Lucy lives in the Bronx with two children. She supports her family through the best work she can find: a part-time job. But this doesn’t make ends meet and her family also requires the assistance of Medicaid, food stamps and rent-stabilized housing.
When she lost her job, she began cleaning the apartments of friends and family, but the Department of Labor then alleged that it could withhold unemployment insurance because of this.
Lucy was in need of an attorney.
Like many legal aid organizations, there are times that we do not have the capacity to take on new cases. However, we knew that Lucy was right on the law and that an advocate would make a huge difference—litigants are five to 10 times more likely to win with representation.
We made sure she wouldn’t get lost in a chain of referrals. Our staff attorney turned to her network and personally ensured that a trusted Unemployment Coalition member could properly take on Lucy’s case.
As a result of our dedication, Lucy keeps in touch. She is still cleaning apartments and has been able to obtain unemployment insurance so she can provide for her children.