To help you navigate the challenges of the economic downturn, here’s a list of web sites, nonprofit organizations, and public agencies in New York and New Jersey that target unemployment, career services, mortgages and foreclosures, health insurance benefits, financial services and other issues.
Contents:
1. Online Directories
2. Unemployment Resources
3. Career Services
4. Career Services for Retirees
5. Benefits and Health Insurance
6. Housing
7. Legal Counsel
8. Financial Advice
9. Small Business/Personal Loans/Credit Unions
10. Student Loans
11. Mental Health
ONLINE DIRECTORIES
NJ 2-1-1 (NJ)
NJ 2-1-1 creates one easy access point to the health, human services, community resources and government assistance programs throughout New Jersey. You may search the database online, call 2-1-1 from your telephone, or chat online live with a 2-1-1 specialist.
United Way of New York City CARES Database (NY)
Online directory of social services, healthcare services, mental health services, and other programs throughout the New York City area.
UNEMPLOYMENT RESOURCES
New Jersey State Department of Labor and Workforce Development (NJ)
For information about unemployment insurance and eligibility
Call: (609) 292-7162
www.state.nj.us/labor
New York State Department of Labor Unemployment Insurance Office (NY)
Apply for unemployment insurance in New York State
Call: (888) 581-5812
Unemployment Action Center (NYC and Long Island)
The Unemployment Action Center, Inc., (UAC) is a non-profit, student-run organization devoted to the representation of unemployment insurance claimants throughout New York City and Long Island.
Call: (212) 998-6568
Workers Defense League (NYC)
The Workers Defense League assists workers with work-related problems and conducts educational campaigns on various employee-rights issues. The Workers Defense League provides free representation to hundreds of people believed to have been unfairly denied unemployment insurance benefits after losing or leaving their jobs. Please note that the individuals providing advice and representation are not lawyers, but are qualified to represent clients at hearings.
Call:(212) 627-1931
CAREER SERVICES
Workforce NJ (WNJPIN) (NJ)
WNJPIN offers online workforce services to employees and employers in New Jersey.
One-Stop Career Centers (NJ)
Located throughout New Jersey, One-Stop Career Centers offers free career development services.
WORKFORCE1 (NYC)
Workforce1 Career Centers are a partnership of agencies and organizations that provide free job training, recruitment and placement services throughout the five boroughs of New York City.
Dial 311 and ask for “Workforce1″
CAREER SERVICES FOR RETIREES
AARP Senior Community Service Employment Program (NY)
SCSEP offers services and information, as well as job and skill training, to job seekers age 55 and older.
SCSEP offices:
BRONX
Rodolfo Colon, SCSEP Project Director
384 East 149 Street, Suite 608
Bronx, NY 10455
(718) 585-2500
(718) 292-5613 (FAX)
scbronx@aol.com
scbronx@verizon.net
Hours: 9 a.m. – 4 p.m.BROOKLYN
Luz Maldonado, SCSEP Project Director
44 Court Street, Suite 701
Brooklyn, NY 11201
(718) 834-1100
(718) 834-8100 (FAX)
scbrooklynny@aol.com
scponcepr@prtc.net
Hours: 9 a.m. – 4 p.m.MANHATTAN
Joe Dirac, SCSEP Project Director
103 East 125th Street, Suite 604
New York, NY 10035-1641
(212) 423-9922
(212) 423-9925 (FAX)
scjdirac@aol.com
Hours: 9 a.m. – 4 p.m.
The Department for the Aging Senior Employment Services (SES) (NY)
SES assists New York City residents 55 years of age and older who are seeking work opportunities. SES offers job search techniques, job training and part-and full-time job placements. All SES programs offer employment contact and placement assistance for low to moderate income mature adults.
Dial 311 or call (212) 442-1353
ReServe Elder Service (NYC)
ReServe connects older adults with stipend-paying jobs that challenge them to use their lifetime skills for public good.
Call: (212) 792-6205
Retirementjobs.com (US)
The RetirementJobs service is a free service for job seekers. Their goal is to identify companies best-suited for older workers and match them with active adults seeking a job or project that matches their lifestyle.
NJ FamilyCare (NJ) NJ HELPS Department of Human Services (NJ) Access NYC (NY) Freelancers Union (NY) New York State Department of Insurance (NY) New York State Health Insurance Resource Center (NY) NYC Managed Care Consumer Assistance Program (MCCAP) (NY) NYC Department of Housing Preservation & Development (HPD) (NYC) Pratt Area Community Council Home Services (Brooklyn) Legal Services NYC (NYC) The Legal Aid Society (NY) Brooklyn Cooperative Federal Credit Union Neighborhood Trust Federal Credit Union (NY) ACCION New York and New Jersey (NY, NJ) New York Business Development Corporation (NYBDC) (NY) NYC Business Solutions Centers (NYC) U.S. Small Business Administration (US) Also Watch the program “What Do I Do Now?” online. Compiled by It’s the Economy, NY Researcher Jessica Windt.
BENEFITS and HEALTH INSURANCE
NJ FamilyCare provides affordable health coverage for kids and certain low-income parents.
Call: (800) 701-0710
The NJ Helps DHS Services home page is designed to give consumers a one-stop shopping resource for the wide range of programs and services provided by the Department of Human Services and its partners, to assist individuals, families and communities in New Jersey.
ACCESS NYC is a free online service that identifies and screens for more than 30 city, state and federal human service benefit programs.
Dial 311 (NYC 24-hour citizen service hotline)
Freelancers Union is a nonprofit organization that represents the needs of America’s independent workforce through advocacy, information, and service. Freelancers Union offers health, dental, life and disability insurance for independent workers.
Call: (800) 856-9981 (toll free)
An index of HMO plans and premium rates throughout New York State listed by county.
The center provides information on health insurance plans and up-to-date information to evaluate and compare various health insurance options and companies.
Call: Consumer Services Bureau
Tel: (800) 342-3736 or (212) 480-6400 (New York City)
NYC MCCAP provides consumers in New York City with information, counseling and assistance on managed care issues. MCCAP helps people understand and use Medicaid, Medicare, Child Health Plus, Family Health Plus, and commercial insurance. MCCAP also offers consumer hotlines, educational workshops and hands-on assistance to consumers having problems getting care.
Call: (212) 614-5400
HOUSING
New Jersey Housing Resource Center (NJ)
NJHRC is an online tool for finding and listing affordable housing information in New Jersey.
HPD offers courses to help homeowners with credit counseling, budgeting, foreclosure prevention, mortgage refinancing, home maintenance and repairs. HPD also offers low-cost loans for home repair.
General inquiries: Dial 311 – NYC’s 24-hour hotline
To locate the nearest HPD Homeowner Services Program: (212) 863-5300
Mortgage Refinance and Homeowner Services Unit: (212) 863-6404
Neighborhood Economic Development Advocacy Project (NEDAP) (NY)
NEDAP’s Fair Lending Education & Outreach Program provides information, training and referrals to help New York City homeowners and homebuyers protect themselves against predatory lending practices.
Call: (212) 680-5100
Neighborhood Housing Services (NHS) of New York City (NY)
NHS is a not-for-profit housing organization, established in 1982, that helps New Yorkers buy and improve their homes. There are NHS locations throughout the five boroughs.
Call: (718) 732-8118
PACC serves a wide geographic area in Central Brooklyn that encompasses Fort Greene, Clinton Hill, Bedford Stuyvesant and Prospect Heights with a strong focus on Community Districts 2 and 3 (CD2 and CD3).
US Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) (US)
HUD’s mission is to increase homeownership, support community development and increase access to affordable housing, free from discrimination.
Call: (800) FED-INFO
LEGAL COUNSEL
LawHelp (US)
LawHelp is an online directory that locates free legal aid programs in low-to-moderate income communities throughout the country and provides information about legal rights.
Legal Services is dedicated to helping low-income Manhattan residents with their civil legal problems regarding housing, government benefits, HIV/AIDS, consumer, immigration and family issues. With locations in all five boroughs, Legal Services provides free counsel and legal advice to those who are unable to afford it.
Call: (646) 442-3600
The Legal Aid Society provides free legal assistance to New Yorkers who live at or below the poverty line and cannot afford to hire a lawyer or pay for counsel.
FINANCIAL ADVICE
New York State Department of Banking: Consumer Help Unit (NY)
NYS Dep. of Banking’s Consumer Help Unit website is designed to help users learn about important finance issues and file complaints directly with the Banking Department.
For assistance, advice and referrals: (877) BANK-NYS
For small business owners: (212) 709-3576
The Department of Consumer Affairs’ Office of Financial Empowerment (OFE) (NYC)
OFE empowers, educates and protects low-income residents, so they can build assets and make the most of their financial resources. OFE is part of Mayor Bloomberg’s 18 initiatives to help New Yorkers through the challenges brought on by the recent economic downturn.
Dial 311 – NYC’s 24-hour hotline
Financial Education Network Directory (NYC)
Launched by OFE, the Financial Education Network (FEN) is a partnership of financial education providers. A cornerstone of FEN is the easy-to-search online directory of financial education classes, workshops, hotlines and one-on-one counseling services in New York City. Indexed by the OFE team, financial education offerings cover a variety of money topics to help New Yorkers with finances – from opening a bank account to saving for retirement.
Center for Urban Community Services (CUCS)
CUCS offers a range of housing and social services, community-based programs and employment services to individuals and families in New York City who are homeless, formerly homeless, low-income, living with mental illness or who have other special needs.
Credit Where Credit is Due (Upper Manhattan)
CWCID provides financial education and counseling programs for low-income individuals and families to learn financial literacy and economic empowerment skills.
Harlem Congregations for Community Improvement (Harlem)
Provides free financial education classes on credit, debt assistance, homeownership, landlord training, money management and savings to residents of Harlem.
Make the Road New York
The Legal and Support Services Department provides free finance and business counseling and services to working class and low-income people. Make the Road New York has centers in Bushwick, Brooklyn; Woodside and Jackson Heights, Queens; and Port Richmond, Staten Island.
The Financial Clinic (NYC)
Provides legal and advocacy services, financial coaching, tax and preparation services to low-income New Yorkers.
Call: (212) 614-5355
SMALL BUSINESS and PERSONAL LOANS/CREDIT UNIONS
National Federation of Community Development Credit Unions (US)
Call: (800) 437-8711
Serves Bushwick and Bedford-Stuyvesant, Brooklyn.
Neighborhood Trust is a nonprofit, cooperative financial institution dedicated to immigrant communities of Washington Heights, Inwood and West Harlem.
ACCION is a community organization that offers flexible business loans up to $50,000 to qualified borrowers.
Call: (212) 387-0494
NYBDC provides innovative loans to small and medium-size businesses, and assists minority and women-owned businesses by offering credit opportunities otherwise not available to them.
NYC Business Solution Centers help businesses in New York City open, operate and expand in the five boroughs. Some of the services offered include hiring, training funds, M/WBE certification, financing, establishment and contract review and business planning.
Call: DIAL 311 and ask for NYC Business Solutions
The U.S. Small Business Administration (SBA) was created in 1953 as an independent agency of the federal government to aid, counsel, assist and protect the interests of small business concerns, to preserve free competitive enterprise and to maintain and strengthen the national economy.
Call: (800) U-ASK-SBA (1-800-827-5722)
STUDENT LOANS
National Consumer Law Center’s Student Loan Borrower Assistance Program
An online resource for borrowers, their families and advocates representing student loan borrowers. This resource is for people who already have student loans and want to know more about their options and rights.
MENTAL HEALTH
Mental Health Association of NYC – Lifenet (NY)
LifeNet is a free service offering information. A hotline is available to help New Yorkers find emotional support or mental health treatment for themselves or their loved ones. Help is available 7 days a week, 24 hours a day. The staff speaks a variety of languages.
Call: (800) LifeNet (1-800-543-3638)
What a wonderful wealth of resources! Thank you for allowing New Yorkers to feel we don’t have to go through this alone. For all who don’t know how or where to turn, this is not only helpful, but comforting. Thank you.
Manhattan Borough President Scott Stringer and Assembly member Herman Farrell, Jr. will hold two town hall meetings:
Washington Heights and Inwood Town Hall Meeting on Thursday, January 22, 2009 from 7 pm – 9 pm at the Hebrew Tabernacle, 551 Fort Washington Avenue on 185th Street
West Harlem Town Hall Meeting on Saturday, January 24, 2009 from 11am to 1pm at the Church of the Intercession, 550 West 155th Street at Broadway.
If you have a specific complaint or a suggestion, this is a perfect opportunity to direct it to people who have the power to generate action. Bring your friends and neighbors.
Please distribute to your networks.
If you have any further questions, please do not hesitate to contact us.
Thanks,
Jaritza Taveras
Manhattan Borough President Scott M. Stringer