Hey New York, How’s the Economy Working for You?
City residents rate our Ferris Wheel economy
The economy moves in cycles — up and down, and then, up and down all over again. President Obama told the nation in his state of the union that under his administration, the nation has added 14 million new jobs. The Republican candidates for president, led by a New Yorker, Donald Trump, are saying just the opposite, arguing that things have gone from bad to terrible, economically speaking. And they are right, at least, that wages remain flat and prices are rising. Investors are worried, too, and have sent the stock market into a tailspin since the start of the year on fears of ever-lower oil prices and uncertain times ahead for China. With things in such flux economically, NY City Lens decided to explore what New Yorkers have to say about how today’s economy is working for them. Here’s what they told us:
Dian Mohanadou, 56, taxi driver
“Good and bad. Because I am poor, I’m going to work hard to make my money. This world is like that. Poor people — we’re going to work for the rich people. If you say you’re not going to do that, you’ll die hungry. The economy’s not bad. People don’t know how to work. They’re lazy.”
Andrea Lathrop, 42, waitress and temporary Statue of Liberty
“So I have a master’s degree in Brain and Cognitive Sciences and right now I’m dressed as a Statue of Liberty, handing out coupons for a tax service. That’s how the economy is going for me.”
Rasel Ahmed, 23, bodega worker
“Every January and February business is slow, you know, it’s cold, people pay taxes and all that. But overall, business has been good, so good that we’re actually thinking about expanding or starting a hardware store. I think every business is trying their best to save something to do something better, you know, and that’s what we’re doing. That’s our something better.”
Laurie Mitchell, 46, home health care worker
“The economy sucks for single people. I work hard, I gotta work a lot of extra hours and then I can hardly pay my rent. I’m working paycheck to paycheck. I work 10 hours a day just to pay my bills. It’s hard to live the American dream when you gotta work so hard.”
Pedro Aguila, 41, grocery store worker
“You’re working hard but you feel you can’t get what you deserve. Even if you get a full time position, the price of living goes up and they make it harder and harder for a regular average Joe to make a living. I tried to change jobs but that’s also an issue because everyone’s looking for a job. So they’re just not available. I don’t want a handout; I don’t want anything given to me. I just want what I deserve.”
Hassan Allen, 24, liquor store salesman
“New York is a great place to live if you are rich or if you have an abundance of money. If you’re working on a budget or if you have a set income that’s very low, it’s very, very hard to manage. It’s almost as if you have to go into survival mode.”
Djibril Drame, 67, street cleaner
“Sometimes it’s good, sometimes it’s bad. Yeah, I only pay $600 a month, but I have to save up money to send to my family back home [in Senegal] and that’s not easy. You have other things you have to pay: electricity, cable.”
Daniel McDermott, 56, Central Park pedicab and bicycle rental operator
“Right now the economy is treating me alright. I mean, I’m not really suffering. I’m not driving a Corvette, but I’m alright.”
Garibaldi Lind, 51, carpenter
“The economy to me is whack. The only prices that are low are oil prices. I’ll put it like this: A gallon of milk is about $4 or $4.50 but a gallon of gasoline is less than that. We are paying more for food. We all have to survive this way and we can’t do nothing about it.”
Rudolph Seabrook, 53, Food Bazaar staff
“I’m not in the field that I’m supposed to be in. I’m a fiber optical technician and I’m working at a supermarket. Here, the guys are great — great environment, but the pay is not to the level I’m used to. They are shipping a lot of jobs overseas and it’s affecting my ability to land a fiber optical job. They’d rather have someone with no experience and train them, instead of a person with experience and have them working and get paid top dollar.”
Hector Sabino, 24, Bronx barista
“[The economy is] not doing me any harm, where I’m at right now in my current point of life. It’s not hurting me nor is it doing me any crazy benefits. It’s kind of just keeping me stable.”
Paul Colon, 61, veteran
“I’m a Vietnam War veteran — I get a check every month. It’s not much, but it’s enough to get by. The money has stayed the same, but the cost of everything has gone up.”
Nasima Aktea, 36, unemployed accountant
“My husband is a taxi driver. Before my husband would work eight or ten hours and he would bring a lot of money. But not now. Now he works ten or 11 hours, but doesn’t bring a lot of money. When we came here (from Bangladesh) in 2009, everything was easy. But now every item costs a lot.”
Maler Yeganeh, 66, antique rug dealer
“In the last 10 years, prices [of antique rugs] have gone down by a minimum of 30 to 40 percent. The antique rug business is becoming obsolete. These days we are just desperate to sell and survive.”
George Riviera, 61, electronics salesman
“The last 15 years in this area [have been] horrible. Businesses open. Businesses close. People don’t want to spend a lot of money and the rents are very high. You can’t keep up.”
Bazah Roohi, 40, executive director of the American Council of Minority Women
“It’s very hard to find a job because of the economy. They need to create jobs for the people, not for the machines. Now, machines are working instead of people.”
Luis Geronimo, 29, assistant director of Inwood after school program
“The price of everything is [going up]. I go to a grocery store and spend $80 0r $90 just for things I need like eggs, milk and cheese. I end up barely saving five percent to 10 percent of my income at the end of the month.”
Oscar Hernandez, 48, chef
“I came here 25 years ago from Mexico for a better life. It’s expensive here and I struggle, but I like it. I have a better way of living.”
Sean McEntee, 30, construction account manager
“I feel that the construction economy is strong now. I’d say I am cautiously optimistic, but wary of a potential collapse. Any small glitch could cause people to stop building then I’m out of a job.”
Mawoua Fadija, 38, beauty shop employee
“The economy treats me good. Here I get freedom, nobody comes and tells me what to do. I make money. No one watches me except the cameras.”
Lorena Loaisiga, 38, manager of an auto repair shop
“It’s been very slow, no one’s really investing in cars right now. As the years go by we get less and less cars and those that do usually come for the transmission or tune-ups. So for now we just aspire to keep the business up and running. That’s all we can do.”
Moses Rodriguez, 18, rental car assistant
“I’ll tell you one thing- the MTA is killing me, and I heard they’re going to raise the prices soon. I’m in college so when you do the calculations, it’s $1,300 dollars per year just to get to school. Then for food, I spend around $500 every four to five months, which isn’t very much, but I’ve got to think of these things. How are you going to make it? You buy chicken in bulk, you buy beans from the discounted section.”
Jenelle Rivera, 18, psychology student at Hostos Community College
“It’s rough, it really is. I recently got kicked out [of my home]. I’m trying to live on my own and make sure I’ve got money in my pocket and finish college.”
Lou Corbo, 56, manager, Cardinal Kitchens and Baths
“Not too good. The whole recession thing happened and when the housing market collapsed our sales dropped off. I don’t think it will recover to the point it was. This showroom once did $7 million a year, last year it did $3 million. I took on a lot of debt and a couple loans that I’m still paying off.”
Robert Kall, 54, shoe store owner
“At my age I’ve already lived my life. I’ve labored very hard in my 20s to acquire as much as I could while I had the energy and strength and now I’m kind of coasting. I’ve seen a time about 20 years ago when business was so good and everyday it was booming. Suddenly all that faded in a subtle way.”
Jose Cabrera, 55, doorman on Upper East Side
“It’s been pretty decent, my union, Local 670, is getting me a $25 weekly raise in February. We have no trouble paying the bills. My wife also does housekeeping here so we manage. I make a little extra with my Roth IRA, and my union has an annuity fund. Right now I have $30,000 in it and I’ll get more when I retire.”
Sergio Louis, 32, COO at Liberty Tax Service
“I’m alright, but I’m a business owner. I think our economy sucks, though: Cost of living expenses; pay sucks; everything sucks. You got housing, for a one-bedroom, costs $2,100.”
Ray Tarmstaed, 55, owner of St. Gambrinus Beer Shoppe
“I’ve been running this bar for the past two and a half years. You can look around this block and you’ll see that it has changed. There’s a lot more construction going on, there are little shops popping up and there are more people. Also the Islanders are playing at the Barclays Center, so for example. It brings in bigger crowds. Financially, last year was my best.”
John Spinelli, 58, retired Hertz branch manager
“Everything is better. When you get older, they take care of you. Obama is so good for the country. Social security is better, health care is better, it’s all Obama. For now, everything is great. Life is great in the USA!”
Robert Huston, 50, homeless
“I’m on public assistance. It only helps because I only have to help myself. I stayed single because I only have enough for myself. I don’t have money to have a family.”
Lecy Jimenz, 40, manager at dog day care shop, Biscuits & Bath
“I’m still broke, but that’s just society nowadays. Everything’s so costly. It doesn’t matter if you get a raise. Got to pay medical insurance, dental insurance, rent, heat, hot water, I got to keep it simple. My motto is if I can’t pay for it now, I’m not going to buy it.”
Judith Anderson, 34, Baton Rouge architect
“Gas prices actually have gone down. That’s been a plus. I’ve been able to do a bit more. You just see more money. It’s not that money is going to something else specifically.”
Maferima Dounbia, 62, incense stand owner
“It is not easy sitting out here in the cold. I get only eight to 10 customers a day. But if I earn enough money, I get to go home to Africa [Ivory Coast] in April to see my mommy and son. I miss them.”
Chris Dushaj, 22, part-time doorman, student
“It’s so-so. It could be better. I really want a job within one or two weeks of graduating. That’s why I picked communications — I heard you can find jobs. I owe $52,000 plus in student loans. You just keep taking them out.”
Elvia Morel, 22, deli worker, restaurant cashier
“It’s going alright. I mean I AM working two jobs but it’s steady money so I’m doing ok.”
Xavier Spencer, 30, healthcare clinic clerk
“I would say things have been getting better. I do see that there is an opening in job opportunities. I have noticed it in healthcare. Gas prices have eased on my pocket.”