NYC Amazon workers to access college-degree programs through CUNY partnership
FILE - People arrive for work at the Amazon distribution center in the Staten Island borough of New York, Monday, Oct. 25, 2021. The National Labor Relations Board is confirming that a group of Amazon warehouse workers in Staten Island, New York has withdrawn its petition to hold a vote to unionize its workers. (AP Photo/Craig Ruttle, File)
Tech giant Amazon has pledged to subsidize the cost of tuition and fees for roughly 30,000 of its hourly workers across New York state who get accepted at one of eight participating CUNY colleges, company and university.
The eight participating schools are Bronx Community College, Borough of Manhattan Community College, City College of New York, College of Staten Island, CUNY School of Professional Studies, Kingsborough Community College, LaGuardia Community College and Queens College.
The program will allow eligible Amazon worker — full-time, hourly employees who’ve worked at the company for more than 90 days — to get up to $5,250 to cover costs at CUNY schools. Part-time Amazon employees can get up to half of that yearly subsidy.
Amazon officials said the move is part of the company’s $1.2 billion national initiative to subsidize higher education costs for a targeted 300,000 hourly employees.
They didn’t say how much they expect to spend on the New York City effort, but Carley Graham-Garcia, Amazon’s head of community affairs for New York, said she expects “significant” participation.
The colleges offer more flexible options for students working full-time, including night and online classes.
Yearly tuition at CUNY’s community colleges runs $4,800 a year, and could theoretically be covered entirely by the Amazon subsidy. Annual tuition at a four-year college is $6,930 and fees are usually several hundred dollars more.
In a statement, Gov. Hochul said the CUNY and Amazon collaboration “will provide greater access to education and opportunity, and complement our efforts to grow our economy and expand workforce development across the state.”
Amazon officials said the program is open to students enrolled or planning to enroll in any of the participating CUNY schools after January.
“The subsidies are direct payments to the schools, and accepting the financial support doesn’t require worker to commit to staying at Amazon for any length of time,” Graham-Garcia said.
Students can get subsidized for both graduate or undergraduate programs.
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