Mayor Gusciora Calls on State of New Jersey to Bring Back State Employees to Work In-Person

Trenton N.J. – Mayor Reed Gusciora is calling on Governor Phil Murphy to bring back full-time state employees to resume work in-person.

Last week, Governor of Pennsylvania, Josh Shapiro, called on state employees to return to work in Harrisburg; while noting the trade-offs associated with in-person work, his administration concluded that the influx of state workers is critical to support local businesses. Mayor Reed Gusciora stated, “Our Capital City is no different from Harrisburg. Our local businesses depend on state workers, and we would welcome the return of all state workers to Trenton.”

In 2021, Governor Phil Murphy’s administration set a deadline for all state workers in New Jersey to return to their offices full-time: October 18, 2021. This deadline passed by 476 days ago. East Ward Councilman Joe Harrison noted, “Given the presence of county and state-owned properties in Trenton, our businesses rely on state workers. The return of state workers to pre-pandemic levels would provide significant economic benefits to businesses in Trenton.”

According to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, the State of New Jersey employed 56,000 state workers in Trenton before the COVID-19 pandemic began. Mayor Reed Gusciora affirmed, “Our population is only 90,000 people; if the State returned to pre-pandemic levels of staffing in Trenton, this would support our efforts to revitalize the Capital City.”