5.8.20: COVID closer to home
Plus unemployment benefits, virtual activities and NYS taxes for out-of-state workers
May 8, 2020.
It’s Friday, Friday, Gotta Get Down on Friday. It’s also Teacher Appreciation Week, and I know there are many teachers, including many of my former teachers, out there in Tinaland. So….
It’s been fun to read the comments from the beginning, but over the last few days, they’ve been especially thoughtful, insightful and personal. I wish I could include more of them, but this email would be even longer than it already is. Please keep them coming and thank you, as always, for being a part of this community.
This Sunday is also Mother’s Day. Happy Mother’s Day to all the moms, grandmas, aunts, cousins, older sisters and everyone else who serves in that role. May the gratitude that remains unspoken all year be shared loudly and clearly this weekend.
We’ve got some more questions today, so click on the Let’s Talk button to get started.
Results from May 7, 2020
Question 1: Have you tested positive for COVID-19 or do you know someone who has? Do you know someone who has died from COVID-19?
When we talked about this question on April 20, 53% of us knew someone who tested positive. Today, that number is up 9-points to 62% — and almost 30% of us now know someone who has died.
Question 2: Should states still extend unemployment benefits to workers who refuse to return to work due to health concerns related to the coronavirus?
Some people felt the unemployment benefits would be abused if provided to people don’t feel comfortable returning to work.
The unemployment question is complicated for me. The more important the work is to reopening the economy and improving life for everyone, the less likely I am to support them refusing to come back simply because they may be at some risk. I am an essential government employee who has had to return to work since this started. If there are people out there who are staying at home because they're comfortable making some percentage of their income sitting at home instead of being at work where there's a potential risk of exposure, I support cutting off benefits. If the decision to "reopen" has been made intelligently and risks minimized, you should be back at work.
Others felt that it’s unreasonable (or worse) to require workers to return.
The fact that we are talking about whether people should have UI during a pandemic is nuts. These businesses should not be reopening. The country failed to address this pandemic early and now, after an insufficient response, they are forcing people back to work before the fight is even close to over.
And genuine conflict with human emotion.
I'm conflicted about the unemployment situation. I feel for the workers and business owners who have had their lives uprooted by this national crisis, and many of whom have seen little to no money from the state and/or federal government. ... However, I have serious doubts as to whether we can reopen the country safely. I'm returning to work next week, but as I live in a house with immunocompromised individuals, I'm concerned that doing so could put us all at risk.
If I get the sense that my employer isn't taking this situation seriously and playing it as safely as possible, I may have to stop working again. It's tough, and in certain states I would no longer be eligible for UI because of that concern. Regardless, I have no doubt that we'll be on lockdown again in the next 4-6 months because viruses don't simply disappear of their own accord and Americans are clearly far too individualistic (yet still deferential to Big Business? It's a weird paradox) to band together and take a hit in the short-term to produce lasting long-term results.
Question 3: Which of the following typically in-person activities have you attended virtually since the start of the quarantine?
Some of the other activities included music class for kids and baby meet-ups, volunteer work, sales meetings, networking events, a meting of a horticultural club, book talks, interviews and a blind Zoom date that was scheduled for last night.
PLEASE TELL US. HOW DID IT GO?
Question 4: Should out-of-state healthcare workers be required to pay New York state taxes for income they made while working in New York during the pandemic?
Some conflict here in the comments, including folks think it’s only fair to ask healthcare workers to pay taxes…
There’s going to be a lot of controversy with that last question but healthcare workers absolutely should not be exempt from having to pay NY tax. Ordinary people have to pay it too. Even NFL players, for example, pay tax for every state they play in.
To people who think it’s wrong…
I think it’s disgusting yet typical of Cuomo to make volunteers who risked their lives and volunteered out of the goodness of their hearts to help people in ground zero. He should be ashamed of himself. No state tax should come out of their paycheck.
To a math wizard who points out it may not be particularly meaningful tax revenue for the State of New York anyway.
The income tax thing for medical workers just seems so small and petty. I can't imagine it will make a meaningful difference for the state budget (e.g., 10,000 workers with $120K salaries working for 2 months at a 10% state tax rate nets $20M, against a >$150B state budget). If it's meant as a political move then, it just seems dumb and ungrateful.
And some disapproval for Cuomo emerges…
Forcing out of state workers to pay NYS taxes is evidence that Cuomo isn't the be all and end all of the Coronavirus response. He begs people to come help, and then tries to make money off of them. I expect we'll see some more about face from him as time goes on.
But also…
Just a shoutout to those nurses! Frontline workers never cease to amaze me!!
Once again, Happy Mother’s Day.
Make it all the way through but forget to answer today’s questions?
Click on the Let’s Talk button below to get started.