There’s a New Clinic to Help Self-Employed Folks Apply for Unemployment

Photo by Anastasiia Chepinska

The economic collapse that happened as a result of the COVID pandemic has hit self-employed people especially hard. And the process of getting unemployment can be almost labyrinthine.

That’s why I was excited to get a press release last week from the folks at the California Association for Micro Enterprise Opportunity (CAMEO). It seems CAMEO has teamed up with Renaissance Entrepreneurship Center, Legal Aid At Work, and the Zitrin Foundation to create a free legal clinic to help self-employed workers fill out the application. I know this is great news for many of you.

As it says in the press release:

As part of the federal CARES Act, the Pandemic Unemployment Assistance (PUA) program was established to help business owners, self-employed workers, independent contractors, and others with a limited work history who may not be eligible for other forms of unemployment insurance. However, despite PUA’s substantial benefits, few eligible people have used the program. This may be due to the fact that applying for and receiving assistance can be hard for many workers who have limited experience navigating government programs and infrastructure, or whose English proficiency level may be a barrier to access.

Source: Andy Kiersz / Business Insider

Self-employed workers who are interested in this legal clinic can call (415) 484-8372 or fill out this online form. A volunteer will ask them a few questions and set up an appointment with a Legal Aid At Work counselor. Help is available also in Spanish, Tagalog, Mandarin, Cantonese and possibly others.