As New York City grapples with a financial downturn, Chirlane McCray, Mayor Bill de Blasio’s wife, employs a 14-person team that costs taxpayers millions of dollars each year.
The New York Post reported Tuesday that 14 people work for McCray, including on her $1.25 billion mental health initiative ThriveNYC, costing a collective $2 million a year.
“How much taxpayer money will the mayor’s wife pilfer before leaving office? How can she sleep at night, hiring these hacks knowing so many other city workers are facing layoffs this fall? This is a disgrace!” New York City Councilman Eric Ulrich said.
McCray’s employees include a $117,000-a-year speechwriter, a $150,000-a-year senior adviser, and a $70,000-a-year videographer, who recently filmed McCray baking cookies during the pandemic.
City Hall spokeswoman Chanel Caraway defended McCray’s team on Tuesday, specifically the team’s work for the mental health initiative.
“The first lady manages a robust portfolio, and her team works tirelessly to carry out goals and priorities on issues like mental health and domestic violence that will improve the lives of New Yorkers,” she said.
“As the city navigates unprecedented challenges triggered by the COVID-19 crisis, these public servants continue to show up every day to deliver solutions that reach into every neighborhood and family, and we owe them a debt of gratitude,” Caraway said.
De Blasio just last week warned that 22,000 city employees could be laid off in October because of the economic hit the city endured due to the coronavirus pandemic.
“The overwhelming cost of local government is personnel. Where we put our money is into the people who provide services to New Yorkers, whether they’re first responders, healthcare workers, sanitation workers, educators, you name it,” de Blasio told reporters last week, repeating a warning he first made in June.
In addition, recent budget cuts and employee layoffs have caused trash to build up in public parks in the city.
“It’s all over the park. Just garbage, garbage, garbage everywhere you look. I come here to enjoy myself, but this is not enjoyable,” city resident Marisol Jiminez told the New York Post. “It’s just disgusting to look at.”
