Pandemic May Force New York City to Lay Off 22,000 Workers

Mayor Bill de Blasio and other top officials warned on Wednesday that the coronavirus pandemic was putting tremendous stress on the finances of government in New York City, raising the prospect that they might have to carry out cuts in infrastructure spending and some of the most sweeping layoffs of municipal workers in decades.

The bleak financial picture threatens to hamper New York’s recovery even as it emerges from a brutal lockdown that shut down businesses and brought the city to a virtual halt for three months after it became the epicenter of the U.S. pandemic.


The alarms from New York officials reflect a broader political strategy — threatening deep cuts as part of their effort to pressure Washington to provide more assistance. And New York City’s predicament speaks to the dire fiscal situation of states and localities across the nation.

With the coronavirus siphoning as much as $9 billion in tax revenue from New York City, Mr. de Blasio said on Wednesday that the city might have to lay off or furlough 22,000 municipal workers this fall.

https://www.nytimes.com/2020/06/24/nyregion/budget-layoffs-nyc-mta-coronavirus.html?utm_source=nl&utm_brand=wired&utm_mailing=WIR_Science_062420&utm_campaign=aud-dev&utm_medium=email&utm_term=WIR_Science&bxid=5be9f8cb24c17c6adf0e5d24&cndid=25394153&esrc=bounceX&source=EDT_WIR_NEWSLETTER_0_SCIENCE_ZZ