Amy M. Traub
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amymtraub.bsky.social
Amy M. Traub
@amymtraub.bsky.social
1K followers 500 following 150 posts
Research for a more just and equitable economy. Currently focused on unemployment insurance policy.
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amymtraub.bsky.social
Upper Manhattan neighbors, join us on 11/15 and help spread the word!

#HandsOffNYC handsoffnyc.com
Black and white drawing of a pigeon wearing a Statue of Liberty crown. The words “Nov 15 Neighborhood Day of Action” are written on the pigeon’s body. In the pigeon’s mouth is a banner with the words “Hands off NYC ICE and troops out.” Written on the side of the poster: This is a grassroots effort led by your neighbors. Come learn how we can keep each other safe. Inwood Indivisible. Saturday Nov. 15 2025 2pm to 4pm at Broadway and Dyckman
November 8, 2025 at 4:11 PM
amymtraub.bsky.social
RIP to “the schlepper” — got me through my first 25 years as a New Yorker. Thank you, Friend!
A broken metal hand cart on a wood floor. One wheel has come off and is sitting next to the cart. The metal siding is broken and plastic covering the handle has come away.
July 20, 2025 at 3:36 PM
amymtraub.bsky.social
Signs and flowers on a fence next to a green hedge. Two of the largest signs say “New Yorkers for Immigrant Justice”
July 17, 2025 at 11:38 PM
amymtraub.bsky.social
#GoodTroubleLivesOn NYC
Crowd assembled for the Good Trouble march at Foley Sq in New York City. Many people are wearing white and someone is holding a large American flag.
July 17, 2025 at 9:58 PM
amymtraub.bsky.social
Let’s hear it for the 4th grade history curriculum! #NoKings
Close up of a child holding an American flag and a sign that says “I learned in school: The president is NOT a king!”
June 15, 2025 at 2:13 AM
amymtraub.bsky.social
Uptown rainbow
A rainbow in the sky above a city street. Specifically it is the corner of Broadway and Sherman Ave in Upper Manhattan, New York City
May 23, 2025 at 10:57 PM
amymtraub.bsky.social
1 in 5 unemployment insurance (UI) applicants said benefit levels were not enough to meet their needs, with considerable variation between states.

In states that offered lower benefits, 25% of UI applicants reported UI was inadequate. No wonder many recipients reported food + housing insecurity.
Two charts from the Unemployed Worker Study titled UI benefits are often inadequate--especially in low-paying states. The first graph shows that the percentage of survey respondents saying benefits are inadequate correlates to a state's average weekly UI benefit as a percentage of average weekly wages. They second chart shows that 25% of UI applicants reported that benefits were inadequate in the least generous and second least generous states in terms of replacing workers' prior wages with UI benefits. For the third tier of states 13% of workers said benefits were inadequate and in the quarter of states that replaces the highest share of workers prior wages, 11% of UI recipients reported that benefits were inadequate.
April 24, 2025 at 3:12 PM
amymtraub.bsky.social
Even after the pandemic unemployment surge ended, unemployment insurance applicants still reported delayed eligibility decisions (22%), difficulty with UI agency websites (20%), and trouble reaching UI agencies by phone (21%) among other barriers to accessing benefits.
A chart from the Unemployed Worker Study compares 15 different unemployment insurance application issues during the COVID-19 pandemic economic downturn (2020-2021) and after the pandemic downturn (2022-2024). The chart shows that Even after the pandemic unemployment surge ended, UI applicants still reported delayed eligibility decisions (22%), difficulty with UI websites (20%), and trouble reaching UI agencies by phone (21%) among other barriers to access.
April 24, 2025 at 3:01 PM
amymtraub.bsky.social
Our first finding was about how critical unemployment insurance (UI) benefits are to the workers who receive them. Workers who received UI benefits were significantly less likely to report food and housing insecurity than those who applied and didn’t get benefits.
Chart from the Unemployed Worker Study titled "Unemployment Insurance (UI) Recipients Experience Less Material Hardship." Bar chart shows that 33% of UI recipients experienced hunger compared to 51% who applied for UI benefits but did not receive them. 29% of UI recipients had difficulty paying rent or mortgage compared to 40% who applied for UI benefits but did not receive them. 30% of UI recipients had difficulty paying for medical costs compared to 37% who applied for UI benefits but did not receive them. Survey weights applied.
April 24, 2025 at 2:53 PM
amymtraub.bsky.social
Proud to join @sampooleny.bsky.social on this freezing cold morning telling Starbucks customers in Upper Manhattan about the @sbworkersunited.org strike.

Do not buy from Starbucks while workers are on strike!
A young man in a warm coat stands on an urban street corner next to a Starbucks sign. Street signs indicate that it is the corner of Broadway and Dyckman St. The young man is holding out flyers in support of striking Starbucks workers.
December 22, 2024 at 3:13 PM
amymtraub.bsky.social
For more, join the National Employment Law Project’s upcoming event “Fighting for Good Jobs with Unemployment Insurance for Striking Workers” bit.ly/UI-StrikingW...
Webinar: Fighting for good jobs with unemployment insurance for striking workers. Please join us on Wednesday December 4 at 1pm ET bit.ly/UI-StrikingWorkers
November 25, 2024 at 4:00 PM
amymtraub.bsky.social
When workers go on strike, states should make them eligible for unemployment benefits.

I’ll be speaking at this event on a state-level policy that advances the fight for good jobs and worker power. #1u

Join us December 4th at 1pm ET bit.ly/UI-StrikingW...
Webinar: Fighting for good jobs with unemployment insurance for striking workers. Please join us on Wednesday December 4 at 1pm ET. Sign up at bit.ly/UI-StrikingWorkers
November 21, 2024 at 6:43 PM
amymtraub.bsky.social
If you see this, post a bridge
The little red lighthouse is next to the Hudson River under the George Washington Bridge.
December 6, 2023 at 12:33 AM