The Social Security Administration has launched a campaign to let people know there is money on the table for many Arizonans who may qualify for financial assistance from Supplemental Security Income.

Abigail Zapote, senior adviser for the Social Security Administration, said SSI provides monthly payments to those with limited income and financial resources, including adults aged 65 and older or adults and children with a disability or blindness.

According to Social Security data, in 2020 there were almost 119,000 SSI recipients in Arizona.

Zapote acknowledged some people still could be eligible for the program and realizes the number may not be proportional to the actual need in the state.

"We know that there are more people, more communities that might be eligible for this benefit," Zapote explained. "As we've talked to communities in Arizona, we know that there is a large portion of Indian Country in Arizona and we want to make sure that those communities also know that SSA is here to provide them support."

Zapote pointed out the monthly payments can help with basic needs such as rent, food, clothing and medicine. She encouraged Arizonans who think they could qualify to visit ssa.gov/ssi or call 1-800-772-1213.

More than 32% of Arizona's population is Hispanic or Latino, according to the U.S. Census, which Zapote said the SSA is well aware of. She added someone who is not a citizen but a resident of the U.S. still could be eligible for SSI. Additionally, if someone is undocumented but has U.S.-born children, those children could also qualify for SSI.

"We know that Arizona also has a large population of non-English speakers," Zapote emphasized. "We want to let folks know that they can give us a call at our 800-number and request interpreter services, and they can also request interpreter services once they get their appointment at a field office to get that additional support to fill out the application."

According to the Social Security Administration, one's monthly payment depends on various factors like income, living situation as well as owned assets. Zapote said in 2023 the administration achieved its goal to increase SSI applications by 25%, and added they want to continue to do what they can to help more individuals.


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A newly enacted law provides New York freelancers with labor protections.

The "Freelance Isn't Free Act" prevents companies from not paying freelancers. The law requires a contract between freelancers and clients for any work valued at $800 or more. It also requires clients to pay freelancers by the contract's due date or within 30 days of work completion if no date is specified.

Rafael Espinal, executive director of the Freelancers Union, said the law has been needed for a long time.

"We've found that freelancers, on average, lose about $6,000 a year because of nonpaying clients," Espinal reported. "We know, in a state like New York, $6,000 goes a long way in being able to keep up with the cost of living and being able to pay their bills like their rent, utilities, putting food on the table."

Freelancers have provided positive feedback on the law but it faced hurdles before passing in late 2023. Some companies expressed compliance concerns about larger businesses' interactions with freelancers. Gov. Kathy Hochul initially vetoed the bill. At first, enforcing the bill went to the Department of Labor but the passed version puts the responsibility on the Attorney General's office.

Before the bill passed, Espinal advised freelancers about how to make contracts bulletproof so they were guaranteed payment. Some steps involve stipulations ensuring payment at milestone periods of a job and net payment terms. Espinal noted the new law expands what is considered a written agreement to protect freelancers further.

"The law really captures all written agreements and considers them to be contracts," Espinal explained. "It could be anything as simple as a text message, outlining the work with the payment terms. It can be an email, it doesn't necessarily have to be a traditional contract on legal paper."

This bill was modeled after New York City's own "Freelance Isn't Free" law. Aside from New York, Kansas, Missouri and Los Angeles have similar protections for freelancers.

As the Biden-Harris Administration prepares to invest up to $175 billion in tax money into semiconductor manufacturing under the CHIPS Act, a new Institute for Policy Studies report warns guardrails are necessary to ensure that workers in Colorado and across the U.S. - who make tiny chips critical for electronic devices - are getting good jobs.

Report author Chris Rodrigo, the managing editor at the institute's Inequality.org website, said the U.S. Department of Commerce should add key worker protections - including good wages, safety from toxic chemicals, and the freedom to unionize - to all contracts before backing up the Brinks trucks.

"Commerce should require, or at least strongly encourage, companies to not try to disrupt any organizing activity going on," said Rodrigo. "Having unions at these companies is a good back stop to make sure there aren't too many violations of people's labor rights."

The report also recommends banning stock buy-backs and other executive perks - to make sure that more taxpayer dollars are invested in workers in the form of improved wages, training, and safety measures.

Despite pledges from companies in the 1990s to phase out dangerous chemicals, miscarriage and cancer rates remain high among the global semiconductor workforce.

The industry and the administration cite rapid growth as a sign of a smart economic policy. And in fact the companies claim there aren't enough qualified Americans willing to take on jobs created by the CHIPS Act.

But researchers found there was no deficit of credentialed workers. Rodrigo cited a recent survey showing that many are turning to other industries because of bad work environments.

"And over half of the workers interviewed said they were likely to leave their jobs within the next three to six months," said Rodrigo. "Companies should look inward and try to improve the quality of jobs before blaming it on external factors like workers not being available or not being interested in working in their industry."

Rodrigo said he believes setting a good precedent now by demanding high quality jobs could be transformative for future public investments across the economy.

"This is an opportunity," said Rodrigo, "for the federal government to set strong standards for what jobs look like when public money is being given to any industry."




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A new report highlights Pennsylvania's strong economic growth and recovery, making the state a favorable environment for job seekers.

The findings from the Keystone Research Center show job growth in the state has consistently kept pace with, or exceeded, national rates over the past three years - despite slow working-age population growth.

Economist and the center's Executive Director Stephen Herzenberg said wages for nearly all groups of workers are increasing when adjusted for inflation.

"Whether you're a low wage worker, whether you're in the middle, whether you're a woman or a person of color or even a blue collar worker," said Herzenberg, "all of those categories of workers have seen inflation adjusted wages go up in the last year, in the last four or five years, and in the last decade."

Pennsylvania's unemployment rate is holding steady at 3.4%.

Despite overall positive trends, Herzenberg said income inequality remains a concern - because the benefits of economic growth were so unevenly distributed between 1980 and 2015.

Herzenberg pointed out the economy's success can be attributed to effective policies implemented during and after the pandemic.

He added that large-scale federal relief and investment bills have played a crucial role in the recovery.

"We've had investments in infrastructure and climate and innovation," said Herzenberg. "Two of those three bills passed in a bipartisan way, one of them with just Democratic votes - and those federal investments have helped sustain economic growth."

Herzenberg said he believes the Biden administration has possibly been the most pro-worker and pro-union in White House history.

The report indicates that in 2023 alone, union membership in Pennsylvania jumped 30% in the broad private service sector - up 64,000 workers to a new total of 279,000.