Beneath Rosy Stats, Working Poor Struggle

Pundits indicate that we’re now in a post-Recession economy. Unemployment in the town is down to 4.3 percent as of November 2015.

This all looks pretty good in contrast to the high unemployment rate and economic uncertainty of the Great Recession of 2008 and 2009.

However, there’s an underlying segment of the population that is still struggling: the working poor, who are often employed in minimum wage jobs. These are people who were never able to obtain sustainable jobs after being laid off during the Recession or who never received the training and education that would help them get ahead. Or they couldn’t find work and stopped looking.

Statistics do not always tell the true story.

Directors of Branford’s social service organizations agree that’s it’s the working poor who need help the most.

Peter Cimino, executive director of the Branford Counseling Center, said, ​“There’s not as big a difference in financial needs in the time period September 2014 to January 2015 as last year.”

Cimino succeeded longtime director Pat Andriole a couple of years ago. He was previously with BHcare.

In a recent interview at his office with the Eagle, Cimino described some of the issues facing those in need.

He added, ​“A lot has to do with the cost of utilities – the cost goes up and down and this year has been mild – that has a big impact.” With the cold snap this week, he expected requests for assistance to rise.

On the plus side, he said the Secret Santa program this year had more donors than recipients. The program matches families who need gifts for their children with donors who purchase gifts from the families’ wish lists.

The problem is compounded by high rental costs. According to the National Low Income Housing Coalition, Connecticut ranks eighth in the nation for highest rents: A one-bedroom rental averages $1,263 a month and a two-bedroom in the New Haven-Meriden area is $1,360. However, a search of realtor.com for rentals in Branford finds few rentals under $1,200 or $1,300 a month; many are higher; the average is closer to $1,750.

To afford a two-bedroom apartment, households must earn an hourly wage of $24.29/hour, working 40 hours a week without paying more than 30 percent of their income.

The renter average wage in Connecticut is $16.16 an hour; $15.31 in the New Haven area. An individual must work 78 hours a week to afford that two-bedroom apartment. And earning minimum wage, which is $9.60 as of Jan. 1 and will rise to $10.10 by January 2017, one would have to work a whopping 106 hours a week.

In Branford (like many areas around the state and country) that means people are working two or three minimum wage jobs, or two people working in the household. Cimino said that often results in extended families living together. When they are behind on rent, the Counseling Center had a limit on how much it will assist, which is $500, paid directly to the landlord. Cimino believes many of those needing assistance are living in apartments in the Alps Road/Briarwood area and scattered around town.

Cimino said that he’s considering requesting the sources of income when people fill out applications rather than simply submitting a dollar figure; that information will help him get a better idea of the nature of the population being reached by the Counseling Center.

Cimino acknowledged that there is a segment of population in town that is homeless. He said there are some camps in the woods and some people live on and off with friends or in local motels. He mentioned an 80-year-old man who often camped in the woods (he has since died). ​“They’re very innovative,” Cimino said.

The ​“Point in Time Count” is a nationwide assessment of sheltered and unsheltered people living in places unfit for human habitation. In this area, the count is held in conjunction with the United Way and the Department of Urban Development (HUD) and is scheduled to take place Jan. 30. Branford will be included in the count.

Cimino said the Counseling Center also assists people in obtaining health insurance through Access Health CT, which is part of the Affordable Care Act; there were about 40 referrals between July and December.

Community Dining Room

While the number of people receiving help through the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) in Connecticut has dropped by a little more than 1 percent, the Branford Community Dining Room serves about 1,000 people a week.

According to newly retired director Pat Kral, the biggest change she has seen over the years has been in the face of the hungry. ​“There are lots of working people,” she said. ​“People are working two or three jobs… the chronic low income, earning minimum wage and not enough money for quality of life.” A family of four is eligible for SNAP if their income is $31,525 (before taxes) or less.

Kral said the dining room is open to anyone along the shoreline, but home delivery is only to Branford and North Branford residents. She added that the take-out service (started at the height of the Recession) is going well. ​“People sign up ahead of time, and rotate on and off.”

That indicates people do have money for food, but run short at the end of the week or month.

Now, that she is retiring from the Community Dining Room, Kral said, ​“I’m reframing my life.” Her legacy was acknowledged last month when the dining room was renamed the Patricia B. Kral Dining Room in her honor.

Branford Food Pantry

Wendy Cowles, director of the Branford Food Pantry said two or three new people take advantage of their services each week, adding that the number is up to 263 from July. Again, many are the working poor or those who have recently lost their jobs. She said things are not improving.

The Food Bank started ​“Feed Branford Kids” after observing that a number of school children come to school hungry on Mondays due to poor feeding at home over the weekends. The program provided suitable food for them to take home on Fridays. Cowles said 150 children within the grade schools are enrolled in the program and some are getting direct help from the food pantry. She said 700 children have been identified as needing free or reduced cost lunches. ​“A lot of people miss qualifying by a couple of dollars and are barely hanging on.”

Energy Assistance

Marlowe Ioime handles the energy assistance program for residents out of the Canoe Brook Senior Center. ​“People are struggling with utility bills,” she said, adding that the number of people seeking assistance is about the same as last year. She said that because the price of oil is so low and the weather has been milder, people are not as panicked and some people have converted to heating with natural gas. Still, she said people will come in with shut-off notices for utilities. Ioime pointed out that the utility companies offer hardship deferments, but you have to apply for them.
Ioime also handles SNAP and Title 19 applications for residents age 60 and older. She said she was ​“super busy” during December with open enrollment for the health insurance programs. 

Thanks to social media, Cimino said people are generally more aware, which enables them to make better choices. He summed up the picture in Branford, ​“It’s not better, not worse… Branford is unique in that it has a lot of resources.”

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