The COVID-19 pandemic has rocked a New York population of nearly 20 million people, especially business owners and their employees who contribute to the economic prosperity of the state.
As working-class New Yorkers continue to deal with the devastating economic impact of the virus, more of them find themselves on the unemployment line fighting to afford the cost of living.
"My bills don’t stop requesting payment because I’m on furlough," said Annette Gaitan in an interview.
Gaitan was a style advisor for Bloomingdale's before she was furloughed on March 17 due to COVID-19.
"Luckily, I had money saved prior to the pandemic, but I am absolutely experiencing economic hardships."
Gaitan is one of many workers who has suffered due to the Coronavirus's effect on New York's workforce. New York State Department of Labor's "Worker Adjustment and Retraining Notification" data shows that over 100,000 employees have been either laid off or furloughed due to COVID-related reasons.
The map below indicates the top 10 industries by the number of employees affected across New York State.
The Worker Adjustment and Retraining Notification Act of 1988 (or simply, the "WARN Act"), was developed to protect employees and their families by requiring employers to give advance notification of plant closings and mass layoffs.
The WARN Act applies to private businesses that have 50 or more full-time workers. Employers are required to give all affected employees, any employee representatives, the Department of Labor (DOL) and the Local Workforce Investment Board (LWIB) a 90-day advanced notice of layoffs.
This includes closings that affect 25 or more workers, mass layoffs involving at least 33% of all the workers at the site or 250 or more full-time workers.
Alana Breuer, a front office manager at the Hilton Garden Inn in Rosyln, New York, was furloughed on March 19 when Governor Andrew Cuomo officially called for a statewide lockdown. She is part of a hotel industry that has experienced 14% of the total employees affected by WARN notices as of May 7.
"This will definitely impact the travel industry," said Breuer. "Weddings have been canceled until at least August, which we receive a lot of business from."
The point of the WARN Act is to allow employees time to prepare for unemployment and seek relief options such as unemployment insurance benefits.
My bills don’t stop requesting payment because I’m on furlough." - Annette Gaitan, a Bloomingdale's employee who was furloughed in March.
But the New York's Department of Labor has had problems processing requests due to the sudden influx of claims and their antiquated computer systems.
"I have been unable to get in contact with a human being at the Department of Labor after attempting to call for weeks—days at a time," said Gaitan. She made an error on her weekly filing for unemployment benefits after misunderstanding an ambiguous question.
"I wrote a message and the solution was not even solved."
The 30-year-old Breuer stated that she finally received her unemployment benefits after not having an income after over a month.
The Department of Labor could not be reached for comment.
With a COVID-19 vaccine a long way away, industries decimated by layoffs will take years to recover, potentially reshaping what the workforce will look like and who will belong to it when things return to normal.
There may be no clear answer to the question, "Who owns New York?" but there is at least a clear indication of who used to own it.
The federal government has pumped billions of dollars into the Small Business Administration's disaster relief programs, such as the "Paycheck Protection Program" and the "Economic Injury Disaster Loan Program," as a way to incentivize business owners to hold onto their employees.But a majority of owners have been unable to weather the storm, and the workers who have suffered as a result will be facing a tough road ahead when returning to a job market that will be crowded once the pandemic has ended.