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NYC raises snow shoveler pay to $30 an hour this winter
By
Giulia Heyward
Published Sep 15, 2026
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By
Giulia Heyward
Published Sep 15, 2026
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New Yorkers who want to earn extra cash can now expect to make as much as $45 an hour shoveling snow this winter.
Mayor Zohran Mamdani announced Tuesday that the city’s emergency snow shoveling program has raised its hourly rate to $30, rising to $45 after the first 40 hours worked in a week.
The raises come after more than 7,800 people signed up for the city’s longstanding emergency snow shoveling program last winter amid heavy snowfall, blizzard conditions and freezing temperatures. Altogether, the record-breaking number of shovelers, along with city sanitation workers, cleared 135,000 crosswalks, 34,000 bus stops and 29,000 fire hydrants, city officials said.
The new rate is up from last winter’s $19.14 an hour, which rose to $28.71 after 40 hours worked in a week. The city is also moving registration to the fall and offering a paid four-hour orientation in December, with the first registration event scheduled for this weekend.
“Last winter, thousands of New Yorkers stepped up to help their neighbors dig out from heavy snow and ice. This year, we’re raising their pay and making it easier to join the program — because when the snow comes, our city needs to be ready,” Mamdani said in a statement Tuesday.
Those who register at a Department of Sanitation event before Nov. 30 will be eligible for the paid orientation and expedited payment processing, with the goal of receiving a paycheck within two weeks of working. The first registration event will run from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Saturday, Sept. 19, at Taft High School in the Bronx.
Snow shovelers must be at least 18 years old, legally authorized to work in the U.S. and physically able to perform demanding work in harsh winter weather.
Any would-be shovelers also needs a valid phone number and email address, a Social Security card, completed federal and state withholding forms and a completed I-9 form with the required identification documents.
Another change from last year is that applicants no longer need to bring their own printed photographs. Instead, the sanitation department will take their photos at registration events.
The Department of Sanitation will announce additional registration events across the five boroughs on its social media accounts and at nyc.gov/snowemploy.
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new york city
Giulia Heyward
Giulia Heyward is a breaking news reporter on the Day-Of desk. She previously worked at NPR, as a breaking news reporter, and the New York Times, as a reporting fellow on the national desk. Her work has also appeared in CNN, The Atlantic and Politico. Got a tip? Email [email protected] or more securely on signal at 917-715-1458.
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Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations
Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations
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