A similar thing happened during the February 2026 blizzard in New York City. The city raised pay for emergency snow shovelers from about $19.14/hour to $30/hour (with $45/hour overtime). These crews clear snow in places plows can’t reach (bus stops, crosswalks, fire hydrants), so staffing quickly during a major storm is essential.
It seems to illustrate a similar economic principle to the one in this post: when something becomes critically scarce in an emergency, raising compensation both signals urgency and rapidly mobilizes effort.
A similar thing happened during the February 2026 blizzard in New York City. The city raised pay for emergency snow shovelers from about $19.14/hour to $30/hour (with $45/hour overtime). These crews clear snow in places plows can’t reach (bus stops, crosswalks, fire hydrants), so staffing quickly during a major storm is essential.
It seems to illustrate a similar economic principle to the one in this post: when something becomes critically scarce in an emergency, raising compensation both signals urgency and rapidly mobilizes effort.