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With the Trump administration trying to lay off tens of thousands of federal workers, some Democratic governors are sensing an opportunity. WESA's Tom Riese reports they want fired federal workers to apply for state positions.
TOM RIESE, BYLINE: At a recent job fair in Harrisburg, Pennsylvania Governor Josh Shapiro signed an executive order directing state agencies to consider federal experience on par with state experience. It's a move that he hopes will fill nearly 6,000 open positions with the state for registered nurses, civil engineers and accountants.
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JOSH SHAPIRO: If they're qualified and they want to serve Pennsylvanians, well, hear me on this - we want you on our team.
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RIESE: Like Shapiro, Hawaii Governor Josh Green...
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JOSH GREEN: I'm fighting to make sure people who lose their jobs can get a job through Operation Hire Hawaii.
RIESE: ...And New York Governor Kathy Hochul...
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KATHY HOCHUL: Come join our New York State family.
RIESE: ...Have announced campaigns to appeal to federal workers who are new to the job hunt after sweeping government layoffs. Pennsylvania is home to more than 100,000 federal employees, and it's unclear exactly how many lost their jobs since Donald Trump took office. But in its first week tracking former federal applicants, the Pennsylvania office in charge of hiring says at least 700 people disclosed they used to work for a federal agency, and they've applied to over a thousand positions. But not all federal employees say they're ready or even willing to go back to government agencies.
MEGHAN SCHWOB: Oh, geez. I have to figure out what to do next.
RIESE: Meghan Schwob, a former U.S. Forest Service worker, was laid off in February in Oregon. After what she says has been nearly a month of uncertainty, she moved back across the country and home to Minnesota. She'll soon start a job in the private sector, despite calling the Forest Service her dream job.
SCHWOB: I think damage has kind of been done for a lot of people who - it's been a couple weeks now where people have really had to find new jobs and start new lives.
RIESE: She says in her case, there might not be a job at the state level that matches what she did to maintain national forests.
SCHWOB: There's just not as much correlation from the couple-million-acre public land to a smaller state-run park or facility.
RIESE: Salaries likely differ, too, says Philip Glover, who heads the union the American Federation of Government Employees in Pennsylvania and Delaware.
PHILIP GLOVER: Usually, the state is a little lower starting salary. It depends on the job, obviously.
RIESE: But Republicans in Pennsylvania have expressed concern about hiring federal workers fired for poor performance. That's what many of their termination letters say. Republican State House leader Jesse Topper says it comes down to efficiency.
JESSE TOPPER: Sometimes, that doesn't take more people. Sometimes, that takes less. But whoever we have in those jobs certainly need to be competent and doing their jobs efficiently.
RIESE: Glover with the union says actually, working for the federal government is a prequalification for working for the state.
GLOVER: Clearly, these were political terminations. These weren't for cause.
RIESE: More than 500 employees in his local union have filed for unemployment. And, he says, many are waiting to see what effect judges' rulings have on reinstating some agency workers. As far as Pennsylvania, Glover says...
GLOVER: I think the governor stepped out there and did some things that some of the other states aren't doing, and we appreciate his willingness to do that.
RIESE: The AFGE and other federal unions will monitor judges' rulings on whether workers can have their jobs back, and states will keep trying to entice feds to work for them instead.
For NPR News, I'm Tom Riese in Harrisburg.
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