Showing posts with label FEDERAL EMPLOYEE RESOURCES. Show all posts
Showing posts with label FEDERAL EMPLOYEE RESOURCES. Show all posts

October 11, 2013

For Furloughed Federal Employees, No Paid Sick or Annual Leave

Fed Smith has an in-depth article worthy of a read published 10-10-13:

"No Paid Sick or Annual Leave. What About FMLA Leave for Excepted Employees?"

A link to this article is found below.

http://www.fedsmith.com/2013/10/10/no-paid-sick-or-annual-leave-what-about-fmla-leave-for-excepted-employees 

 

Unfurlough.us: Website Helps Furloughed Employees Start Up Freelance Businesses



Unfurlough.us is a website that connects furloughed federal employees with freelance start-up projects.  Start-up gigs are posted that they can respond to, and freelancers can post their qualifications & resumes in case a company is looking for something specific.

Here is the link to this 10-10-13 article:

http://www.csmonitor.com/Innovation/2013/1010/Government-shutdown-Unfurlough.us-connects-federal-workers-with-start-ups




October 9, 2013

Shutdown / Furlough Humor: The siren call of the BlackBerry for furloughed federal workers

The Washington Post has a great article with some humor interjected:

"The siren call of the BlackBerry for furloughed federal workers"


A link to this article is below:

http://www.washingtonpost.com/local/the-siren-call-of-the-blackberry-for-furloughed-federal-workers/2013/10/09/62dc407c-3102-11e3-8627-c5d7de0a046b_story.html

Backlogs and Worries Grow Among Furloughed Workers

The National Journal has an article "Backlogs and Worries Grow Among Furloughed Workers".
A link to this insightful article is below.

http://www.nationaljournal.com/daily/backlogs-and-worries-grow-among-furloughed-workers-20131007

Tips for Furloughed Federal Workers - Filing a Claim


The Federal Department of Labor has a document with information for furloughed federal employees as to how they should prepare and file an umployment claim:

"Tips for Furloughed Federal Workers - Filing a Claim"

The pdf document is found at the link below:

http://www.dol.gov/sequestration/ucfe.pdf

Federal Workers Get 60 Percent Check on Friday

The Statesman Journal has an article "Federal Workers Get 60 Percent Check on Friday".
Below is a link to this article:

http://www.statesmanjournal.com/article/20131008/UPDATE/131008019/Federal-workers-get-60-percent-check-Friday

Whats Happened to the Retroactive Pay Legislation?

Fed Smith has an article "Whats Happened to the Retroactive Pay Legislation?"

Below is a link to this article.

http://www.fedsmith.com/2013/10/09/whats-happened-to-the-retroactive-pay-legislation/

October 2, 2013

Some Thoughts on the Shutdown

Today was the first day of the federal government shutdown, and was the first day I was furloughed.
Since I've had a day to let it all sink in, here are a few of my thoughts about it.

Our office is a team.
We live in a small town, and people are a pretty close-knit team at our office.
When they let everyone go today, they all trickled out of the building and that was that.

I wish there would have been some indication of solidarity amongst us.
Some sort of encouraging words spoken by the managers, to the effect of "you are valuable to us, and I'm sorry this has to happen, and there is nothing we can do about it, but we want you to know that we care about you personally and for your families and all those affected by this".

It was more like, they told us the regs, the procedures and what to expect procedurally, but nothing else really.
And to check the news, we should keep tabs on it if the shutdown ends and report to work.
And hopefully our managers will call us to let us know we can return to work.
But it was somewhat vague, and a little disconcerting.

My manager I could tell was very tired; stressed and just wanted to get out of there.
He even told me to hurry up and leave.
I had to take a few moments to collect my personal items, to water my plants, and mentally prepare myself to exit those doors.

Several co-workers I have emails for and phone numbers, so we'll be in touch.
But in meantime, its more or less each man is on his own, you gotta fend for yourself, and there is really no support system amongst us after the shutdown.

Perhaps a suggested meeting every few days - a casual non-work meeting could have been suggested, if people just wanted to talk and get together, outside of work.
But nothing like that was suggested.
So those are my thoughts.

October 1, 2013

We are Shut Down! List of Things Federal Employees Might Want to Do

Reported to work this morning at the federal agency I work for.
We had a brief meeting about the Shutdown, did a few things to close out and now we are officially shut down.

Returned home & am now making list of things I need to accomplish.

Considering the facts that we have no idea when we will be recalled back to work,
that we have no guarantee that we will be paid for the time we are furloughed,
and that the bills still come in and must be paid, here are things federal employees who are furloughed from the Shutdown can consider doing now:

1)  Make list of things you'd like to accomplish during the Shutdown

2)  Revise/Update/Make a Budget considering your non-pay current status

3)  If you need to take a loan, you can get a 2% interest loan against your federal TSP (Thrift Savings Plan).
Go to the TSP website and print the forms, fill out loan application forms and sign them in presence of notary and have notary sign them.

Here is link to the TSP website where the loan forms and loan publications are found:

https://www.tsp.gov/forms/loans.shtml

4)  If conserving money is an important issue for you, consider cutting back expenses.
I called Optimum (now Charter) today and was able to lower my cable tv/internet/land phone triple package cost from $135.96 a month to $94.85 a month.

Expenses you could cut & Ways to Make Some Extra Cash:

1)  Food - cut back or eliminate eating out

2)  Food - Eat more meatless meals & eliminate luxury foods i.e. expensive foods.

3)  Use coupons and rebates for purchases.

4)  Buy items in bulk which in long run is cheaper than running to store every week.
I go to Big Lots in a city south of here, and stock up on food (they carry lots of bulk, cheap food), toiletries, etc.
I buy toilet paper, paper towells, cleaning supplies, etc. in bulk.
I stock up there on packaged milk which is sterilized in waxed paper rectangle-shaped box containers.  The milk doesn't need to be refrigerated until opened.

5)  Shop for cheapest gas before refueling your vehicle.
Gas Buddy is a website where you can enter your zipcode and find the cheapest places to get gas:

http://gasbuddy.com

6)   Cut back on home utility expenses.  Keep thermostat less hot/cool, use a/c less, close off rooms and heat/cool fewer rooms.  Use those twisty shaped lightbulbs that save energy to lower your electric bill.  Insulate your home, windows, etc. better to conserve energy.  Conserve use of water to lower water bill.

7)  Have a yard sale or put items for sale in a consignment shop to get some extra cash.

8)  If you have marketable skills you can make money at immediately, consider using those skills to earn money and work for yourself.  Such skills that could be used temporarily would be selling arts & crafts items you make, providing childcare/babysitting services, etc.

9)  If you itemize your taxes, and don't want to have a yardsale, etc. you could give donations of items to Salvation Army, Goodwill, etc. and ask for receipt to use to lower your taxes when you itemize your taxes.

10)  If your spouse isn't working and is capable of working, perhaps they could find part-time or full-time work during the Shutdown to supplement your income, since you now don't have an income.

11)  As soon as possible, file an unemployment claim.  You can file online.  Here is link for Federal Employee information about filing for unemployment (the Department of Labor):

http://workforcesecurity.doleta.gov/unemploy/unemcomp.asp

State laws vary, but most require a one to two-week waiting period before you begin receiving unemployment checks.  A waiting period does not mean you must wait one or two weeks to file.  You should file immediately.

Here is the link to locate your state employment website to file for in your state:

http://www.servicelocator.org/OWSLinks.asp

I just filed for unemployment online at my state's website and it took me about 10 minutes to file.




September 30, 2013

The Federal Government Shutdown

If you're currently a federal employee, you probably feel like this guy who is about to exit a plane!

And you probably feel like the driver of the red car in this photo!

I've compiled a list on the first several posts of this blog of links to news on the government shutdown, furloughs, links for federal employees regarding same.

Also I posted many other links to news and alternative news.
Just scroll to bottom of page, and click previous posts to get to first posts.


Links to Alternative News Sites with RSS Feeds



Alternative sites with RSS feeds:

Links to Offbeat Newspapers, News of the Arts, United States



·       LA Weekly
Weekly alternative newspaper.
www.laweekly.com
·       Boston Phoenix
Arts & entertainment newspaper.
www.bostonphoenix.com
·       City Pages - Minneapolis/St. Paul
Alternative news & arts weekly.
www.citypages.com
·       Seattle Weekly
In-depth news, innovative arts coverage, comprehensive entertainment listings, & searchable classifieds.
www.seattleweekly.com
·       Austin Chronicle
Weekly alternative newspaper. Includes arts & entertainment calendar & classifieds.
www.austinchronicle.com
·       Metro Times Detroit
Alternative newsweekly featuring news, culture, technology, & arts.
www.metrotimes.com
·       Stranger, The
Weekly urban manual for greater Seattle area. Bright, sometimes bruising, & undeniably funny, The Stranger details local music, arts, & news with passion & authority.
www.thestranger.com
·       Phoenix New Times
Each edition features complete text of paper, searchable guides, & all-new material special to Web.
www.phoenixnewtimes.com
·       Chicago Reader
News & entertainment weekly featuring guides to restaurants, music, theater, & more.
www.chireader.com
·       Dallas Observer
News & features, calendar of events, entertainment profiles, classifieds
& more.
www.dallasobserver.com
·       New York Press
Alternative weekly offers provocative opinion columns, music, clubs, art, books, restaurants, classifieds, calendars
& full New York City listings of events.
www.nypress.com
·       westword.com
Covering the Denver's arts and entertainment scene.
www.westword.com
·       Metro
Weekly alternative newspaper covering Silicon Valley movies, music, arts, and events.
www.metroactive.com
·       Baltimore City Paper
Presents reviews of recently released music, film, and art. The Baltimore City Paper also features weekly calendar events, local music, personals, and more.
www.citypaper.com
·       Pitch Weekly, The
KC free weekly newspaper.
www.pitch.com
·       OC Weekly
Tales from behind orange curtain.
www.ocweekly.com
·       Miami New Times
Arts & entertainment weekly featuring full-length stories & searchable guides to dining, music, & cultural events.
www.miaminewtimes.com
·       American Daily
Conservative news & commentary relating to free speech, affirmative action, & politics.
www.americandaily.com
·       Santa Barbara Independent
Online edition of Santa Barbara's local guide to news, arts, & entertainment.
www.independent.com
·       San Diego Reader
Featuring movie & restaurant reviews, event listings, & classifieds.
www.sandiegoreader.com
·       Houston Press
Featuring searchable dining, film & music guides.
www.houstonpress.com
·       BeatNet-Cincinnati CityBeat Online
Covers Cincinnati area arts, entertainment & news.
www.citybeat.com
·       Gambit Weekly - New Orleans
Offers entertainment & dining listings, events calendar, classifieds, features, & more.
www.bestofneworleans.com
·       Philadelphia City Paper
Contains all articles, reviews, event listings, local newsgroups & classifieds.
www.citypaper.net
·       Isthmus - The Daily Page
Resource for info about activities in Madison www.thedailypage.com
·       Orlando Weekly
Alternative news, arts, & classifieds.
www.orlandoweekly.com
·       Creative Loafing - Atlanta
Atlanta's weekly source for alternative news, arts & entertainment, & events.
atlanta.creativeloafing.com
·       Memphis Flyer
Catch up on the current Memphis scene or read back issues.
www.memphisflyer.com
·       Free Times Newspaper, The
Weekly alternative newspaper provides political commentary, entertainment reviews, sports.
www.freetimes.com
·       Salt Lake City Weekly
News, arts, entertainment, & listings.
www.slweekly.com
·       Honolulu Weekly
Alternative weekly with extensive arts & entertainment coverage.
www.honoluluweekly.com
·       Metro Pulse
News, commentary, & calendar for Knoxville area.
www.metropulse.com
·       Boulder Weekly
Investigative newsweekly for Boulder/Denver. The resource for anyone traveling or relocating to Colorado's Front Range, with complete guides to arts, dining, entertainment & movies.
www.boulderweekly.com
·       Shepherd Express
Milwaukee's alternative weekly.
www.shepherd-express.com
·       Flagpole Online
Colorbearer of Athens art, music, culture, & politics.
www.flagpole.com
·       Tucson Weekly
News, commentary, arts, reviews, & more.
www.tucsonweekly.com
·       Eugene Weekly
Eugene, Oregon's alternative newspaper of news, arts & entertainment.
www.eugeneweekly.com

·       Militant, The
Union & work related news.
www.themilitant.com
·       Texas Observer
Features news & commentary.
www.TexasObserver.org
·       Hartford Advocate
News & arts alternative weekly.
www.hartfordadvocate.com
·       Valley Advocate
Arts & entertainment weekly for Pioneer Valley.
www.valleyadvocate.com
·       Riverfront Times
Alternative newsweekly for St. Louis.
www.rftstl.com
·       New Haven Advocate
Featuring music, food, film, theater, books, classifieds, feature article, reviews, & more.
www.newhavenadvocate.com
·       Mountain Xpress
Online version of weekly paper, providing alternative news, an event calendar, movie, music, & restaurant listings, & more.
www.mountainx.com
·       FW Weekly
News, art, & entertainment.
www.fwweekly.com
·       Syracuse New Times
Concerts, clubs, films, & other event listings from greater Syracuse area.
newtimes.rway.com
·       Boston's Weekly Dig
Humor, news, and nightlife.
www.weeklydig.com
·       Coast Weekly Online
Packs all power of newsprint edition, & also features a service called Bird Dog to e-mail you news, editorials & classifieds that you want.
www.coastweekly.com
·       Athens News, The
Offering new perspectives on Ohio.
www.athensnews.com
·       Fairfield County Weekly
Offers news, guides, event listings, classifieds, personals, & more.
www.fairfieldweekly.com
·       Haleakala Times
Alternative newspaper. Includes community calendar, editorials, headline stories, & more.
www.mauisfreepress.com
·       Portland Phoenix
Offers arts & entertainment listings, local news, & more.
www.portlandphoenix.com
·       Bulletin, The
Alternative newspaper serving Montgomery County, Texas. Covers political issues, music, film, theater, culture, arts, food, & live entertainment.
www.thebulletin.com
·       Ithaca Times
Includes visitor guide to Finger Lakes restaurants, wineries, & area attractions.
www.ithacatimes.com
·       Rock City News
Biweekly newspaper covering Los Angeles rock music scene.
www.rockcitynews.com
·       Newcity.com
Combines a network of alternative weekly papers & a host of edgy web-only affiliates.
www.newcity.com
·       San Antonio Current
Alternative newspaper of city.
www.sacurrent.com

·       Santa Fe Reporter
Alternative newsweekly serving Santa Fe & northern New Mexico.
www.sfreporter.com
·       Improper Bostonion
What's hot & what's happening in Boston every 2 weeks.
www.improper.com
·       Beyond Mainstream
Alternative news & progressive views on health, lifestyles, spirituality, current events, culture, art, entertainment, politics, sexuality, & more.
www.beyondmainstream.com
·       Philadelphia Weekly
Local news, music, movies, art, sports, dining, personals, classifieds, & more.
www.phillyweekly.com
·       Monterey County Weekly
News
& entertainment weekly featuring guides to restaurants, art, music, theater, & movies serving Monterey County, CA.
www.montereycountyweekly.com
·       Westchester County Weekly
Source for alternative news. Features a complete list of arts film & music happenings.
www.westchesterweekly.com
·       Woodstock Journal
Alternative newsweekly serving Ulster County.
www.woodstockjournal.com
·       Palo Alto Weekly
News updates, movie reviews, community calendar, classified ads, & more.
www.paloaltoonline.com/weekly/index2.shtml
·       Streetmail.com, Inc.
Internet publishing company that sends out email newsletters about local news from cities all over nation.
www.streetmail.com
·       Wave, The
Bi-weekly publication covering entertainment & other local events in San Francisco Bay Area.
www.thewavemedia.com
·       North Bay Bohemian
Features news, commentary, reviews & schedules for arts happenings, & popular Best of North Bay issue, with archives.
www.metroactive.com/sonoma
·       Metro Santa Cruz
Features news, commentary, reviews & schedules for arts happenings, a bar & club guide, & popular Best of Santa Cruz issue, with archives.
www.metroactive.com/cruz
·       Friday Times, The
Features news, letter, & opinions.
thefridaytimes.hypermart.net
·       Independent Weekly, The
Local news, events, & classifieds for Durham, North Carolina.
www.indyweek.com/durham/current
·       AltWeeklies.com
News & arts reporting from more than 100 alternative weeklies.
www.altweeklies.com/gyrobase/AltWeeklies
·       Portland Mercury
The Stranger's Portland sister publication.
www.portlandmercury.com/current
·       Washington City Paper
Searchable music listings & entertainment section.
www.washingtoncitypaper.com