By Norman Oder
November 11, 2011
In a demonstration yesterday outside J.P. Morgan Chase at MetroTech, featuring an in-character "Mr. Moneybags" and the "mic check" rhetoric of Occupy Wall Street, organizers from ALIGN: The Alliance for a Greater New York, condemned the bank for accepting a 25-year subsidy in 1988 worth nearly $238 million but not meeting job totals.
According to Good Jobs New York, Chase had 5000 in New York City in 1988 and was supposed to ultimately have 5950 jobs, all part of job retention promised with a move to MetroTech. But Chase has since cut jobs and relocated jobs to other states, leaving a total of 1593 jobs...
The report associated with the protest, REGIONAL REVIEW: JOB CREATION AND NEW YORK’S INDUSTRIAL DEVELOPMENT AGENCIES, is from ALIGN and the Coalition for Economic Justice, co-anchors of the statewide Getting Our Money’s Worth coalition...
So, what might be done? The report recommends:
Performance Standards to ensure that jobs created are good jobs and that subsidized projects encourage a healthy and sustainable environment. Public subsidies should pay for performance and be targeted to deliver family-sustaining jobs with benefits, opportunities for local people, and liveable communities that limit sprawl and environmental impacts.
To read the full article visit: Atlantic Yards Report