Social & Economic Conditions

August 31, 2011.  One in seven New Yorkers out of work two years into "recovery." FPI's 2011 annual edition of the State of Working New York documents New York's continuing unemployment crisis in the context of the weak national economic recovery. Two years into the "recovery" from the Great Recession of 2008-2009, one in seven New York workers is unemployed, under-employed or has given up looking for work - a total of 1.4 million New Yorkers. Long-term unemployment is at record levels. Half of the unemployed have been out of work for more than six months, and 29 percent have been jobless for a year or more. Press release and report >>

July 20, 2011.  Scant recovery for workers in NYC: Young workers see gains, but unemployment worsens for older workers. This report, the latest on "The State of Working NYC," finds several crosscurrents in the first year after the job market bottomed out in NYC. Young workers (ages 16-21 and 22-27) gained in the recovery, contrary to the national trend of decreasing employment rates for these age groups. Unfortunately, older workers too bucked the trend: nationally they made small gains, but in NYC they fared worst of all age groups. While NYC's job growth outpaced the nation's early in the recovery, in recent months the city's job growth has slowed and now lags the nation. Two years after the national recession officially ended, New York still faces soberingly high unemployment and fundamental economic and job market challenges. Press release >> Report >>

September 16, 2010.  Poverty on the Rise in New York and Nation in 2009: Federal Assistance Lessened Recession's Impact. The Census Bureau today released state-level data showing that the poverty rate in New York State rose dramatically from 14.2 percent in 2008 to 15.8 percent in 2009. The number of New Yorkers in poverty jumped by 284,000 to a little over three million. Only once since 1980 - from 1989 to 1990 - has the poverty rate risen more than it did in 2009. The new data also show that 2009 brought a large increase in the national poverty rate, which jumped to 14.3 percent from 13.2 percent in 2008.

June 29, 2010.  The Self Sufficiency Standard for New York 2010. The Self Sufficiency Standard defines the income that working adults in New York need to meet their families' basic needs for housing, food, transportation, child care, medical care and taxes. The Self-Sufficiency Standard for 2010 shows that for most workers - across the state and in New York City - earnings well above the official Federal Poverty Level (FPL) are nevertheless far below what is needed to meet families' basic needs. Detailed information provided for a range of family profiles, for each county and New York City borough. More >>

March 10, 2010.  New York's Unemployment Crisis. In January 2010,  852,000 New Yorkers were unemployed, including 413,000 New York City residents. This fact sheet includes data on New York unemployment rates and payroll job losses, including FPI estimates of unemployment by gender, race, and ethnicity, and long-term unemployment.

December 21, 2009.  New York City in the Great Recession: Divergent Fates by Neighborhood and Race and Ethnicity. Current unemployment rates at a neighborhood level for New York City, and estimates of the unemployment rate by race/ethnicity and gender: the numbers show huge variations from neighborhood to neighborhood and also within neighborhoods. For example, while the overall unemployment rate in New York City was 10.1 percent in the third quarter of 2009, unemployment was 5.1 percent on Manhattan's Upper East and West Sides in the third quarter, compared to 15.7 percent in the South and Central Bronx and 19.2 percent in Brooklyn's East New York neighborhood. More, including an interactive map >>

December 21, 2009.  Job Creation Bills to be on Washington's Agenda in 2010. By James Parrott, FPI's deputy director and chief economist, who writes regularly for Gotham Gazette's Economy section.

December 17, 2009.  Recovery Act Keeping Roughly 419,000 New Yorkers Out of Poverty. New estimates released today by the Center on Budget and Policy Priorities (CBPP) are based on seven provisions of the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA) that directly affect individuals: three tax credits for working families, two unemployment insurance expansions, an increase in food stamps, and a one-time payment for retirees, veterans, and people with disabilities. Not only is the Recovery Act is creating jobs, helping close state and local budget gaps, and boosting the broader economy, it is also softening the recession's impact on poverty by directly lifting family incomes. Press release with link to study >>

November 19, 2009.  State of Working New York City 2009: A Tale of Two Recessions. This report from FPI is an examination of the impact of the country's "Great Recession" on the New York City economy. The data show the shallowness of the previous expansion from 2003 to 2007 before the onset of the Great Recession, and recession-related job losses and rising economic insecurities. The report also explores in detail the character and extent of unemployment in New York City - and finds that despite Wall Street's faster-than-expected recovery, the city's Main Street economy continues to struggle with high unemployment and widespread economic insecurity. More >>

September 22, 2009.  Amid Talk of Recovery, Jobless Rates Reach Double Digits. By James Parrott, FPI's deputy director and chief economist, who writes regularly for Gotham Gazette's Economy section.

September 16, 2009.  State of Working New York 2009: Unemployment and Economic Insecurity in the Great Recession. This report is the latest of FPI's biennial examinations of the conditions facing workers and working families in New York State, released as the country hobbles through the worst economic crisis - the steepest economic drop and the longest period of job loss - since the 1930s. We are living through what's been justly termed "The Great Recession." The report outlines significant ways in which the federal and state governments can support recovery. More >>

August 11, 2009.  New Federal Dollars for New York: The TANF Emergency Contingency Fund in the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009. Part III of this ongoing series of briefs from the Fiscal Policy Institute focuses on how New York could use the TANF Emergency Contingency Fund (ECF). This paper examines scenarios program by program as well as for TANF as a whole, and demonstrates that applying for upfront funding based on anticipated spending (rather than applying for reimbursement after the fact) could increase federal dollars for New York five-fold. The analysis includes a timeline of awards from the ECF as well as the regular TANF contingency fund. More >>

July 23, 2009.  Federal minimum wage boost affects 123,000 New Yorkers - but only slightly. On July 24, an estimated 123,000 New York workers will benefit when the minimum wage rises from the state's minimum of $7.15 an hour to the new federal minimum of $7.25 an hour. The minimum wage in New York will still lag that in 13 other states and the District of Columbia. And, a full-time worker will still not earn enough to keep a family of three out of poverty.

March 27, 2008.  State Budget Experts Present Ideas on the State Budget.

March 19, 2008.  Ten Reasons We Don't Have the Economy We Thought We Had. By James Parrott, FPI's deputy director and chief economist, who writes regularly for Gotham Gazette's Economy section.

January 29, 2008.  Stimulating the Economy. By James Parrott, FPI's deputy director and chief economist, who writes monthly for Gotham Gazette's Economy section.