NEW YORK — New York City will provide thousands of undocumented workers with financial aid during the coronavirus pandemic, funded by a $20 million donation from Open Society Foundations.
This initial funding will reach up to 20,000 undocumented workers and their families affected by COVID-19-related job loss and facing financial distress. The citywide network of community based organizations and worker centers will disseminate one-time emergency relief payments to eligible New Yorkers in the following amounts:
- $400/individual
- $800 for couple or single parent with children
- $1,000 for family with multiple adults and children
- And/or where identified increased additional supports
“Immigrants are the heart of this city — they are our friends, neighbors and colleagues,” said Mayor Bill de Blasio. “This crisis has shown it is now more important than ever for New Yorkers to look out for each other. I want to thank the Open Society Foundations for partnering with us to ensure that all New Yorkers, regardless of their documentation status, can get the support they need.”
“New York City is the epicenter of the COVID-19, with more cases and casualties than most whole countries,” said Open Society Foundations President Patrick Gaspard. “This crisis has laid bare just how much we depend on low-wage workers who stock our grocery shelves, harvest and deliver our food, staff society’s essential services. These essential workers are also the people with the least access to services and benefits, many of them beyond the reach of the government’s stimulus package.”
“The Open Society Foundations is proud to support NYC and its partner organizations, including National Domestic Workers Alliance, to provide direct relief to these workers, who are literally holding up our society right now, and hope that policymakers going forward will address the structural inequalities they live with every day,”
