IRI in the News

News Coverage of NYC Bridge Shutdown

To dramatize the need for the Unemployment Bridge Program in New York, advocates shut down the Manhattan Bridge during rush hour on Monday morning, March 6. The march was led by a broad coalition the people who are currently left out of unemployment insurance and would be included by the...

Bridge program would extend unemployment insurance to excluded workers

Spectrum News published an article highlighting New York State advocates' push for the state to pass the Unemployment Bridge Program which would provide unemployment benefits to those who are excluded from the current unemployment system. This program would provide benefits to self-employed people and freelancers, domestic workers, landscapers, and construction...

What Wasn’t in Hochul’s 2023 State of the State Agenda

The Gotham Gazette published an article that analyzed New York State Governor Kathy Hochul's 2023 State of the State agenda. The article highlighted the policy, legislative and budget priorities that Hochul has committed to taking on and it also noted what was left out of the agenda. The article noted...

Excluded workers speak out on unemployment in Patchogue

An article in the Long Island Advocate highlighted the stories of excluded workers and advocates, at SEPA Mujer's news conference, who are encouraging New York State to pass the Unemployment Bridge program which would provide unemployment benefits to undocumented immigrants, freelance and cash workers, and those who have been recently...

Undocumented Workers Need Financial Safety Nets Too

Word in Black published an article highlighting the co-authored report by Urban Institute and Immigration Research Initiative that included a survey of individuals to better understand the successes of the Excluded Worker Fund. Findings from this survey are intended to help inform advocacy efforts and future legislation, as New York...

Victory on overtime for New York Farmworkers

After a long and hard struggle, farmworkers in New York State recently won the right to overtime pay after a 40-hour workweek. There is still, however, a long path to economic fairness for these critically important workers. Read the full story by David Dyssegaard Kallick and Daniel Costa, on the...

IRI Work on Immigrant Organizing Featured on WBAI

Immigration Research Initiative’s Anthony Capote made an appearance this week on “Building Bridges” with Mimi Rosenberg and Ken Nash to talk about IRI’s ongoing series about how to build worker power for immigrant workers. Capote was featured along with Mariana Viturro of the National Domestic Workers Alliance. Earlier this month,...

Commentary: Overtime pay will help, not hurt, New York’s farms

IRI’s Director, David Dyssegard Kallick and Daniel Costa, Director of Immigration Law and Policy Research at the Economic Policy Institute, co-authored an op-ed featured in the Times Union. The op-ed, titled “Overtime Pay Will Help, Not Hurt, New York’s Farms,” highlights the importance of passing a farmworkers’ rights bill in...