There’s probably been better timing….
November 5, 2008
Reading the New York Times about the state of New York is making me seriously rethink this notion of relocating to the City.
There are several considerations, not least of which are: who is still hiring, how much are they willing to pay, and will most (or more) employers adhere to the LIFO (last in, first out) rule?
The state’s economy faces some stark times with budget cuts, job cuts, and more to balance a deficit of $1.5 billion. Calling it a “budget challenge” seems a little bit of an understatement. Or perhaps I’m simply pessimistic.
The mayor has already announced several billions of dollars in belt-tightening measures for the 2007 to 2010 fiscal years, and he made it clear on Wednesday that more austerity was still in order. Even with the measures announced on Wednesday, the city still faces a deficit of $1.3 billion in the 2010 fiscal year, which starts on July 1.
“We do take these measures with a heavy heart,” the mayor said, adding, “We’re committed to keeping New Yorkers working, but we also have to keep the city’s finances in order.”
The mayor said he was not calling for the kinds of deep cuts in police, fire, education and health-care spending that characterized the fiscal crisis of the 1970s, when the city teetered on bankruptcy.
“We’re just not going to return to the dark old days of the ’70s when service cuts all but destroyed our quality of life,” Mr. Bloomberg declared. “We are faced now with the reality from the financial crisis: We must cut spending and generate more revenue. Each path is unpleasant and painful.”
The mayor recited a grim litany of statistics: $500 billion in losses on Wall Street, a loss of 147,000 jobs in the financial sector, and a projected $2.6 billion drop in city revenues between the last fiscal year and the current one. (The fiscal year ends on June 30.)
I didn’t know you wanted to move to NYC. Well I wouldn’t go unless you have a job lined up ahead of time.undrate
moom: It’s been on the mind for years, it makes sense for my career but the living situation has always, obviously, been more complicated to navigate than just picking up and going. I would definitely not go without a firm job offer.