NEW YORK (1010 WINS) -- The YMCA of Greater New York has laid off nearly half of its staff since the COVID pandemic began.
The Daily News reports that about 1,700 people out of the Y’s 3,600 permanent staff have been laid off.
All but about 100 of the job cuts were reported to the state on Sept. 15.
The president of the YMCA of Greater New York, Sharon Greenberger, told the Daily News they’ve lost $80 million in revenue in seven months.
Much of the revenue drain came from lost membership dues and from shutting youth hostels, Greenberger said.
“We stopped collecting memberships fees after March 15 and realized a week or two into this that we were going to be losing a significant amount of revenue,” Greenberger said. “We furloughed a lot of people.”
The Y has started a new fundraising drive and is urging people to come in and see what they’ve done to focus on health and safety.