New York City’s Covid-19 Economy Will Not Snap Back
New York City’s Covid-19 Economy Will Not Snap Back

New York City lost 750,000 payroll and self-employed/independent contractor jobs on average between the months of February and December in 2020. The loss for the entire year was the worst single-year city job decline since the 1930s. The partial rebound since last spring has been called a K-shaped recovery for good reason; many in the bottom half of the economy have lost jobs or earnings and are experiencing severe housing and food insecurity, while most of those in the top half retain their jobs, and many have seen their financial assets rise in value. The city’s underemployment rate is 25 percent. This report examines the Covid-19 economic and employment impact in New York City, including the demographic and industry contours of the job market effects and how the pandemic has exacerbated wage and income inequality.

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Covid-19, Inequality and PovertySeth MoncreaseCovid-19, Report, Economic Policy
In Covid-Era New York, Suicidal Kids Spend Days Waiting for Hospital Beds
In Covid-Era New York, Suicidal Kids Spend Days Waiting for Hospital Beds

As the Covid-19 pandemic grinds on, hospitals around New York State report a growing crisis for children who need mental health care: Suicide attempts and other psychiatric emergencies are up, inpatient units are full, and very sick kids regularly spend days in loud and crowded emergency rooms, waiting for beds to open up.

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Covid-19, Children, Families, Mental HealthSeth MoncreaseReport, Covid-19, Mental Health, Emergency
New York City’s Gig Driver Pay Standard: Effects on Drivers, Passengers, and the Companies
New York City’s Gig Driver Pay Standard: Effects on Drivers, Passengers, and the Companies

This report examines New York City’s app-dispatch driver pay standard and finds that in the first year of the pay standard (pre-pandemic) driver pay increased by about nine percent, passenger fares rose slightly but not much more than in Chicago without a pay standard, passenger wait times declined significantly, and some of the pay increase was absorbed by the app-dispatch companies through lower effective commission rates.

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Inequality and Poverty, EconomySeth MoncreaseLow-paid wage and gig workers, Report, Covid-19, report
Reforming New York State’s Partial Unemployment Insurance Program: The Urgency Now is Greater Than Ever Before
Reforming New York State’s Partial Unemployment Insurance Program: The Urgency Now is Greater Than Ever Before

New York’s antiquated law governing unemployment insurance disincentivizes work and threatens to slow the economic recovery. This report from the CNYCA analyzes the proposed Stirpe-Ramos bill’s reform for New York’s partial unemployment insurance benefits and finds that low- and moderate-income workers would benefit and models several scenarios to show that additional costs to the state’s UI trust fund will be small.

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Economy, Unemployment InsuranceSeth MoncreaseReport, Covid-19, report
Building Equitable Job Ladders for Social Services workers
Building Equitable Job Ladders for Social Services workers

Nonprofit social services provide essential services for a broad swathe of New Yorkers, yet these organizations face significant workforce retention and recruitment problems. This report from the Center for New York City Affairs outlines concrete steps that can be taken to invest in these essential workers by building robust career ladders, addressing pay disparities among workers, and raising the compensation of nonprofit workers to aid in retention and recruitment. The ongoing public health emergency and economic dislocation make clear the need to invest in social service workers essential not only during emergencies but also day in and day out.

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EconomySeth MoncreaseReport, Covid-19, report
Despite Covid-19’s Emotional Traumas, Student Mental Health Services Dry Up
Despite Covid-19’s Emotional Traumas, Student Mental Health Services Dry Up

When New York City released its "Bridge to School" plan in late August, officials called on teachers to make students' mental health needs their top priority. "Many of our young people are in pain,” City officials wrote.

But as students finally resume classes – remotely this week and in classrooms next – they will find that many social workers and other mental health care providers have disappeared from school budgets.

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Covid-19, Children, Child Welfare Watch, Families, Youth, Mental HealthSeth MoncreaseMental Health, Report, report
No Cure in Sight: The Covid-19 Economic Virus in New York City As the End of Summer Approaches
No Cure in Sight: The Covid-19 Economic Virus in New York City As the End of Summer Approaches

This report updates the Center's ongoing examination of the Covid-19 economic impact, finding that as of early August, unemployment remains distressingly high, and the July expiration of the temporary $600 Federal supplemental weekly unemployment insurance benefit will impose deep new hardships on hundreds of thousands of New Yorkers and on the entire city economy.

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Covid-19, Economy, Inequality and PovertySeth MoncreaseCovid-19, Report, report