Farmer’s Market 2022 by Peggy Bair Warmer Temps Usher in Opening Day at Leavenworth’s Haymarket Square Market In stark contrast to the cold, rainy and COVID-beset Farmer’s Market opening of two years ago, the 2022 opening day was a sunny, warm and welcoming 70 degree event at Haymarket Square in Leavenworth, KS. Locals returned with no masks and plenty of smiles instead. This year’s Leavenworth … Continue reading Farmer’s Market 2022
The Unseen Suffering of the COVID Crisis Like a fire that ravages across a forest, COVID-19 sucked the oxygen out of the lives of millions of Americans in 2020 – some literally – others surviving the health crisis but tumbling down in a slow, insidious spiral of material and financial loss. It is below the din of the headlines touting the record-breaking GNP numbers and … Continue reading The Silence of Suffering Continues as Pressure Mounts for KS Workers
KDOL Collateral Damage KDOL Payment Delays Cast Misery on Out of State Unemployed Devin Nightengale and Jessica Meza are watching over their son Brennan, 4, this week as doctors monitor his recovery from a surgery at Children’s Mercy Hospital. He needs a kidney transplant but the timing isn’t quite right and a procedure was needed in the meantime. “He’s in pretty good spirits at the … Continue reading KDOL Collateral Damage
Texas and Missouri Workers Caught in KDOL Pandemic Snag Headaches are Greater for Out of State Kansas Workers Susan Thompson Campbell got shocking news in June, 2020, when her job at T-Mobile ended suddenly with a mass conference call. “Our entire department got dissolved – everybody I know lost their job,” said Campbell. “We were literally told on Friday – ‘No, no, the rumors you … Continue reading Texas and Missouri Workers Caught in KDOL Pandemic Snag
The pandemic created an uptick of need for food distribution as people became suspended from their jobs. With unemployed people in Kansas still having issues with returning to work in some sectors and a slow payment response time from the Kansas Department of Labor, the pressure on food banks continues to be strong. By Peggy Bair/HeartKC Continue reading Need Still Strong for Food Bank
Kansas Senate Considers HB2196 as Unemployed Kansas Workers Brace for Fewer Weeks of Benefits “If you give them more time…they are not going to be sharp,” – Rep. Sean Tarwater Unemployed Kansas workers – which include workers who live in other states but are employed in Kansas – will see a reduction of benefit weeks and tighter restrictions on back-to-work requirements beginning April 1, 2021 … Continue reading Kansas Senate Poised to Reduce Benefits Weeks for Unemployed Kansas Workers
Alec Osterhaus 8 mos., was brought with his family to attend a rally in front of Kansas Governor Laura Kelly’s mansion Saturday, March 13, 2021 in Topeka. HIs mother has been waiting 11 weeks without payment from KDOL. Continue reading The KDOL Stall
Cassandra Dickerson has been leading the weekly protests on Fridays at the state Capitol in Topeka. She wants Governor Kelly to come out to the next protest and meet with the group to hear them. Continue reading Pandemic Poverty Grips Middle Class Jobless
Niah, 10, is one of three children whose mother depends on payments from Kansas Department of Labor to pay for food, rent and basics. The family has gone without payment for the past 11 weeks and can no longer pay bills. Continue reading Out of Money, Out of Time
