The mayor of the largest US city, Bill de Blasio, found a source of savings in the amount of about a million dollars: it is himself and his staff.
The Mayor of New York Will Save On Himself and His Subordinates; According to RBC with reference to the press service of Bill de Blasio, about 500 employees of the mayor’s office will go on unpaid leave for one working week. Vacations will be distributed between October 2020 and March 2021. De Blasio himself promises that he will be among the “holidays”, but will continue to work in the unpaid period.
At a press conference, he explained that due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the New York treasury suffered heavy losses. The mayor estimated their total size at $9 billion, which is why the city budget had to be reduced by $7 billion.
Reducing payments to the mayor and employees of the city administration through the mentioned vacations will save about $ 1 million.
The mayor hopes New York State and the federal government will help the city after all, and that this holiday move will help reach an agreement with unions to reduce the salaries of municipal employees. If there is no agreement, layoffs of thousands of employees will follow.