Around 500 laborers and workers shut down the Manhattan Bridge during the Monday morning rush hour to push for state legislation that would provide more workers with access to unemployment benefits in times of need.
Groups that participated in the rally included Make the Road New York, Street Vendor Project, NY Taxi Workers, Laborers Local 79, New Immigrant Community Empowerment, Desis Rising Up, Release Aging People in Prison Campaign, and the National Day Laborer Organizing Network.
They are calling for Governor Kathy Hochul to establish what’s known as the Unemployment Bridge Program, which would provide unemployment compensation to people not ordinarily covered by standard unemployment benefits, in her 2024 budget.
This is the second year in a row that Hochul has not included financial support for excluded workers in her budget, said Yatziri Tovar, spokesperson for immigrant advocacy group Make the Road New York. This has prompted groups to act before the 2024 budget deadline of April 1.
“This is the third time we’re shutting down the Manhattan Bridge,” Tovar said. “One of the main demands is for the Unemployment Bridge Program, which would open the doors for the safety net for excluded workers. We want to make sure that Governor Hochul is able to include it in the state budget.”
BREAKING: 500+ excluded workers w/ @FEWCoalition shut down the Manhattan Bridge calling on Albany to include the Unemployment Bridge Program in this year’s budget. #ExcludedNoMore pic.twitter.com/JrxtGCgpFr
— Make the Road NY :butterfly: (@MaketheRoadNY) March 6, 2023
The Unemployment Bridge Program is folded within a state bill co-sponsored by state Senator Jessica Ramos and Assembly Member Karina Reyes, which if passed, would establish a new, permanent excluded worker unemployment fund for workers that don’t qualify for regular unemployment insurance.
The program would support workers who don’t qualify for the current program because of their immigration status or the kind of work they do, which includes freelancers, self-employed workers, undocumented workers, and formerly incarcerated workers.
The battle to support excluded workers has been long. There were marches across the Brooklyn Bridge in 2021 that led to the inclusion of a $2.1 billion Excluded Workers Fund in the state budget, the largest and first of its kind. The fund was able to provide $15,600 for more than 130,000 New Yorkers.
“People were able to access this fund, however, it ran out very quickly, which just shows the great need in our communities for this fund,” Tovar said. “Following that huge victory, our communities decided that we really needed to address this issue by fighting for a permanent program.”
If passed, the Unemployment Bridge Program would set up a $500 million fund that would loosely work in the same way that the current unemployment program works right now. The funding could cover a $1,200 monthly payment for 30,000 people for six months at any given time, according to Make the Road New York.
Street vendors, ubiquitous across New York City, are among those who are self-employed workers who could benefit from the passage of the bill, said Carina Kaufman-Gutierrez, deputy director of Street Vendor Project, which represents more than 2,000 vendors in New York City.
“For so long vendors have had to deal with an inconsistent regulatory system,” Kaufman-Gutierrez said. “They’re falling between the cracks on so many different levels.”
Some of the ways street vendors would be eligible for the unemployment compensation through the program would be if a vendor loses their merchandise or vending equipment due to situations including a permit loss, robbery or assault, flooding or fire.
Kaufman-Gutierrez highlighted the experiences of two Manhattan-based street vendors, Hulya and Mohamed, who faced, respectively, permitting issues and “really aggressive streetscape redesign with the intention of removing vendors.”
“The program really addresses a lot of the unique circumstances that street vendors face,” Kaufman-Gutierrez said. “To be able to support them to go back to doing business recognizes the labor that they contribute to New York State and allowing them access to a basic labor right.”
