes of up to $15,008 if there are no qualifying children, up to

State EITC Income Limits $6,717 $10,087 $14,161 $14,161

State EITC Maximum Credits $217 $1,452 $2,406 $2,706

$22,322 if there is one qualifying child, up to $22,309 if there are two qualifying children, and up to $22,302 if there are three or more qualifying children. See the chart above for specific EITC credit information.

The EITC refunds are not counted as income when your CalWorks, CalFresh or Medi-Cal benefits are calculated. For more details, please contact your eligibility worker.

Resources n

n

n

Franchise Tax Board (FTB): File your free state tax return directly to FTB by using California file online services. For more information, please contact FTB at 1-800-852-5711 or visit the website at www.ftb.ca.gov.

CalEITC: For more information on eligibility visit www.caleitc4me.org and use the CalEITC Calculator to determine how much money you can get back.

To find convenient free tax preparation sites in your neighborhood, please use www.caleitc4me.org.

Sources: www.ftb.ca.gov/individuals/faq/net/900.shtml www.irs.gov/credits-deductions/individuals/earned-income-tax-credit/ do-i-qualify-for-earned-income-tax-credit-eitc www.eitc.irs.gov www.cdss.ca.gov/Earned-Income-Tax-Credit

3

California Laws Effective in the New Year

I

N 2017, the California legislature passed several important pieces of legislation that will go into effect beginning January 1, 2018. These laws involve hiring practices and enforcement, wage and hour obligations, workplace safety, discrimination, harassment and retaliation protections, housing, and more.

Wage & Hour Obligations

Hiring Practices & Enforcement

SB 306 will allow the Labor Commission to investigate employers if it believes there is retaliation or discrimination against an employee during wage claims, field inspections, or in instances of suspected immigration-related threats.

AB 450, the Immigrant Worker Protection Act, will protect workers from immigration enforcement while they are on the job.

Any violations to this law will result in fines between $2,000 and $10,000.

AB 46 will extend California’s Fair Pay Act to include public employers.

AB 1701 will hold general contractors responsible for unpaid wages, benefits or contributions owed by a subcontractor to a laborer that completed work under contract.

AB 260 will include hotels, motels and bed and breakfast inns in the list of businesses required to post human trafficking information.

Workplace Safety

AB 1710 aims to expand anti-discrimination protections for veterans. It will ban discrimination in all terms, conditions, or privileges of employment.

SB 258 is concerned with the safety of cleaning products used in janitorial, industrial, and domestic cleaning and maintenance. Cleaning product manufacturers must disclose the chemicals used in their products and create product safety data sheets that employers must display in the workplace.

Sources: www.escondido.org/Data/Sites/1/media/PDFs/CMOffice/an-overviewof-new-2018-laws-affecting-california-employers_111317.pdf www.millerlawgroup.com/alerts/new-california-workplace-laws-for2018-and-how-to-get-ready www.sacbee.com/opinion/editorials/article167899022.html

4

Housing

Discrimination, Harassment & Retaliation Protections

AB 571 aims to ease the eligibility requirements for a state tax credit intended for developers to build migrant housing.

SB 295 states that the sexual harassment training needed to receive a farm labor contractor’s license must now be conducted or interpreted into the language understood by the employee. In addition, the Labor Commissioner must receive a list of the materials used in the training, as well as the number of individuals trained.

SB 2 & SB 3 will provide funding to expand California’s migrant housing centers.

AB 1165 will prohibit the Department of Housing and Community Development from requiring an individual to live outside any specified radius of a migrant farm labor center in order to be eligible for admission to that migrant farm labor center.

Sanctuary SB 54 will prohibit state and law enforcement agencies from using money or personnel to investigate, interrogate, detain, detect or arrest persons for immigration enforcement purposes.

AB 1598 will authorize a city, county, or city and county to adopt a resolution creating an affordable housing authority with power limited to providing low- and moderateincome housing and affordable workforce housing.

Voting AB 918 will require the county elections official to post a copy of ballots printed in Spanish and to provide a copy that voters can use as a reference when casting a private ballot.

Parental Leave SB 63, the New Parent Leave Act, will require businesses with 20 or more employees to give eligible employees up to 12 weeks of unpaid, job-protected leave in order to bond with a new child. This leave must be taken within one year of the birth, adoption or foster care placement of the child.

Education AB 192 will require the statewide parent advisory council to submit a report regarding the status of the migrant education program to the Legislature, the state board, the Superintendent, and the Governor, every 3 years.

5

EDDResources Resources EDD

Voice of the Fields California Circulation: 45,000 copies

www.edd.ca.gov

www.LaCooperativa.org

Workforce Services General Questions/ AJCC Locator ........................................ (916) 654-7799

Published monthly by: La Cooperativa Campesina de California 1107 9th Street, Suite 420, Sacramento, CA 95814

CalJOBSSM ................................................1-800-758-0398

This product was funded by the U.S. Department of Labor’s Employment and Training Administration.

Migrant and Seasonal Farmworker Related Complaints ...........................................1-866-289-8356

The opinions expressed in this product are exclusive of the authors and does not necessarily reflect the official position of the U.S. Department of Labor. This product is copyrighted by the institution that created it. Internal use by an organization and/ or personal use by an individual for non-commercial purposes is permissible. All other uses require the prior authorization of the copyright owner.

EDD Unemployment Insurance English .....................................................1-800-300-5616 Spanish ....................................................1-800-326-8937

Content produced by ALZA Strategies, a full-service strategy firm that offers quality media relations, crisis communications, public affairs services, and expertise into the growing Latino market.

Agricultural Jobs available to U.S. workers under H-2A contract

You may apply for these jobs by phone or in person at your nearest Employment Development Department (EDD) field office CalJOBS Number

Job Title

Pay Rate

Contract Dates

Positions

City of Job

Employer’s County

America’s Job Centers of California (AJCC)

15580207

Agricultural Farmworker Harvest Lettuce, Broccoli, Cauliflower, Spinach

$12.57/hr.

11/17/17 04/14/18

75

Calpatria, Hwy 33, El Centro, Heber, Brawley, Holtville, Calexico, Imperial

Imperial

El Centro (760) 863-2600”

15587656

Agricultural Farmworker Harvest Broccoli

$12.57/hr.

12/01/17 03/23/18

72

Blythe

Riverside

Brawley (760) 344-2131

15655845

Agricultural Farmworker Wine Grape

$12.57/hr.

12/25/17 10/25/18

19

Sacramento, Red Bluff

Sacramento, Tehama

Job Training Center of Tehama (530) 529-7000

15393188

Agricultural FarmworkerCitrus (Forklift Driver, Pruning, CalVan & Truck Driver, Gen. Labor)

$12.57/hr.

01/09/18 04/30/18

40

Multiple Cities

San Joaquin, Kern, Tulare, Fresno, Madera

Bakersfield AJCC (661) 325-4473

Various

Beekeepers

$13.00/hr.

Continous

136

California and Western States

California and Western States

Call your local AJCC

Various

Sheep Herder

$1,777.98/Mo

Continous

62

California and Western States

California and Western States

Call your local AJCC

The H-2A temporary agricultural program allows agricultural employers who anticipate a shortage of domestic workers to bring nonimmigrant foreign workers to the U.S. to perform agricultural labor or services of a temporary or seasonal nature. The H-2A employers must demonstrate that qualified U.S. workers are not available for the job and the employment of temporary foreign workers will not adversely affect the wages and working conditions of U.S. workers similarly employed. Preference in hiring will be given to qualified U.S. workers before employers are allowed to bring in foreign workers under the program.

6