New York City is raising the hourly pay for emergency snow shovelers, who are deployed during heavy snowstorms, from $19.14 to $30. Registration is also being moved up to the fall, before the first snowfall, with the first sign-up event set for Saturday, Sept. 19, at Taft High School in the Bronx. Those who register by Nov. 30 will receive paid training in December and be paid within two weeks of working.
New York City announced on Sept. 15 that it is raising the hourly pay for Emergency Snow Shovelers, who are deployed during heavy snowstorms, from $19.14 to $30. For hours worked beyond 40 in a week, the rate rises from $28.71 to $45. Mayor Zohran Mamdani and Sanitation Commissioner Gregory Anderson also announced changes that day to simplify the registration process and move sign-ups up to the fall.
The first registration event will take place on Saturday, Sept. 19, from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. at Taft High School, 240 E. 172nd St. in the Bronx. Additional sign-up dates across the five boroughs will be announced on the Department of Sanitation's social media account (@NYCsanitation) and at nyc.gov/snowemploy.
Applicants must be at least 18 years old, be legally authorized to work in the United States, and be healthy enough to perform physical labor in harsh winter weather. To register, bring a valid phone number and email address, a Social Security card, completed W-4 (federal withholding) and IT-2014 (New York State withholding) forms, and an I-9 form with proof of identity documents. The printed photo required through last year is no longer needed; a photo will be taken on site.
People who complete registration at events held before Nov. 30 will receive four hours of paid training in December. Payroll processing has also been sped up, with the goal of delivering checks within two weeks of the day worked. After registering, workers will receive a confirmation email and training information, and will later be assigned a Sanitation garage to report to during snowstorms, based on where they live and each borough's needs.
Snow shovelers clear snow and ice from bus stops, crosswalks, fire hydrants and stairways that plows cannot reach. Last winter, more than 7,800 people took part, a record high, and together with Sanitation Department employees they cleared 135,000 crosswalks, 34,000 bus stops and 29,000 fire hydrants. Last winter, the department also deployed snow shovelers for the first time while snow was still falling and during evening hours.