City workers who lost out on a week’s pay last year in the depths of New York’s coronavirus budget crunch will get their money back — courtesy of the rest of the nation’s taxpayers.
“We had to make difficult decisions as we faced a massive budget shortfall last year,” Mayor de Blasio said Saturday. “Thanks to the federal stimulus, we are in a much better place and can pay these workers back for their sacrifice.”
More than 9,000 nonunion workers were forced to take five-day furloughs, starting in October, to help balance the bloated city budget.
The cost-cutting move, which saved the city $21 million, helped to close a billion-dollar gap in the 2021 budget — a shortfall that has now been plugged by President Biden’s $1.9 trillion covid stimulus package, which flooded city coffers with $6 billion in unrestricted aid.
De Blasio and 500 of his City Hall staffers were among those required to take the five days of unpaid leave — which cost Hizzoner $4,972, or one week of his annual $258,541 salary.
The furloughed workers will be allowed to reclassify the lost hours as comp time or as annual leave and recoup their pay in the coming months.
City Hall did not respond to queries about whether the mayor will take advantage of the payback program.