Blog

Cases: 

COVID fatalities hit a season high-Rise in L.A. County comes despite a drop in new cases. Experts suggest reasons for it. By Luke Money and Rong-Gong Lin II for the LA Times. The number of COVID-19 deaths reported weekly in Los Angeles County has hit the highest point of the season, underscoring the continued deadly risks of a disease that has ripped through the community for nearly three years.

Your #dreamjob? It might be a fake By Jaimie Ding for the LA Times.

Two days after applying for a job on LinkedIn , Sandi Pounder received the good, if surprising, news.

“I am glad to inform you that due to your level of experience and your working skills, the company has decided to hire you as one of our Data Analyst (REMOTE),” the email read. “On behalf of our firm, I congratulate you on your achievement.”

Promote your business and make important connections and contacts at the Chamber networking lunch and breakfast.

Remote work may be stickier than you think By Sarah Kessler, Senior Staff Editor, DealBook

During the nearly three years since pandemic precautions pushed remote work into the mainstream, companies have been negotiating a “new normal” in an environment that some say gives workers an upper hand: Hiring has been difficult, quitting has been popular, and employers had been in a good position to accommodate workers’ preferences.

Cases: New viral strain back East could be a threat here: Omicron subvariant XBB.1.5 is more contagious and more resistant to immunity.
By Corinne Purtill for the LA Times. You may have come home with it after a recent trip to New England. Or you may have gotten it from that friend or family member who flew in from New York over the holidays.

From PasadenaNOW: Minimum wage for hourly employees in California increased to $15.50 this week. While the pay increase applies to the entire state, some cities —  Pasadena included — have higher minimum hourly wages already in place. 

The hourly pay increase is part of California law that gradually raises the minimum wage from $10 an hour in 2017 to $15.50 an hour in 2023. 

Yes, we are beginning 2023 and still reporting on COVID-19, its effects and impact on our economy three (!) years after the first likely cases in China (and perhaps in the US, too).

So, where have we come in the past three years?

An edited timeline:

How will California’s new laws affect you? BY PHIL WILLON in Sacramento for the LA Times.

The U.S. Supreme Court decision to strike down the landmark federal abortion rights case Roe vs. Wade led to a flurry of new laws in California, even though abortion rights already are solidly protected in the state.  

What to know about EV tax credits in ’23- Starting Jan. 1, buyers could qualify for federal incentives of as much as $7,500. But there are caveats.

CERTAIN BRANDS of electric vehicles that were eligible for a separate tax credit that began in 2010 and that will end this year may not be eligible for the new credit. By Hope Yen and Tom Krisher

Cases: From the Pasadena Star-News: LA County falls out of ‘High’ COVID activity level; transmission still high, officials caution. As of Thursday, the county's average rate of new COVID cases was 180 per 100,000 residents, down from 204 per 100,000 a week ago. That dropped the county below the threshold of 200 per 100,000 residents for the "high" community activity level set by the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.