MONTICELLO — After news of the Monticello Casino and Raceway's closing, it would seem employees are left without a job. However, that's not the case, and the state has a law to help those employees find work.

According to Laura Quigley, Director of the Center for Workforce Development, when a mass layoff occurs the employer is required to file a Worker Adjustment Retraining Notice (WARN) by Federal law.

“The intent of that law is that employers are required to provide early warning of those layoffs so that employees have time to start adjusting to that coming transition,” Quigley said. “It allows for Workforce Development and the Department of Labor to go in and provide information immediately to those employees.”

In New York State, that law applies to businesses that have 50 or more full-time employees. It also applies to a multitude of situations that amount to unemployment, such as closings, mass layoffs, relocation of the business, or a reduction in staff hours.

The “racino” has 207 employees, 112 of which are in a union. Quigley said the Center reached out to the union as well as the racino.

“The raceway did everything that they are supposed to do,” she said. “We already had our outreach to them so that's already begun, so we will be able to help the employees who choose not to go over, or don't get asked to go over to the casino.”

The racino is owned by Empire Resorts, which is the same company that owns Resorts World Catskills only a few miles away. Legislator Ira Steingart, chair of the Economic Development Committee, said most of the employees from the racino were offered jobs at Resorts World.

Quigley added that those who do not become employed at Resorts World Catskills have options at the Kartrite Resort and Indoor Waterpark or YO1 Wellness Center.

Driver's licenses for undocumented immigrants

The state is currently considering legislation that would allow undocumented immigrants to obtain a driver's license. The bill is currently in the senate and is supported by Gov. Andrew Cuomo.

County Clerk Daniel Briggs said his office is having discussions and preparing for the future if that law should pass.

“We're anticipating some laws coming down that will have an impact on our offices [DMV}, namely whether or not undocumented people will be given driving licenses,” Briggs said.

The proposed bill would create a standard driver's license that anyone could get without having to provide a Social Security number, as the current license application requires.

According to the National Conference of State Legislatures, 12 states and the District of Columbia enacted laws to allow unauthorized immigrants to obtain a driver's license. These states—California, Colorado, Connecticut, Delaware, Hawaii, Illinois, Maryland, Nevada, New Mexico, Utah, Vermont and Washington—issue a license if an applicant provides certain documentation, such as a foreign birth certificate, a foreign passport, or a consular card and evidence of current residency in the state.

State voting reform means higher cost

In January the New York State legislature approved a series of voting reforms in an effort to increase New York's historically low voter turnout. The reforms included early voting and consolidation of primary election dates. The bills have now been signed into law by Gov. Andrew Cuomo.

Prior to these reforms, New York was the only state to hold federal and state primaries on different dates, which according to lawmakers cost the state millions of dollars and suppressed voter turnout. New York was also just one of 12 states without early voting options.

However, early voting brings with it extra costs, said county Board of Elections (BOE) Commissioner Lori Benjamin. The BOE will now be required to be open one week prior to the election as well as the weekend, and two days the office will be open until 8 p.m.

“It's a cost for the county because it's going to be overtime for people if we need any additional staff, and there will probably be more ballots purchased,” Benjamin said.

Jobs are here, but where's the workforce?

With new businesses coming into the area, the unemployment rate has been at its lowest in recent years. However, with all the new jobs, is there a large enough workforce to sustain it?

Local organizations are joining forces to form a workforce coalition, announced Sullivan County Chamber of Commerce President and CEO Jaime Schmeiser. She said they have representatives from the Sullivan Catskills Visitors Association, the Partnership for Economic Development, local school districts, BOCES and the Center for Workforce Development.

“We're doing this coalition to adopt a clear and coherent branding message that Sullivan County is the place for jobs,” Schmeiser said.

She added that they are going to work on the marketing of existing resources in the county for education and training of workers.

“We want to support and enhance the existing services to address unemployment persons' barriers to work,” Schmeiser said. “So we're very excited about spearheading that coalition and working in partnership with the county.”