Gov. Shapiro says he wants to recruit laid-off federal workers to fill state job openings

Pennsylvania’s governor signed an executive order Wednesday hoping to attract those workers, noting that the state, with a workforce of almost 82,000 people, has nearly 6,000 open positions for which federal workers who are losing their jobs could apply.

HARRISBURG — Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro said Wednesday that he wants his administration to try to fill openings in the state’s workforce by recruiting federal workers who might be losing or leaving their jobs as part of President Donald Trump’s efforts to shrink the size of the federal workforce.

Shapiro signed an executive order hoping to attract those workers, noting that the state, with a workforce of almost 82,000 people, has nearly 6,000 open positions for which federal workers who are losing their jobs could apply.

Shapiro became the latest governor to make that pitch, joining other governors who are holding job fairs, fast-tracking hiring for such applicants or doing other kinds of outreach.

Shapiro, in a news conference at a state job fair in Harrisburg, said his administration will raise its consideration of federal job experience when it looks to hire and has assembled materials online to show federal workers how their experience translates to the state workforce.

Shapiro gave as examples nurses who can help staff state health care facilities, civil engineers who can work on road and bridge safety, accountants who can process state tax returns and emergency response professionals who can help the Pennsylvania Emergency Management Agency.

“Some of them might have been laid off recently, some of them might just be looking for a change right now,” Shapiro said. “They can step into one of our vacancies and be ready to serve on day one.”

Trump administration’s cuts have made the country “less safe and less healthy and less protected,” Shapiro said.

Trump, through billionaire Elon Musk’s Department of Government Efficiency, is closing agencies, firing workers, laying off nearly all probationary employees who have not yet gained civil service protection and offering buyouts to almost all federal employees.

More layoffs could be on the way.

The IRS and Social Security Administration are preparing plans to cut their workforces, federal offices could be sold off and federal employees who don’t comply with Musk ‘s demands for reports on their recent accomplishments could get fired. Trump also has vowed to dismantle the Department of Education.

Roughly 80% of the country’s 2.4 million federal workers are based outside of metropolitan Washington, D.C.