> Better idea: pay the cleaners anyway and let them stay home without littering in public.

There are about 200 unemployed New York subway construction workers who would love a job where they get paid to do nothing.

https://www.nytimes.com/2017/12/28/nyregion/new-york-subway-...

An accountant discovered the discrepancy while reviewing the budget for new train platforms under Grand Central Terminal in Manhattan.

The budget showed that 900 workers were being paid to dig caverns for the platforms as part of a 3.5-mile tunnel connecting the historic station to the Long Island Rail Road. But the accountant could only identify about 700 jobs that needed to be done, according to three project supervisors. Officials could not find any reason for the other 200 people to be there.

“Nobody knew what those people were doing, if they were doing anything,” said Michael Horodniceanu, who was then the head of construction at the Metropolitan Transportation Authority, which runs transit in New York. The workers were laid off, Mr. Horodniceanu said, but no one figured out how long they had been employed. “All we knew is they were each being paid about $1,000 every day.”

Wow, a thousand a day? Is that full wages, or does it include benefits? Even if it did include benefits, $1,000/day all-in is not exactly chump change. Universal income would not pay them $1,000/day.

That should be full costs, probably paid to a subcontracting company.

Are you implying that it wasn’t going to a worker, that it was just fraud?

I'm implying that workers are often employed temporarily though a subcontracting agency, rather than being in a permanent role. The daily costs is fully inclusive.

Both companies should keep track of what resources are assigned where and paid for.

Which makes sense, but if true, quote in OP article would be vastly inaccurate and changes everything.

Most of the garabge they are cleaning up isn't confetti. It's people throwing their wrappers/bottles on the ground because they can't/won't get to a garbage can.