Earlier today, the NYS legislature released its one-house budgets – with no mention of excluded workers. So it is now on Governor Hochul to close the safety net for excluded workers. Her budget reserves billions for a “rainy day fund,” but for thousands of excluded workers – the rainy day is now!
An estimated 175,000 New Yorkers are still eligible for funding from the NYS Excluded Workers Fund but haven’t received it. The Department of Labor stated over 75,000 workers were denied just because the fund ran out of money. These New Yorkers are drowning in debt and struggling to feed their families with no path to recovery. All of us want to move on from COVID, but we can’t forget the families who are still coping with the damage that the pandemic inflicted.
Last week, hundreds of excluded workers, elected officials, and allies took over the Brooklyn and Manhattan Bridges to demand Excluded No More legislation to close the safety net for these workers. We shut down traffic in New York City. And now we march across the state.
Tomorrow, on March 15, excluded workers will launch a historic march through the districts of key state leadership. We will march on foot through New York City to the Bronx – calling on the Governor and key leadership to fully fund excluded workers.
Our coalition will then launch a cascade of rolling actions across the state – holding demonstrations and speak outs at over a dozen state elected offices – urging them to stand up and get the job done.
On March 23, the Fund Excluded Workers Coalition will arrive in Albany – bringing the stories of excluded workers front and center in the final push of the 2022 legislative budget. Retweet our statement released today on our demands to Albany!