Goodbye, 2020, and good trip. Here’s what you need to know next week about business and technology, but most importantly, free gifts for a better 2021. Please touch the new year safely. – Charlotte Cowles
What’s up? (December 20th to 26th)
Up to the wire
After a nine-month stalemate, Congress was finally able to pass a much anticipated (and much-needed) $ 900 billion pandemic relief package. So President Trump took an interest in the project at the last minute and didn’t like what he saw (“a disgrace”). Before going on vacation, he demanded that the legislation include direct stimulus payments of $ 2,000 for most Americans, not $ 600 as the bill would provide. Democrats were more than happy to accommodate the move, but Republicans blocked the move, throwing the aid project into limbo. This is bad news for anyone who depends on existing aid funds, the last of which ended this week.
what From others Public Health Emergency
The Justice Department does not finish pointing the finger at those who deliberately ignored the warning signs that led to the opioid crisis. Last week, he accused Walmart of ignoring it while its pharmacies were supplying thousands of suspected opioid prescriptions. The civil suit alleges that Walmart also disregarded reports from employees of its pharmacy, which warned its superiors that certain prescriptions seemed suspicious. Walmart denied the allegations, saying the Justice Department was putting retailers in an unfair position of having to “guess” doctors’ decisions.
What hack?
Well, this is strange: Russian hackers who infiltrated the networks of the United States government managed to breach the email system used by high-ranking officials in the Treasury Department in July, without anyone noticing until recently. The same hackers have also infiltrated hundreds of US organizations, including Cisco, Intel, Nvidia, Deloitte and California State Department hospitals. Investigators still do not know whether the cyber attack has compromised classified information. But one thing is certainly not helping: Trump has refused to acknowledge Russia’s involvement and is trying to blame China. President-elect Joseph R. Biden Jr. accused Trump of irrationally minimizing the attack – which will become his problem in January.
What is the next? (December 27th to January 2nd)
Up to wire II
Britain and the European Union finally reached a highly disputed trade agreement on Christmas Eve, complaining about the deadline and ending a bitter Brexit battle that has been ravaging the bloc for more than four years. But the agreement has yet to be ratified and trade in the region continues to face serious turmoil. Last week, British authorities discovered a new coronavirus mutation that is potentially up to 70 percent more contagious, causing dozens of countries to block travelers from Britain to prevent it from spreading. The bans forced thousands of cargo trucks (and their drivers) to stay in huge traffic jams at British ports for days while perishable exports were spoiling. Customs officials are beginning to allow trucks to pass, but the new trade agreement will not exactly accelerate the process.
The second stimulus
Answers to your questions about the stimulus law
Updated on December 27, 2020
Lawmakers agreed to a plan to issue $ 600 stimulus payments and distribute $ 300 federal unemployment insurance over 11 weeks. The bill passed both houses of Congress, but President Trump is resisting signing it. Find out more about the bill and what it offers if the president sanctions it.
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- Will I receive another stimulus payment? Individual adults with adjusted gross income on their 2019 tax returns of up to $ 75,000 per year would receive a payment of $ 600, and heads of households earning up to $ 112,500 and a couple (or someone whose spouse died in 2020) earning up to $ 150,000 per year would receive double that amount. If they have dependent children, they will also receive $ 600 for each child. People with income just above these levels would receive a partial payment that decreases by $ 5 for every $ 100 of income.
- When can my payment arrive? Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin told CNBC that he expected the first payments to be made before the end of the year. But it will take a while for all eligible people to receive their money.
- Does the agreement affect unemployment insurance? Lawmakers have agreed to extend the amount of time that people can receive unemployment insurance and to restart an extra federal benefit that is provided in addition to the normal state benefit. But instead of $ 600 a week, it would be $ 300. That would last until March 14th.
- I have my rent late or I hope to be soon. Will I get any relief? The deal would provide $ 25 billion to be distributed by state and local governments to help tenants who are left behind. To receive assistance, families would have to meet several conditions: Family income (for 2020) cannot exceed more than 80% of the area’s average income; at least one family member must be at risk of homelessness or housing instability; and individuals must qualify for unemployment benefits or have experienced financial difficulties – directly or indirectly – because of the pandemic. The agreement provided that care would be given priority to low-income families who have been unemployed for three months or more.
Who has the chance
Perhaps you have seen your first “vaxxies” – of course, pictures that people take of themselves receiving a coronavirus vaccine and post on social media. The country has already distributed more than one million doses to health professionals, but who is next? The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention recommended that some 30 million “essential frontline workers”, such as emergency responders, teachers and grocery workers, as well as people aged 75 and over, should be given priority. But “essential” is difficult to define, and now Uber, Lyft, DoorDash and Instacart are competing for their employees to achieve that rating and have skipped to the front of the line.
Generously tip
In the restaurant business, bonuses are a big part of how waiters and bartenders make money. But now, a new Department of Labor rule says that restaurants may require employees to collect their tips and share them with the broader staff, including workers who don’t normally see that money. There are a few parameters: Servers may be asked to share tips only if they receive the standard minimum wage in their city or state, not the lowest minimum wage that most states allow employers to pay workers who receive tips. The rule, which could be adjusted or blocked by the Biden government before it goes into effect, also prohibits supervisors, managers and owners from plunging themselves into the bonus kitten themselves. No matter what happens, consider it a reminder not to be stingy with tips, especially these days.