Mayor Nagin: New Orleans must lay off 3,000 workers

[Bush_Eats_Beef]

Mayor: New Orleans must lay off 3,000 workers
City can't afford employees following Katrina, Nagin says

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/9591148/

NEW ORLEANS - Mayor Ray Nagin said Tuesday the city is laying off as many as 3,000 employees — or about half the city’s workforce — because of the damage done to New Orleans’ finances by Hurricane Katrina.

Nagin announced with “great sadness” that he had been unable to find the money to keep the workers on the payroll.

He said only non-essential workers would be laid off and that no firefighters or police would be among those let go.

“I wish I didn't have to do this. I wish we had the money, the resources to keep these people,” Nagin said. “The problem we have is we have no revenue streams.” Nagin described the layoffs as “pretty permanent” and said that the city will work with the Federal Emergency Management Agency to contact municipal employees who fled the city in the aftermath of Katrina, which struck about a month ago.

[bullimiami]

1. dont you think the federal assistance money should have been used

to keep these people employed?

wtf is it for? corporate profiteering only?

[HysteryDiagnosis]

2. It's for this..... really.

http://www.latimes.com/news/printedition/opinion/la-op-latino25sep25,1,6749414.story?track=mostemailedlink


Mexican and Central American laborers are already arriving in southeastern Louisiana. One construction firm based in Metairie, La., sent a foreman to Houston to round up 150 workers willing to do cleanup work for $15 an hour, more than twice their wages in Texas. The men — most of whom are undocumented, according to news accounts — live outside New Orleans in mobile homes without running water and electricity. The foreman expects them to stay "until there's no more work" but "there's going to be a lot of construction jobs for a really long time."

Because they are young and lack roots in the United States, many recent migrants are ideal for the explosion of construction jobs to come. Those living in the U.S. will relocate to the Gulf Coast, while others will come from south of the border. Most will not intend to stay where their new jobs are, but the longer the jobs last, the more likely they will settle permanently. One recent poll of New Orleans evacuees living in Houston emergency shelters found that fewer than half intend to return home. In part, their places will be taken by the migrant workers. Former President Clinton recently hinted as much on NBC's "Meet the Press" when he said New Orleans will be resettled with a different population.

[KamaAina]

4. Yikes! Did Poppy Bush plant the vampire's kiss on Big Dawg or something?

Former President Clinton recently hinted as much on NBC's "Meet the Press" when he said New Orleans will be resettled with a different population.

Of all the people I never would have expected to have their lips and tongue stained with the Bushista Kool-Aid, our nation's last elected President would have been first. Aaaaauuugggghh!

[philosophie_en_rose]

3. only if they're employed at Halliburton.

:eyes:

[KingFlorez]

5. That stinks to high heaven

Their going to pay a bunch of illegals more than they would pay citizens? That's anti-american if you ask me.

[AintIgreat]

6. those workers just got slapped twice

lost their homes, and now their jobs

[newyawker99]

7. Hi AintIgreat!!

Welcome to DU!! :toast: