March 05, 2025
Harrison Jones/USA TODAY NETWORK
Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro wants to recruit former federal employees, thousands of whom have been fired by the Trump administration, to work for the state in a variety of departments. Shapiro is shown above at a news conference in West Manchester Township on Feb. 22.
Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro invited recently fired federal workers to apply for thousands of state jobs on Wednesday, calling the Trump administration's sweeping layoffs a recruitment opportunity to fill critical vacancies in multiple departments.
Shapiro (D) spoke about the initiative during a job fair in Harrisburg, where he signed an executive order to streamline the process of matching qualified applicants with openings relevant to their federal government backgrounds. The state has about 5,600 vacancies that are already budgeted and need to be filled.
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"This is an act of self-interest for the people of Pennsylvania because I believe the Commonwealth can benefit from the experience and expertise of these federal workers who have been forced out of their jobs," Shapiro said.
About 30,000 federal employees in the United States have been fired since President Donald Trump hired billionaire Elon Musk to lead the Department of Government Efficiency, a task force created to slash the federal workforce and eliminate government waste. The majority of the fired employees were probationary employees who had started their roles within the last two years.
"They've made dramatic cuts — cuts that I think make us less safe and less healthy and less protected in the United States of America," Shapiro said. "They're going to have to answer for that. My job is to make sure the good people of Pennsylvania get the critical services they deserve."
Many of the open jobs in Pennsylvania are for registered nurses, accountants, emergency responders and civil engineers.
The executive order signed Wednesday directs the Pennsylvania Office of Administration to treat relevant federal work experience as equivalent to state experience in its recruitment guidelines. The state has created a website where people with federal government backgrounds can check whether their experience prequalifies them for particular state jobs.
Federal workers have faced mounting uncertainty about the stability of their positions as DOGE directs agencies to submit reports detailing which roles are critical and which can be eliminated over the coming months. Union leaders for federal workers in Philadelphia have questioned the legality of DOGE's firings and complained of sinking morale among employees who fear they will soon lose their livelihoods at various agencies.
Shapiro welcomed both recently fired workers and current federal employees "looking for a change" to apply for state jobs. He said Pennsylvania will make it a priority to hire veterans in need of work.
Although the openings in Pennsylvania will not expand state government, Shapiro said his administration believes having enough skilled workers is essential to enabling departments to "operate at the speed of business" when approving and processing various permits and other matters that require state authorization. He said his administration has expedited the hiring and onboarding process, reducing it from 90 days to about 60 since he took office two years ago.
Shapiro is scheduled to be in Philadelphia on Thursday to visit the recently opened Temple Women & Families hospital in North Philadelphia, where he will discuss the state's shortage of registered nurses and the need to invest in workforce development. A $5 million initiative will support education, training and recruitment of nursing professionals in Pennsylvania.
The initiative to hire and support federal workers matches similar moves in neighboring states. New York Gov. Kathy Hochul (D) unveiled a plan to recruit fired federal employees this week and held a roundtable discussion with public sector workers impacted by DOGE's cuts. New Jersey is providing unemployment benefits and job search resources to fired federal workers, and Maryland Gov. Wes Moore (D) announced plans to hold job fairs and encourage former federal employees to transition into teaching jobs in the state.
