A Houston resident filed a lawsuit against a janitorial business alleging negligence in 2013.

Kay Leftwich Dohanyos filed a complaint against ABM Janitorial Services and South Central Inc. in the Houston Division of the Southern District of Texas on July 2, claiming liability in an August 2013 fall on a wet restroom floor that the suit states permanently rendered the victim unable to work.

According to the suit, the defendant was contracted to perform custodial services in the Continental/United flight attendants’ lounge at George Bush International Airport in Houston. The complaint states that ABM was negligent in failing to keep the premises, including the women’s restroom, in a safe condition.

Dohanyos, a United Airlines employee, contends that she was injured when stepping on a wet restroom floor that an ABM employee had just mopped. The plaintiff avers that there were no warning signs or barriers to let patrons know of the floor’s condition. She alleges personal injuries, including a torn rotator cuff requiring surgery, resulting in chronic pain, reduced range of motion, and limited physical ability, prohibiting her from continuing to work.

The plaintiff avers physical impairment and disfigurement, loss of earning capacity, anguish, medical expenses, and loss of enjoyment of life. She seeks in excess of $75,000 in compensation for damages, pre- and post-judgment interest, attorney’s fees, expenses, and costs. 

Dohanyos is represented by Jan Woodward Fox and Cameron Weir in Houston.

Houston Division of the Southern District of Texas case number 4:15-cv-01899.

Source: Texas Record

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The U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission sued Crothall Services Group Inc. in U.S. District Court in Philadelphia Thursday for failing to keep proper employment records.

The suit said that Crothall, a nationwide janitorial and facilities management services company based in Wayne, routinely assessed applicants' criminal backgrounds in making hiring decisions.

Federal law requires employers to keep records that show whether the use of criminal background checks or any other selection test, ends up causing discrimination in the hiring process.

Thursday's suit stems from a 2010 EEOC investigation into Crothall's hiring practices. When subpoenaed for their records, the company didn't produce any, the suit said. The EEOC wants the court to order Crothall to maintain and produce employment records.

Source: Philly.com 

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Detained Immigrants Sue Over Getting $1 a Day for Work

Immigrants who were detained at a suburban Denver facility while they awaited deportation proceedings are suing the private company that held them, alleging they were paid $1 a day to do janitorial work, sometimes under threat of solitary confinement.

They scrubbed toilets, mopped and swept floors, did laundry, and prepared and served meals, among other duties, according to attorneys who filed the lawsuit in October on behalf of nine current and former detainees.

U.S. District Court Judge John L. Kane declined a request Monday from Florida-based GEO Group Inc. to dismiss the claims against the company, allowing the federal lawsuit to proceed.

GEO is one of the largest contractors with the federal government for the detention of immigrants suspected of being in the country illegally or legal permanent residents with criminal records who face deportation. The company has denied wrongdoing and said in court documents the work is voluntary and it is abiding by federal guidelines in paying $1 a day.

Attorneys for the immigrants say they'll move to expand the case by seeking class-action status. They say the judge's ruling clears the way to gather more information from GEO through discovery proceedings about how many detainees were put to work.

The attorneys said they have heard from clients for years that immigrants labor for almost nothing at private detention facilities around the country, but they called the lawsuit filed in Colorado the first of its kind.

"It's their job to run the facility, and instead they used and abused us to run the facility, and that's why we're suing," said plaintiff Alejandro Menocal, 53. Menocal is a legal permanent resident who was detained for three months at GEO's Aurora facility while facing deportation last fall.

GEO responded in a statement that its facilities "provide high-quality services in safe, secure and humane residential environments, and our company strongly refutes allegations to the contrary."

The company says attorneys and immigrant advocates have full access to its facilities that U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement contracts with, and they're routinely audited and inspected by the government.

Anita Sinha, a faculty member at Washington College of Law, American University who has researched immigrant labor at private detention centers, said Congress set the daily wage in 1950 and it hasn't been adjusted for inflation.

She said on a daily basis, immigrants facing deportation occupy about 34,000 beds nationally in private and government-run facilities. More than 60 percent of the beds are in privately held facilities, she said.

The company succeeded in getting the judge to dismiss a claim that it violated Colorado'sminimum wage law because detainees were paid $1 a day instead of $8.23 an hour. In tossing that claim, Kane said the detainees do not qualify as employees under state law.

But he said the lawsuit could proceed on the allegations that GEO unjustly profited from the detainees and violated the federal Trafficking Victims Protection Act, which prohibits forced labor.

"Legally, this is a big step forward," said Hans Meyer, Menocal's attorney.

It's common for inmates at state or privately run prisons to work below minimum wage, in some cases for the purpose of gaining job training.

"The difference here is that these are civil immigration detainees who are not being held for any criminal violation," said Brandt Milstein, another attorney in the lawsuit.

Menocal, a Mexican immigrant from Baja California, was released in September and kept his legal resident status after his attorney won his case. He said he faced deportation proceedings last year when authorities learned after a traffic stop that he had a criminal record from 2010 for driving with a suspended license and having his wife's prescription painkillers in his car.

He pleaded guilty and served a year of probation soon after, but he didn't come to the attention of immigration authorities at the time.

The lawsuit focuses only on the GEO's suburban Denver facilities, but the American Civil Liberties Union said the claims are similar to allegations they have heard around the country.

"There is a name for locking people up and forcing them to do work without paying real wages. It's called slavery," said Carl Takei, staff attorney at the national prison project of the ACLU.

The monetary amount the lawsuit seeks hasn't been determined.

Source: ABC

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Bill Murray was the last fan standing at the Grateful Dead’s final show of their “Fare Thee Well” concert series.

About 70,000 Deadheads gathered at Chicago’s Soldier Field to hear the band’s last show ever — but a backstage source said that well after they closed with encores of “Touch of Grey” and “Attics of My Life,” Murray “stayed late and helped the stadium cleaning crew at the end of the night!”

Native Chicagoan Murray was photographed in the crowd in a psychedelic patterned shirt, along with a hodgepodge of VIPs including Katy Perry and John Mayer, “Game of Thrones” guru George R.R. Martin, David Axelrod, Sen. Al Franken, Bill Walton, Perry Farrell and Chloë Sevigny.

Source: Page Six

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SAN FRANCISCO — On-demand cleaning company Handy Technologies was sued this week by a worker alleging she should be classified as an employee, the latest in a debate over whether workers in the sharing economy are independent contractors or employees entitled to benefits.

The proposed class action lawsuit, filed on Tuesday in a Massachusetts federal court, seeks reimbursement of expenses and minimum wages for Handy workers. The results of the broader legal battle could reshape the sharing economy, as companies say the contractor model allows for flexibility that many see as key to their success.

Last month, a California labor official found that one San Francisco-based driver for ride service Uber was an employee and entitled to expenses.

Uber began operating in Portland last year and expanded to the seaside towns of Bar Harbor, Kennebunk, Ogunquit and Old Orchard Beach this summer. The Legislature overrode a veto to enact a law setting regulating ridesharing services, which prohibits municipalities from enacting their own restrictions.

An ultimate finding against companies such as Handy and Uber could force them to pay Social Security, workers’ compensation and unemployment insurance.

Maisha Emmanuel has worked as a Handy cleaner in the Boston area since last May and was often paid less than minimum wage, according to her lawsuit. One week she worked more than 30 hours and was paid only $14 because she had to buy a cleaning kit, the lawsuit said.

In a statement, Handy said its workers “make on average over $17 an hour per job” using its platform.

“We are creating opportunities for thousands of professionals who now have access to economic security for themselves and their families,” the company said.

Emmanuel’s case was filed by the same attorney who brought two similar, high profile lawsuits against Uber and Lyft. In the past year, at least three lawsuits alleging worker misclassification have been filed against Handy, while competitor Homejoy has faced at least four, according to Westlaw dockets.

One of the cases against Handy is pending, another is in arbitration, and a third was withdrawn. The four cases against Homejoy are pending.

In May, technology blog Techcrunch reported that Handy was in acquisition talks for Homejoy. Homejoy representatives could not immediately be reached for comment.

Handy’s venture backers include TPG Growth, and last month, the company announced it had reached 1 million customer bookings.

The lawsuit in U.S. District Court, District of Massachusetts, is Maisha Emmanuel vs. Handy Technologies Inc., 15-12914.

Source: Bangor Daily 

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NEW YORK (CBSNewYork) — What do you use to get your home clean? Would you try only water and a cloth to remove dirt and germs?

Products on the market are designed to do just that — clean surfaces including kitchen counters and bathroom sinks with only water.

CBS2’s Alice Gainer looks at the “new green clean.”

Blogger Becky Rapinchuk is known as the Clean Mama and she’s been using natural cleaning products in her home for quite some time.

“I make pretty much everything as a homemade cleaner,” Rapinchuk said.

But  now, a growing number of cleaning tools are aimed at taking the “green clean” one step further.

The products on the market, many made of microfiber are designed to work with plain old water and without the need for chemical cleaners.

“For just every day wiping down the counters, cleaning surfaces, water and a microfiber cloth is sufficient,” Rapinchuk said.

John Owen is a senior household analyst for a market research firm. Their research shows 37 percent of adults would be interested in using microfiber and water to clean dirt, grease and bacteria.

12 percent of people already use microfiber on a daily basis.

“And young adults, those who are sort of in their 20s and 30s say, are more than twice as likely and we think that’s an indication that the market is growing and that there’s a generational shift going on,” Owen said.

It’s a shift that has cleaning companies taking notice, Gainer reports.

Owen says manufacturers are responding to consumer concerns about ingredients in cleaning products.

“People are increasingly equating a clean home with a healthy home and a healthy family,” Owen said. “But at the same time there’s also concern about the cleaning product ingredients. So for these consumers, they still want their homes clean, but they’re looking for alternatives.”

But are alternatives designed to work without chemicals effective?

Microbiologist Dr. Michael Schmidt says microfiber, which is smaller than a human hair, is good at trapping dust, and even bacteria and viruses.

“It’s this frizzy end at the end of this very small fiber that facilitates the pickup of bacteria and viruses from surfaces,” Dr. Schmidt said.

But, for situations when a family member is ill or when it comes to cleaning up the kitchen after handling raw food, Dr. Schmidt says to “use a disinfectant and good old elbow grease to make certain that that material is gone.”

One possibly drawback to skipping the cleaning solution in favor of water? The absence of that clean smell.

“People often tell that the home is clean by how it smells, so that’s a potential barrier to the use of just water and a, a cloth,” Owen said.

Rapinchuk usually uses a cleaner in her kitchen and bathroom, but for times when she sticks to water, she doesn’t mind missing out on the scent.

“I’m OK with that when it’s quicker and the mess is actually cleaned up,” Rapinchuk said.

Source: CBS

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Unclog Your Drain With Baking Soda and Vinegar

The pipes at my house are so old that the plumbing kept backing up . Going one week between “maintenance cleaning outs” was enough to land me in ankle-deep water before I even had a chance to shave my legs.

I sadly say that this is not a way to unclog very troublesome drains. But it is a great way to keep on top of a slow-moving drain or after you’ve used an oil/sugar scrub (which I’ve noticed tends to increase the likelihood of future clogging).

Don’t even get me started, though, on how ecofriendly baking soda and vinegar drain cleaner is, compared to Drano Liquid Plumr anything you buy at the store. And with a little bit of extra elbow grease and a plunger, you can use them to unclog the toughest drains. It just takes a while.

But here’s how you do it the easy way (before your drain becomes a clog monster):

How to Unclog A Drain With Baking Soda and Vinegar

Pour a pot of boiling hot water down your drain.

Dump in about 1/2 c. baking soda. Let that sit for a few minutes.

Then, pour a mixture of 1 c. vinegar and 1. c very hot water down on top of the baking soda.

Cover with a drain plug (to keep the reaction down below the drain surface) if you have one and let it sit for 5-10 minutes.

Flush one more time with a pot of boiling water.

Why this works: The baking soda and hot water treatment will loosen up any grimy sludge that’s hanging out at the bottom of your drain, and the explosive chemical reaction with the vinegar will jolt it all loose.

http://www.ijcsa.org/Green-Cleaning-Services

Every day, many of us spray, wipe, and clean with products that contain impossible-to-pronounce ingredients and impossible-to-identify chemicals. These cleaning products do the job they were designed for, but what about potential health and environmental impacts?

Is a smudge-free window worth a wheezing toddler? Does a fresh smelling living room outweigh a potential outbreak of allergies.

Your guests arrive in an hour but the house smells of the dog who hasn’t been washed in months. The  reaction is to douse everything in sight with a can of Glade or Febreze. This might solve the problem of a stinky house, but these products can coat nasal passages with an oil film or even deaden nerves in the nose. Chemicals like Acetaldehyde (carcinogen) and Propylene Glycol (allergen) cover up odors through brute strength rather than a more subtle approach to odor control.

When you think of drain cleaner like Drano, the image of a corrosive liquid and hair probably flashes before your eyes. To be fair, typical drain cleaners contain some of the most egregious chemicals – lye, hydrochloric acid, and trichloroethane. Product liability specialists report that some of the most common cases of infant poisoning are a result of youngsters rooting around under the sink and ingesting even a small amount of drain cleaner. You don’t need harsh chemicals to unclog stubborn drains, you just need a few ingredients to loosen things up and allow gravity and water to do the rest.

Whether they come from dog slobber or sticky little fingers, window streaks can make an otherwise clean household look unkempt. Windex is the age-old answer to these problems, but according to several insurance specialists, this product contains ammonia which can irritate the eyes and lungs, and isopropanol, which can induce drowsiness. Products like this are overkill, especially when crystal clear windows are attainable with only a few household ingredients.

And you ask how will i implement Green in my business?  Not only will Green be at work Green is my new lifestyle, the benefits of a healthier safer environment is pretty incredible.   Americans spend approximately 90 percent of their time indoors, it is crucial to make the home environment as safe as possible. Indoor pollutants have proliferated in recent years, often either because modern construction techniques and furnishings manufacturers utilize hazardous materials or because consumers do not know enough about the products they buy to make informed choices.

But safe, nontoxic alternatives exist for nearly every real need around the home, and the search for them may help consumers distinguish between what they really do need, and what may be "luxuries" that could compromise their familys well being.   

http://www.ijcsa.org/Sys/PublicProfile/28372221/1855234

Every day, many of us spray, wipe, and clean with products that contain impossible-to-pronounce ingredients and impossible-to-identify chemicals. These cleaning products do the job they were designed for, but what about potential health and environmental impacts?

Is a smudge-free window worth a wheezing toddler? Does a fresh smelling living room outweigh a potential outbreak of allergies.

Your guests arrive in an hour but the house smells of the dog who hasn’t been washed in months. The  reaction is to douse everything in sight with a can of Glade or Febreze. This might solve the problem of a stinky house, but these products can coat nasal passages with an oil film or even deaden nerves in the nose. Chemicals like Acetaldehyde (carcinogen) and Propylene Glycol (allergen) cover up odors through brute strength rather than a more subtle approach to odor control.

When you think of drain cleaner like Drano, the image of a corrosive liquid and hair probably flashes before your eyes. To be fair, typical drain cleaners contain some of the most egregious chemicals – lye, hydrochloric acid, and trichloroethane. Product liability specialists report that some of the most common cases of infant poisoning are a result of youngsters rooting around under the sink and ingesting even a small amount of drain cleaner. You don’t need harsh chemicals to unclog stubborn drains, you just need a few ingredients to loosen things up and allow gravity and water to do the rest.

Whether they come from dog slobber or sticky little fingers, window streaks can make an otherwise clean household look unkempt. Windex is the age-old answer to these problems, but according to several insurance specialists, this product contains ammonia which can irritate the eyes and lungs, and isopropanol, which can induce drowsiness. Products like this are overkill, especially when crystal clear windows are attainable with only a few household ingredients.

And you ask how will i implement Green in my business?  Not only will Green be at work Green is my new lifestyle, the benefits of a healthier safer environment is pretty incredible.   Americans spend approximately 90 percent of their time indoors, it is crucial to make the home environment as safe as possible. Indoor pollutants have proliferated in recent years, often either because modern construction techniques and furnishings manufacturers utilize hazardous materials or because consumers do not know enough about the products they buy to make informed choices.

But safe, nontoxic alternatives exist for nearly every real need around the home, and the search for them may help consumers distinguish between what they really do need, and what may be "luxuries" that could compromise their familys well being.

Not too hot, not too cold. But not, alas, just right.

The economy added a healthy 223,000 jobs last month, the Labor Department reported Thursday, but with other indicators showing wages flat and many Americans remaining on the sidelines, the overall economic picture for workers was not nearly as bright.

Although the unemployment rate fell to 5.3 percent, the lowest in seven years, that was driven largely by an exodus from the work force, rather than more people finding jobs. Moreover, the strong payroll gains for April and May, which had led many analysts to conclude that the economy might finally be gaining momentum, were revised downward by 60,000 jobs.

“This was an O.K. report, but the unemployment rate didn’t go down for the right reasons,” said Liz Ann Sonders, chief investment strategist at Charles Schwab.

Perhaps most discouraging, average hourly earnings didn’t budge in June despite the drop in the unemployment rate from 5.5 percent in May, disappointing hopes that wages were finally increasing for most workers. It was a strong sign that plenty of slack remains in the job market, and that companies do not yet feel much pressure to raise pay to attract needed employees.

More at source: WSJ 

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