ALBANY – In response to the release of Governor Hochul’s 2023 Executive Budget, the Fund Excluded Workers Coalition released the following statement from Nishat Tabassum, Coalition Manager: 

“Governor Hochul’s 2023 budget leaves gaping holes in our unemployment system, with no funding whatsoever for hard-working New Yorkers who are left without the protection of unemployment insurance. This budget prioritizes vanity projects like racetracks for wealthy New Yorkers over basic economic security for left-out New York workers. It’s a shortsighted move that will hamper our recovery from the pandemic and hobble our response to the next crisis. 

Freelancers, self-employed workers, immigrant workers, cash-earners and people in re-entry are an essential part of communities all across New York and contribute millions in taxes and economic output every year through their labor, yet are shut out from the social services afforded to other New Yorkers. 

Our safety net today simply does not reflect economic realities, where freelance and self-employed work is becoming the norm. We must end this injustice once and for all and close the gaps in our safety net that leave workers out.”