Covering the week’s most noteworthy business news impacting the Filipino-American and Global Filipino community.
Q: AT work, we are required to wear a uniform, which only the employer can provide. The cost of the uniform is deducted from our pay. Is this deduction legal? A: No, this deduction for employer-mandated uniform is prohibited under California law. If the employer requires its employees to wear uniforms at work, the employer…
WHEN people are going through financial difficulty and are unable to pay their bills, their first reaction is often to ignore their debts and avoid contact with creditors. They think that by doing this, somehow the creditors will simply give up and go away. Then one day the problem blows up in their face. Then…
WHEN it rains, it pours. When push comes to shove, and your back is up against the wall, you may think of many desperate things that you can do to relieve the enormous emotional and mental stress that you are going through. But I can tell for certain as I have seen literally thousands of…
WE will discuss two new cases involving clients who seek a fresh start in life with no debts owed to anyone. Both sets of clients are in their forties. The first client is a couple in their forties with young children who are aged 3 and 7. Husband works for the county of LA and…
TOUGH times may necessitate dipping into your retirement funds before retirement. Look at the tax impact of such a move. You may be shocked to find out what you are left with – as little as half or two-thirds of what you withdraw. Here are 10 facts about early distributions. 1. Payments you receive from…
EVERY now and then, our law firm receives calls from persons who inform us that supervisors reduced their hours, or suspended them for a trump up charge, in order to “get back,” or get even with them for “talking back,” or telling the supervisor he was wrong. The aggrieved employee then asks if they can…
THE recession has been tough on a lot of small businesses. And if you have a family-owned business that is your only source of income, the business may not even be making enough to pay its own expenses- let alone pay you. Good business practice says that you should pay yourself first but in practice…
HAVE you ever accidentally bitten down on a little piece of aluminum foil? Have you experienced that quick zap of pain? Perhaps a little piece of foil was clinging to the tortilla when you unwrapped your taco during lunch. When that foil came in contact with metal in your mouth (such as an amalgam filling, a metal crown, or…
IF YOU earned income in the last few years but didn’t file a tax return because your wages were below the filing requirement, the Internal Revenue Service may have some money for you. The IRS also has millions of dollars in checks that are mailed but returned each year as undeliverable. There are two types…
KINDRED Healthcare Incorporated, a healthcare services company that operates hospitals, nursing centers, and rehabilitation services nationwide, was sued by its health care employees in California. The employees alleged that Kindred violated labor laws by failing to pay the correct overtime rate, failing to provide meal periods, and failing to give accurate itemized wage statements to…
Do you want to get out of debt but are afraid that filing bankruptcy may only make things worse for you? Facing difficult financial times can be a frightening thing for a lot of people. When bill collectors are calling day and night, at some point, you realize that something must be done but you…
I REMEMBER client the first time I met her 15 years ago. At that time, she was only 30 years old and had just started working as a registered nurse after obtaining her graduate degree in nursing. I won’t tell you how old I was at that time but I certainly wish I were also…
1. IRS wants you to keep good records to document your income and support your expenses. It does not require you to keep records in any specific manner, but there are proven ways to keep good files. Read on. 2. There are two basic types of filers: the rat pack that hoards files for the…
Q: I HAD to take a few weeks of medical leave from work because I had to undergo a heart procedure. I gave my employer my doctors’ notes. When I was released to go back to work, my employer told me that my position was no longer available. Since I work for a fairly large…
I KNOW we’ve never met. But there’s a common concern we all share. As a debt relief attorney, I hear it from people who consult with me every day. It is this: The possibility of losing what we’ve worked hard for all our lives…our homes, our savings, our retirement money, our business, etc. Why is…
What is the first thing you do when planning for your daily commute? You probably watch the news, check for train or bus delays on the internet, or check a navigation app on your phone for the most efficient ways to get to your destination. Based on traffic or accidents, you might even consider alternative…
“Taxpayers who are hit with the 20 percent penalty for negligence or disregard of rules may try to establish reasonable cause for underpayment and show that you acted in good faith.” AS OUR tax laws become more complex, we find it more difficult to comply. As we fail to comply in filing or paying required…
Q: I HAVE worked at XY Company, a big processing plant in the Inland Empire, for many years. My direct employer is really ABC LLC, which subcontracts labor to XY Company. My coworkers and I often work more than 8 hours per day, 6 to 7 days per week at XY Company but we are…
PEOPLE come to me every day with different reasons for getting out of debt. Most of the time, I’m thinking that they would have been better off had they come to me sooner to get help. Had they done this, they’d be doing a lot better by now and could have avoided a lot of…
HERE it comes! The season of ghosts, ghouls, witches, and, of course… candy! If you’re savvy about it, there’s no reason for your Halloween fun to come at the expense of your dental health. Rule 1: A little candy all at once is probably better than candy all day long When it comes to your…
“I choose to rise up out of that storm and see that in moments of desperation, fear, and helplessness, each of us can be a rainbow of hope, doing what we can to extend ourselves in kindness and grace to one another. And I know for sure that there is no them – there’s only…
YESTERDAY, a new client I saw said that she had been in a Chapter 13 paying $400/month for the last 12 months. But next year after her car was paid off, the plan payment would increase to $1,000/month which she would not be able to pay considering that her income had decreased by about $30,000…
HERE 10 tips if you owe but cannot immediately pay the IRS: • Pay What you can: Pay promptly to stop additional penalties and interest from accruing. If you are unable to pay, consider getting a loan to pay the bill in full rather than make installment payments to the IRS. • Additional Time to…
WE previously discussed the question of whether an employee’s signature to an independent contractor (IC) agreement binds the employee to the terms of that agreement. We noted that the law determines the worker’s status, not the parties’ agreement. Even if there was an IC agreement, workers who are treated as employees will not be bound…
MAYBE you’ve experienced this before: You’re driving down the road one cold, chilly day and before you know it, you find yourself surrounded by a thick white wall of dense fog. How did you react to the situation? If you’re like most people, perhaps you felt momentarily lost and confused or perhaps even panicked, not…
LOS ANGELES – Beer drinkers love their beer ice cold. That’s usually 8 degrees Celsius if taken from a regular refrigerator. But what if they could drink beer at the perfect coldness – minus 8 degrees below zero? Beer drinkers in the United States, including Filipinos, can now drink their favorite beer cooled to perfection…
WE will discuss two recent cases involving clients who truly need a fresh start in life with no debts owed to anyone. The first case involves an individual who has been self employed with his own business for 10 years. The problem in this case is that the IRS levied his bank account last week…
IF YOU cannot pay all your taxes owed to the IRS, you may make an offer to pay a smaller sum to fully pay all taxes, penalties, and interests. This is called Offer in Compromise (OIC). Let’s discuss the pros and cons of OIC. Advantages: If the offer is accepted, you will be left alone;…
Why a fixed monthly salary may shortchange some employees Q: I WORK as a supervisor/team lead at a manufacturing plant. I supervise a few employees but I can’t hire or fire them. I am salaried and I work a lot of overtime because of a heavy workload. I am not paid overtime because my employer…
HOW much debt is too much? Are you worried that you have accumulated more debt than you can afford to pay back? One of the smartest things you can do in managing your finances is to know at all times how much total debt you have. Look at all your bills every month and review…
