The New York Times
In Nevada, unemployed workers are waiting for help that will still not be enough
LAS VEGAS – Bobby Hernandez plans to spend his stimulus on medication to treat his diabetes. Wilma Estrella will use hair to pay the electricity bill. Lizbeth Ramos plans to catch up on the rent, though the money will not be enough to cover everything she owes. They are hardly alone: no state staff member has been so badly affected by the coronavirus pandemic as that of Nevada, and people are struggling especially in Las Vegas, a large city where tourist dollars and lavish tips have made way for luxury hotels. and weeds. -lined parking lots. It’s hard to remember the level of optimism and exuberance that prevailed here a year ago as presidential hopefuls marched through the state for the Democratic caucuses. The economy roared back from the Great Recession, and growth could appear to have been unlimited. Subscribe to The Morning Newsletter of the New York Times Today, the grim desperation is only mitigated by the hope that tourists are eager to celebrate and spend through vaccinations. Although most casinos have reopened, they have a small fraction of the tourists they did before. Many restaurants have closed their doors forever, and those that are open are limited. As a result, a year into the pandemic, Las Vegas has the highest unemployment rate among major cities, with more than 10% unemployed, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, and in recent years the workforce in Nevada has lost more income than in any other state. For many people, the only thing that dampened the blow was the federal stimulus investigations. Now more money is on the way: the $ 1.9 billion bill signed by President Joe Biden on Thursday would lead to about $ 4 billion to the state. Vice President Kamala Harris plans to visit the city on Monday, as part of the government’s effort to garner public support for the measure. But for those struggling to get by, the promise of another stimulus payment has not eased the anxiety of knowing that, no matter how much it helps, it will almost certainly fall short. “I feel pretty scared every day, just when I think about my bills,” Ramos, a 32-year-old waitress, said as she loaded bags from a pantry into her trunk one recent afternoon. ‘Actually, I wake up every morning thinking where my help is going to come from – is it here? Is it the government? I do not really know who is looking for people like me. Because the economy relies so heavily on tourism and the service industry, Nevada – and especially Las Vegas – is one of the most economically vulnerable parts of the country. The coronavirus has pushed the state even more dramatically to an economic cliff than the recession did a decade ago. Last year, the Democratic-controlled legislature cut about $ 1.2 billion from the state budget, halted construction projects and cut funding for the health budget. In April, Nevada registered 29.5% unemployment, higher than in any state in a month since the Bureau of Labor Statistics began monitoring the state’s unemployment rate in 1976. The downturn has many Nevadans to keep up with. About 1 million Nevada residents, about 45% of adults in the state, have fallen behind with basic household expenses, according to an analysis by the Center for Budget and Policy Priorities, a liberal research group. One of them is MaryAnn Bautista, a single of five. She said she can still remember the shock she felt a year ago when managers at the hotel where she worked told her she was being fired. She could not hold back tears as she completed her shift at the buffet there. When some customers ask if they can help, she can just shake her head. Over the past year, she has received help from her adult children, food banks and a program offered by her union to cover her one-month rent. She also gets unemployment. But what Bautista wants most is the job she has held for more than 17 years, which she will lose permanently unless she is called up for a shift next week. (Under the union contract, she is entitled to the same position and seniority if she is recalled within a year – after which the claim to the position evaporates.) ‘I struggle so much, I lie awake in bed and calculate what I can pay this time , what can wait a little longer? she said. Bautista is particularly concerned about the fact that her teenage daughter started working as much as 40 hours a week at a local amusement park to help pay the bills. “There’s no way to get it out before I get a job,” she said. “This is what I think every time I break.” Even as infection rates fall, there are signs that the economy could sour again – nearly 100,000 fewer people in the state had jobs last month compared to February last year. According to the Center for American Progress, there are 23% fewer jobs among low-wage workers, while residents earn less than $ 27,000 a year. The study found that unemployment insurance claims had more than tripled in 2019. And it is unclear whether the glittering city will ever return to its heyday before the pandemic. After the years-long casino magnate Sheldon Adelson passed away in January, his company sold both of its properties in Las Vegas, saying it would concentrate on its businesses in Asia. “We are here in a world of hurt when it comes to Las Vegas,” Rob Goldstein, president and CEO of the company, Las Vegas Sands, said in July. “I’ve never felt so gloomy as I do today about what’s happening in Las Vegas.” Just over a year ago, the ballroom at the Culinary Academy in Las Vegas hosted presidential candidates, there to speak with leaders of the most powerful union in the state and one of the most politically powerful in the country. Today, the ballroom is covered with onion skins and dried beans, while dozens of workers pack boxes full of food for union members. About half of all members are still out of work – an improvement from last year when more than 90% of them did not have a job. “We’ve never had anything like this before,” said Geoconda Argüello-Kline, union leader Culinary Workers Local 226. ‘We have more need than ever and we need to realize it’s an emergency. The Democrats always say they are for working people, that’s why we choose them, and now we expect them to find more ways to help in this crisis. Late last year, Guadalupe Rodriguez left the house she had rented for more than a decade and moved into a farmhouse with one of her employees from the Strat Hotel. Both were fired in March last year. Together with another roommate, they raise enough money to pay the mortgage and household bills. But she finds it difficult not to get angry with the government. “I did not ask for much all my life, but now we need the help,” Rodriguez said. She could not receive any of the stimulus money last year because she was illegally married to an immigrant in the country at the time. This time she will receive a check, but according to her it was spent before it even arrived. “It feels like they’re doing these things, they’re getting attention, but the money’s not staying,” she said. “We will get hurt again tomorrow.” The short bursts of cash from stimulus checks create a cyclical life experience, as easing the payment or buying food makes way for the worries of the upcoming bills. “Stimulus money shortens the line for food from a pantry and as it evaporates, the lines get longer again,” said Larry Scott, chief operating officer of Three Square Food Bank, the largest in southern Nevada. “We are going to recover here for a long time. What politicians need to focus on is more than a short-term solution. Instead of spending a lot of money in a short period of time, we should have more money over a longer period of time. The pain also hurts those who can least afford it, excessively hurts, and sends families who have been close to poverty to the streets; families living in tents now live on the highway underpasses throughout the region. Bautista, the single mother of five, knows she’s one of the lucky ones. She signed up for unemployment checks within weeks, while some of her former co-workers were trapped in the system for months. Usually she has just enough to cover the approximately $ 2000 she has to pay for rent, car insurance and medical bills. She managed to send some checks to her mother in the Philippines, as she has done for the past two decades. “I came here to work, and I dedicated my life to this community,” she said as tears streamed down her cheeks. “It’s our life we have, and we can not always rely on handouts.” Bautista said she will spend her stimulus money on putting up food and helping her children with their bills. “We appreciate the help,” she said of government aid. “Do not get me wrong. We do appreciate it, but we can not rely on it. We want job insurance. “If I have my job, I will not be afraid, because I know I can handle it all,” she added. “I’m going to have money to pay my bills.” This article originally appeared in The New York Times. © 2021 The New York Times Company