Author: Brian Lund
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Initial jobless claims fell to 194,000 in the week ending October 17
Fewer Americans filed for first-time unemployment benefits last week. The Labor Department reported on October 22, 2026 that seasonally adjusted initial jobless claims fell to 194,000 in the week ending October 17, down 6,000 from the week before. Low claims point to a labor market where layoffs are still rare, but they do not describe…
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UPS plans to hire more than 100,000 seasonal workers for the holiday peak
UPS is looking for more than 100,000 seasonal workers to staff its holiday rush. The company announced the hiring push on October 7, 2026, and said the jobs are open in hundreds of locations across the country. For a retiree weighing a few months of paid work, the trade-off is simple: extra pay now, and…
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Thirteen Bushwick doorpersons will share $219,000 of a $419,000 back-pay recovery at a 421-a tax-break building
Thirteen doorpersons at a Bushwick apartment building will share $219,000 in unpaid prevailing wages and benefits, part of a $419,000 recovery announced on October 22, 2026 by New York City Comptroller Mark Levine. The building at 960 Willoughby Avenue receives a 15-year tax exemption under the city’s 421-a housing program. That exemption comes with a…
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California recovered about $1,988,000 for 136 workers unpaid when Capital Mailing Services closed
It took ten years, a trial, an appeal and a fraud case, but California says 136 people who lost their jobs and final paychecks when a West Sacramento printing company shut down are finally getting paid. The state Labor Commissioner’s Office announced on October 16, 2026 that it has recovered about $1,988,000 for former workers…
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About 500 D.C. construction workers misclassified as contractors will share $691,450 from Welch Mechanical under a settlement worth up to $1.7 million
The District’s attorney general has settled with a mechanical contractor over claims that it treated construction workers as independent contractors. W.G./Welch Mechanical Contractors, LLC agreed to pay up to $1,706,450, and about 500 workers will share $691,450 of that money. Attorney General Brian Schwalb announced the deal on October 13, 2026. For anyone who swung…
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North Carolina crypto kiosks must cap new customers at $2,000 a day from January 1, and scam victims who report within 30 days can get refunds
No one in their first 30 days at a North Carolina crypto kiosk will be able to put in more than $2,000 in a single day once a new state law starts on January 1, 2027. People with a longer history at the machines get a $5,000 daily ceiling. The same law gives a defrauded…
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The IRS says CP53E refunds can go to prepaid cards or payment apps
A federal refund does not have to land in a checking account at a bank. For people who do not have one, the IRS says another route exists: pre-paid debit cards and mobile payment applications. The agency’s page on the CP53E notice sends readers to its ModernPayments page for those options. A CP53E is the…
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Eligible military borrowers of FirstCash pawn loans will get CFPB redress checks without filing claims
Servicemembers and family members who are eligible for redress in the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau’s Military Lending Act case against FirstCash will receive checks without filing a claim. The settlement administrator says that anyone who does nothing will be sent a payment by paper check in the mail. The one time limit in the process…
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Trump’s housing order tells regulators to consider cutting or scrapping Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac loan-level fees on some refinances, though no cut has been set
A presidential order signed October 22, 2026 puts fees on some home refinances up for review, but it does not cut a single one. The order, titled Decreasing Housing Costs for the American People, says the director of the Federal Housing Finance Agency “shall consider” reducing or eliminating loan-level price adjustments and other fees that…
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Social Security disability recipients can earn up to $1,770 a month in 2027, or $2,950 if blind, before their work counts as substantial and benefits are at risk
Social Security disability beneficiaries can earn up to $1,770 a month in 2027, or $2,950 a month if they are blind, before the agency counts their work as substantial. The two amounts are the 2027 limits for substantial gainful activity, a term Social Security shortens to SGA, according to the agency’s 2027 cost-of-living fact sheet.…