Portland News and Events for Dec. 17, 2015 - Jan., 2016

BOLI Announces Sick Time Seminars for Employers

The Bureau of Labor and Industries (BOLI) will hold a series of sick time-related seminars starting in December so that employers can learn about Oregon’s new requirements set to take effect next year, the agency announced today.

Passed by the 2015 Oregon Legislature, SB 454 expands access to sick time for hundreds of thousands of workers who currently do not have access to any paid time off when they’re ill or caring for a sick child or spouse.

Compliance experts will hold the first seminar in December, followed by a series of statewide seminars in early 2016 to help employers navigate Oregon’s new protections. To reserve a spot, employers can email the agency at bolita@boli.state.or.us. Attendance at each is $25.

Registration is open while locations are being secured and finalized. Interested employers can visit the agency’s Technical Assistance for Employers website at www.oregon.gov/BOLI/TA/pages/index.aspx.

Final rules for Oregon leave can be found online at www.oregon.gov/boli/TA/docs/2015%20Sick%20Time%20Rules.pdf. Additional fact sheets, sample sick time accrual notice templates, sick leave notice posters for employees (that, while not mandatory, can satisfy notice requirements), and other resources are also available from the agency’s Technical Assistance for Employers Program.

A diverse advisory committee comprised of employers, labor organizations, legislators, agricultural and farm sector representatives, and family policy advocates assisted BOLI in the rulemaking process.

Employers can contact the agency with sick time or other employment questions at (971) 673-0824.

Scammers Claiming to be Law Enforcement on Phone Threatening Arrest for Missing Court

The Portland Police Bureau has received a report from a Portland resident who received a phone call from a person claiming to be a police officer and threatening to arrest the victim for missing court if they don't pay a fine over the phone. The victim in this report lost $500 before realizing it was a scam.

In other recent scams, scammers are "spoofing" their phone number so that caller ID makes it appear that the call is originating from a law enforcement facility.

Other scammers have claimed to be holding someone in custody unless thousands of dollars are paid over the phone.

Callers typically instruct the victims to purchase re-loadable cards and call them back with the numbers.

Similar scams have been reported in the past year where callers claim to be with a utility or other government agency.

These scammers will often target older community members and/or residents for whom English is a second language. Most often, the scammers are located outside of the United States of America.

The Portland Police Bureau reminds you to be aware that:

• The Portland Police Bureau or any other legitimate law enforcement agency does not call community members seeking payment for outstanding traffic citations or warrants.
• The Portland Police Bureau does not call individuals and demand money from community members under any circumstances.
• Individuals claiming to collect debts may try to instill fear in potential victims to persuade them to forward money.

MoneyPak/Green Dot and Vanilla Reload have online tools to allow purchasers to request a refund if the scammer has not yet cashed the card.

For more information, please visit www.moneypak.com/refundrequest.aspx for MoneyPak/Green Dot and www.vanillareload.com/index.php/refund for Vanilla Reload.

If you are a resident of Portland and fall victim to these scammers with financial loss, you are encouraged to file a report by calling the Portland Police Bureau's Non-Emergency line at 503-823-3333.

Providence Hospice Officers Free Volunteer Training

Providence Hospice will offer a free comprehensive course of training to prepare people who are interested in becoming hospice volunteers. The course will be held in Portland.

The course will consist of four afternoon and two all-day Saturday sessions; participants must be able to attend all six sessions. Pre-registration required by Jan. 5.

12:30-4 p.m., Tuesday, Jan. 19
12:30-4 p.m., Thursday, Jan. 21
9 a.m. to 4 p.m., Saturday, Jan. 2, patient care day
12:30-4 p.m., Tuesday, Jan. 26
12:30-4 p.m., Thursday, Jan. 28
9 a.m. to 4 p.m., Saturday, Jan. 30

Hospice volunteers help people who are facing terminal illness. The training course covers the basic principles of hospice, special needs of patients and their families, effective communication, patient care, pain and symptom management, spiritual caregiving and understanding grief and loss.

Hospice volunteers are needed in Multnomah, Washington and Yamhill counties, especially in Gresham, Milwaukie, Oregon City, Newberg, Hillsboro and Forest Grove. Volunteers who are fluent in Spanish are also needed.

Volunteers must be at least 16 years old. No previous hospice experience is required. Some of the areas of volunteer service are: respite care, bereavement, children’s grief support, oncology and program support.

For more information or to request an application packet, please call Jean Lyons, Providence Hospice Volunteer Services, at (503) 215-4857.

PPB Announces Holiday Season DUII Enforcement

Throughout the 2015 holiday season, the Portland Police Bureau will teamed up with Oregon Impact to combat impaired driving. These efforts will be funded through a grant supplied by Oregon Impact, with additional police patrols from the Portland Police Bureau's Traffic Division.

Last year this grant partnership arrested over 425 impaired drivers as a result of increased patrols.

We hope everyone had an enjoyable Thanksgiving season with family and friends; however it is important to remember that we need to all be responsible during the holiday season.

Additional DUII enforcement will once again be occurring during the month of December to ensure community safety, and to prevent holiday tragedies.

The Portland Police Bureau would like to remind the public that drug impaired driving is certainly just as dangerous as alcohol impaired driving.

Please continue to find your designated drivers, utilize transportation services such as TriMet, taxis or ride-sharing services.

If you consume alcoholic beverages or marijuana, please do so responsibly and remember that buzzed driving is drunk driving. Support zero tolerance for impaired driving by reporting impaired drivers to 9-1-1.

For more Portland Metro and Seattle area events see our Community Calendar.