NYC Lost 19K City Workers Over COVID Pandemic, Study Finds

NEW YORK CITY — What do lawyers, correction officers and groundskeepers in common? They’re all public workers who are becoming more scarce in New York City, a new study found.

The city lost 19,000 public workers during the coronavirus pandemic, or 6.4 percent of its workforce, according to a study released this week by state Comptroller Thomas DiNapoli.

It’s the largest drop in New York City’s public workforce since 2008’s Great Recession, the study found.

DiNapoli warned the decline could impact public services.

“The pandemic caused a significant decline to the city’s workforce, and it is particularly troubling that turnover continues to outpace hiring,” he said in a statement.

“Without the hardworking individuals who keep this city running, critical and essential services for our children and most vulnerable residents could be impacted.”

The decline between June 2020 and August 2022 didn’t affect all city agencies evenly, according to the study.

The Department of Correction led the city with a 23.6 percent drop in staffing, followed by the Department of Investigation and Taxi & Limousine Commission at 22.2 percent and 20.5 percent, respectively, the study found.

The NYPD also lost 6.7 percent of its staff, or roughly 3,400 workers, according to the study.

Among types of city jobs, executive assistants saw the biggest drop by percentage: 27.2 percent, according to the study.

Correction officers, groundskeepers and gardeners and other types of workers saw similar declines hovering near 20 percent, the study found.

Read the full study here.