Reporters at The Brooklyn Ink set out to tell the stories of some of the people behind the unemployment statistics, the ones who lost their jobs during the recent recession, and the struggles of so many to hang on to their place in the American middle class.
Recent Rutgers Study Paints Bleak Employment Picture in New York
Unemployment Forms in Albany (Mike Groll/AP)
A Rutgers University study indicates that only seven percent of American workers surveyed believe they have recovered from the recession. Thirty-six percent felt that that they have experienced a major setback that has left them in financially poor shape. Read more…
Custody Battle Complicates Job Hunt for Disabled Canarsie Resident
Nika Maynard (Danika Fears / The Brooklyn Ink)
Eight years ago, Nika Maynard and her partner of three years, Stephanie, wanted a child. But joint adoptions for unwed couples were not yet legal in the state of New York, and so Nika and Stephanie were forced to take an alternative route through a family member willing to give up the rights to her child. Read more…
Former Dancer Trying to Re-enter the Workforce After Four Years
Bernard McClain in his Bed-Stuy home. By Claudia del Castillo
It’s not hard to guess Bernard McClain had something to do with the performing arts. He is tall, standing at 6 foot 2. He speaks with a resonating voice and moves elegantly along the corridor of the Bed-Stuy apartment where he lives with his wife and two children. Read more…
Interactive: Unemployment rate of NY Counties
Grit and Optimism in Coping With the Recession’s Lasting Trauma
The unemployment rate in Brooklyn hung at 9.5 percent in September. Photo courtesy of AP Wire.
It happened so quickly, and its effects have lasted for so long. Two years after the recession ended, upwards of 100,000 people in Brooklyn are still without work. We know the numbers. But who are the people behind them? What do their lives look like after a year, two years, even three years without a steady income? What are their strategies for overcoming economic setbacks that loosened their grip on the “good life,” however they define it? Read More…
Job Hunting Hard for Long-Time Hospital Worker
Grace Fuller, 55, lost her job when St. Vincent's Hospital closed in 2010. Photo by Neha Banka/BI
Grace Fuller, a resident of Greenpoint, worked as a medical technician for 20 years at St. Vincent’s Hospital in Manhattan. Fuller has been out of work since the hospital closed in April 2010 amid public uproar. Read more…
Bensonhurst Native Optimistic Despite Unemployment
Looking diligently on his computer, Michael Gargiulo tries to find work. Photo by Keldy Ortiz/BI
After an internship at MTV Network during his senior year of college, Michael Gargiulo graduated in 2003 and scored a full-time job as a producer at the network. It was a job he enjoyed, he was at a big company, and he could see himself moving into a higher position after several years. Read More…
Meet Lance: Unemployed in Bensonhurst
Lance has a master's degree in business administration, but can't find work. Photo by Aby Thomas/The Brookyn Ink.
Lance Diamond is up at 4:30 every morning ready to work. It’s a routine he’s had for years. But now there’s a big difference. He was laid off in February from his job as a controller for a healthcare organization. So instead of heading out the door, Lance sits at his computer to meticulously search for jobs on career websites. Read More…
Meet Rick: Unemployed in Kensington
Years after an ill-fated decision to leave a job, Rick applies for half a dozen IT positions each week. Courtesy photo.
Food Stamps Help Unemployed Cope
There’s been a 61 percent increase nationwide in people using Food Stamps compared to 2007, according to the Food and Research Action Center. Photo by Tiffany Ap
By 8:15 a.m. Thursday a long queue has already formed outside the Food Stamp Center at 227 Hoyt-Schermerhorn Street in downtown Brooklyn. The flow of people through its door starts at 8:30 a.m. and does not stop until closing time at 5 p.m. Staff members estimate that nearly 1,000 Brooklyn residents come here daily to apply for or recertify their food subsidies. Read More…
Unemployment by the Numbers
Our stories illustrate the difficulties many Brooklynites face in the currently depressed job market. But these graphs and statistics quantify their struggles by offering a larger picture of unemployment in America. View More…
