The city that was once the greatest in the world has become the last to bounce back in the aftermath of COVID — and it’s no secret why. 

One-party Democratic rule opposed a return to pre-pandemic normalcy, and it has led to one of the highest jobless rates in the country. New York City’s unemployment rate is 7.6%, about double the national rate. 

The rebound was indisputably slower due to the city having the highest income-tax rate in the nation for many New Yorkers; eroding public safety due to cashless bail and district attorneys like Alvin Bragg refusing to enforce the law; pandemic-related lockdowns and other crushing restrictions; an anti-business culture that shut down moves into the city such as a new Amazon Headquarters in Queens; and a failing public school system are all just some of the many factors holding back the Big Apple. 

Policy failures pile up 

COVID-19-related mandates continue to severely restrict our eligible workforce. New York City recently fired nearly 1,500 municipal workers, including 914 New York City teachers, 101 Housing Authority employees, and 36 NYPD and 25 FDNY employees. City government even demanded the private sector follow suit, causing many others to lose their jobs as well. 

Pandemic policies targeting education took a toll, with the number of homeschooled children in New York City increasing by 88%, or roughly 14,800 children since the beginning of COVID. Remote learning, mask mandates, and other restrictions caused many New York families to flee the city altogether and raise their families elsewhere. In many cases, that means leaving their job and heading to other locations that better value their freedom, safety, wallets and kids’ education. 

Additionally, with COVID-19-related social programs like the Excluded Workers Fund and pandemic unemployment assistance (PUA) running far longer than they should have, it’s not surprising many able-bodied adults chose to stay home instead of re-entering the workforce even with jobs available to them. 

New York City elected officials and bureaucrats did plenty of damage in other ways to chase away tens of thousands of good paying jobs. Amazon, for example, was slated to have its second headquarters split between Long Island City and Northern Virginia, and promised the Long Island City campus would create 25,000 “high-paying” jobs. That was, of course, until far-left activists forced Amazon to reverse course. 

Skyrocketing crime has only served to exacerbate the rise of unemployment and the feeling that our neighborhoods have turned into a dystopian wasteland. Cashless bail, the Less is More Act, District Attorneys refusing to enforce the law, violent protests, frequent looting, legal injection sites, disastrous homeless policies, and so much more have poured fuel on a raging crime epidemic. Repeat offenders are back on the street just hours after they have been apprehended, Asian Americans and Jews are being targeted with violent hate, and law-abiding citizens are getting shoved in front of oncoming subway cars. Feckless leadership negatively impacts tourism, small businesses, public transportation, and the overall economy of New York City. 

We can and must lead New York state and New York City back to glory. The solutions are obvious. It’s time for New York City to again become that great city it was not that long ago, by cutting taxes, getting rid of all COVID-19 related mandates once and for all, slashing job-killing regulations, incentivizing people to go back to work, improving education and securing our streets. 

Congressman Lee Zeldin (R-Suffolk) is running for governor.