Community Legal Services, Philadelphia Legal Assistance and the Public Interest Law Center are providing virtual and hotline services as part of their grant-funded homeownership project serving Germantown and West and East Oak Lanes.
Community Legal Services
1. The Energy Unit: Help for those struggling with utility affordability, facing utility shut offs or trying to restart services.Call (215) 981–3700. Clients can leave a message and an advocate will return the call.
2. Homeownership and Consumer Rights: Property tax-related challenges, problems with titles and help getting the deed to a home. Call the Save Your Home Philly hotline at (215) 334–4663 for assistance.
They are providing education for community members, housing counselors, and other housing professionals about these issues and is working with the Courts and the City’s Department of Revenue to create policy responses to assist homeowners affected by the pandemic. See more at https://clsphila.org/housing/homeownership-pandemic/
Philadelphia Legal Assistance
3. Unemployment Compensation: Not getting through to unemployment, having trouble appealing your application? Call (215) 981–3800 Monday -Thursday, 9:30am–12:00pm.
They provide advice and representation to income eligible individuals trying to navigate the PA Unemployment Compensation system. While the UC unit usually focuses on appeals, right now they are trying to provide assistance at the front end of the application process as well.
4. Application Service Hotline: Need help filling out unemployment application? The hotline number is 215–999–6910
The hours for the hotline are:
Monday, 9 am — 1 pm
Tuesday 1 pm — 5 pm
Wednesday 3 pm — 7 pm
Thursday, 3 pm — 7 pm
Friday, 10 am — 2 pm
The Public Interest Law Center
5. Re-entry Training: Help for job seekers with criminal records and businesses that need education on fair hiring practices and the benefits of hiring returning citizens. Contact Claudia De Palma at cdepalma@pubintlaw.org for more information.
They are available to do virtual Know-Your-Rights workshops for job applicants and online trainings and information sessions for employers, service providers, and elected officials about ways to support job seekers with records.
