Advocates camp out at City Hall to fight for COLA
COLA in this case translates to Cost of Living Adjustment.
On June 22, over 50 human service advocates camped out overnight at City Hall to make their case for the NYC budget allowing a 6.5% Cost of Living Adjustment for human service workers. The organizations that New York City contracts to deliver everything from essential health and homeless services to youth and senior services are fighting for better compensation in the next city budget.
This extraordinary effort reflected the first year City Hall did not put funds in contracts for supportive housing, older adult centers, after-school youth services, and other services.
NYC Council Member Lincoln Restler stopped by the camp out. He and NYC Council Member Jennifer Gutiérrez are among the NYC council members supporting the COLA for human service workers. The camp out ended with a rally in front City Hall the next day.
This was not the first protest for this COLA increase. On May 25 advocates held “A Day Without Human Services” — participants were asked to close “up to 30% of their programs because that’s how much our workforce is paid less than their government counterparts who do similar work.”
As of this writing (June 26), the NYC Budget hasn’t been finalized. The new fiscal year begins on July 1.
Due to the challenge of providing shelter and food for 70+K migrants, Jacques Jiha, the mayor’s budget director, stated at a May hearing that terrible cuts to programs and services will have to be made. “And this will cause great and unnecessary pain.”
The NYC Council is taking a stand to limit cuts.
The Greenline 