Percent of Clients Employed
Roughly 16% of clients at HFH shelters are employed.
These numbers are lower than the statistics DHS reported in 2017, where they calculated that more than one third of families with children in shelter have a working family member.¹
Possible Reasons for Low Client Employment:
- Some clients have either lost their jobs or have had trouble finding one due to the current economic climate.
- A greater share of families referred to HFH sites have more barriers to employment than the average family seeking shelter at PATH.
- A lack of access to jobs close to shelters.
Client Commute to Work (One Way)
Many clients travel far to get to work.
Google Maps travel time estimates illustrate that only 11% of clients can get to work in under 30 minutes via public transportation.
Industries Employing HFH Clients
Almost one in four employed clients (23%) work in a healthcare support position.
These healthcare support occupations have a lower median annual wage ($28,470) than the median annual wage for all other occupations.²
This analysis demonstrates that few HFH clients have jobs that provide steady income and are convenient to the sites where they reside. These findings also underline the essential need for job opportunities in shelter, such as FamilyWorks internships or culinary career training, as a component of giving clients a path to steady employment.
¹Department of Homeless Services (2017).Turning the Tide on Homelessness in New York City, https://www1.nyc.gov/assets/dhs/downloads/pdf/turning-the-tide-on-homelessness.pdf.
²Department of Labor (May 2019). “Healthcare Occupations,” https://www.bls.gov/ooh/healthcare/home.htm
