Jobs program for 75,000 young New Yorkers is on the chopping block

Rockaway Youth Task Force organizer Andrea Colon started as a temporary employee through the city’s Summer Youth Employment Program, which the mayor tends to suspend this year. Eagle photo by Rachel Vick

By Rachel Vick

In 2016, Andrea Colon was accepted to participate in the city’s Summer Youth Employment Program and paired with the Rockaway Youth Task Force. The experience had a profound impact on her life and career.

Four years later, Colon, a first-generation college student attending Baruch University, is still working with Rockaway Youth Task Force, now as lead organizer. In this role, she is responsible for coordinating the same summer youth employment program in which she once participated.

Now, however, the SYEP is on the chopping block. Mayor Bill de Blasio officially proposed suspending the program — which enrolled roughly 75,000 New York City residents between ages 14 and 24 last year — in his executive budget April 16, a cost-cutting measure that will save the city $124 million next fiscal year. 

That suspension would have a long-term impact on thousands of teens and young adults in New York City, Colon said.

“Low-income young people, particularly youth of color, really rely on this program as their first-ever job and a source of income they depend on in the summer,” said Colon, who serves as RYTF community engagement organizer. “The fact that it’s been cut shows that when it comes to budget cuts these young people are first to face that. They deserve resources, especially in a time like this.”

The move to axe the program contrasts what de Blasio said just two years ago.

"When we invest in our City's kids, we invest in our future," he said after discussing the importance of the program in 2018. 

The coronavirus contributed to the decision to suspend the SYEP, said Department of Youth and Community Development Commissioner Bill Chong in an email to participating employers earlier this month. 

“Out of an abundance of caution for our young people, providers and worksites, we have made the very difficult decision not to operate the Summer Youth Employment Program this year,” wrote Chong, who administers the program as head of DYCD.

A DYCD spokesperson said the agency “will continue to work with our SYEP providers and the young people they serve to alleviate the effects of the suspension.” 

But a complete suspension means a cohort of young people that exceeds the entire population of Mount Vernon will be affected, Colon said.

Each year, SYEP receives more than 100,000 applications from New Yorkers between 14 and 24 years old to fill about 75,000 positions. Young people accepted into the program are paired with an employer and earn minimum wage during their six-week tenure on the job.

The benefits of the program go far beyond income, however. Young people learn how to act and what to expect in a workplace, and  they secure key networking opportunities for the future, Colon said. 

But for many providers, the commitment to supporting young people in Queens won’t stop just because municipal funding does.

Colon said RYTF will look to hire more young people from the community, an option that could mitigate some of the impact of the SYEP suspension.

“The money was already there and a lot of the providers made it clear that they could still continue the program, including ourselves,” she said. “There’s different ways the city could have approached this.” 

“It's disgraceful to put young people in this position of not having any jobs,” she added.

The Queens Community House, another SYEP provider, was working on online programming in case the program moved to a distance model, said Associate Executive Director of Young Adult Services Ivonne Torres. Without a budget their efforts will likely be limited to supporting job searches and placements.

QCH was notified of the cancellation the same day as applicants, and just one day before it was announced publicly, Torres said

“We have had partners ask us ‘Is it real?’ and have had young people reach out to ask if there are any alternative programs or opportunities they can participate in,” Torres said.  “The communication we sent to the young people was ‘we’re working on something for you, we want to support you.’”