NEW YORK (1010 WINS) – New York Gov. Kathy Hochul held a roundtable on Monday with federal workers who were recently laid off by Elon Musk’s Department of Government Efficiency, focusing on the human toll of mass dismissals under the administration’s efforts to slash government bureaucracy.
Expanding on the "You're Hired" initiative announced last week, the Democrat launched a recruitment effort inviting displaced federal employees to explore job opportunities in New York.
“Elon Musk and his clueless cadre of career killers know nothing about how government works, who it serves, and the tireless federal employees who keep it running,” she said. “Here in New York, we don’t vilify public servants, we value them and their efforts. So when DOGE says, ‘You’re fired,’ New York is ready to say, ‘You’re hired’—and we’re making sure talented, experienced federal workers know about the many opportunities available in our state workforce.”
Digital recruitment ads in Washington, D.C.’s Union Station and billboards in both Union Station and Moynihan Train Hall also went up on Monday as part of the outreach campaign.
Among those affected by the layoffs was Luke Graziani, a veteran and New Yorker who was recently terminated from his job at a Bronx VA hospital.
“After my two decades of military service, including four combat tours, I never imagined that one day I’d be terminated from my job at the VA and treated like nothing more than a number in a spreadsheet," Graziani said. "I’m grateful to Governor Hochul for providing this forum for us to share our experiences on behalf of so many federal workers who are being thoughtlessly tossed aside despite their tireless efforts to serve the American people.”
Several other laid-off federal employees attended the roundtable but chose to remain anonymous as they feared retaliation.
The Musk administration’s sweeping layoffs have affected thousands of career federal employees in its first month alone. While there is no official tally of the total number of firings, thousands have been impacted.
The impact extends far beyond the Washington, D.C., metro area, which is home to roughly 20% of the 2.4 million civilian federal employees, a workforce that excludes military personnel and postal workers. With over 80% of federal employees residing outside the capital region, the effects of these cuts are being felt nationwide.
Hochul said that layoffs not only disrupt workers’ lives but also erode essential public services. She argued that firing experienced civil servants leads to longer wait times and reduced accessibility for government programs that millions of Americans rely on.
The governor’s push to hire displaced federal employees comes as she intensifies her criticism of federal funding cuts to social safety net programs.
Over the weekend, Hochul appeared at a rally at St. Mary’s Hospital for Children in Bayside, Queens, where she stood alongside pediatric patients and their families to challenge congressional Republicans on proposed Medicaid and Social Security cuts.