SAN ANTONIO – Editor’s note - “Unheard: Stories from the Alamo City” is a KSAT feature that gives our viewers the chance to tell their unique stories. The idea is to give a voice to the voiceless. Find more stories like this or share your powerful story on our Unheard page.
Many Americans right now are out of work because of the coronavirus crisis.
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In San Antonio, the Baez family was hit hard last month when both Eder and Candace were furloughed from their jobs at a local Chuy’s restaurant.
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“They called everyone in big batches and they kind of like batch-fired us,” Candace Baez said in an interview with KSAT. “There wasn’t really a lot of explanation as to where to go from there.”
Both Candace and Eder said they had been working for Chuy’s for about 11 years and they had hoped at least one of them would be able to keep working.
“I’m like you know that we both have an income from this company and I’m begging them not to -- my feelings were hurt,” Candace Baez said.
Now they both try to navigate unemployment, which hasn't been easy.
“I’ve called Texas Workforce and can’t get through and online the system keeps crashing, it’s very frustrating,” Eder Baez said.
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"It's also really scary," Candace Baez said. "Our kid isn't in school, we don't have money coming in, you don't know what's going to happen."
The two have now been without work for about a month and are trying anything to stay afloat, including making and selling tamales.
What was really uncomfortable for them was having to call their mortgage company and let them know what was going on.
"It's embarrassing and it's very humbling," Eder Baez said. "This experience has been very humbling."
They’re also not sure if they can continue teaching their daughter her online classes because they might not be able to pay the internet bill.
Some family and friends have lent a hand and that has helped keep them stay positive.
"You have to stay positive or you will go crazy," Candace Baez said.
So for now they pray and wait.
“We’re trying to live minimal and just be patient,” Eder Baez said.
COVID-19, the respiratory disease caused by the new virus, stands for coronavirus disease 2019. The disease first appeared in late 2019 in Wuhan, China, but spread around the world in early 2020, causing the World Health Organization to declare a pandemic in March.
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