ResourcesReportsState of the Work: New York and New Jersey

2026

State of the Work: New York and New Jersey

New York and New Jersey

In the State of Work 2025: New York and New Jersey, TriNet surfaces what’s really happening inside small and medium-sized businesses across the region — from both sides of the desk.

New York and New Jersey employers and employees agree on more than they disagree on. But the gaps that do exist are significant: employers consistently underestimate how many hours employees are working, dramatically underestimate turnover risk, and overestimate how connected employees feel to their managers and company mission. This report gives leaders a clear-eyed look at those blind spots — and what to do about them.

Based on surveys of 69 employers and 75 employees across New York and New Jersey-based SMBs. Data collected June 30–July 2, 2025.

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Satisfaction

Work/Life Balance: NY/NJ Employees Are Working More Than Their Employers Think

Employers and employees in New York and New Jersey diverge sharply on hours. Employers estimate far fewer people are working long weeks than employees actually report, creating a significant blind spot around workload and burnout risk.

41.4

of NY/NJ employees report working 41+ hours per week, versus the 23.0% employers estimate, an 18-point gap

36.1

of employees say they work too many or slightly too many hours, nearly double the 22.3% employers assume

The overwork gap

The pattern is consistent: employers believe most employees work reasonable hours, while employees report otherwise across every measure. The overwork rate in NY/NJ also runs above the national average (36% versus 32%).

Hours Worked Per Week

“How many actual hours per week do you work on average?” | Employer = perception. Employee = self-reported.

Item	21-25	26-30	31-35	36-40	41-45	46-50	51-55	56-60	60+
Employer	0 %	13.0 %	30.4 %	29.0 %	13.0 %	4.3 %	1.4 %	2.9 %	1.4 %
Employee	1.3 %	10.7 %	17.3 %	26.7 %	24.0 %	10.7 %	2.7 %	1.3 %	4.0 %

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Engagement

Employers See a Highly Engaged Workforce. Turnover Risk Tells a Different Story

Most New York and New Jersey employers are confident their workforce is engaged, and employees largely confirm it by self-report. But that engagement coexists with one of the highest turnover intent rates in the study, and employers sharply underestimate how many of their people are actively looking.

94.2

of NY/NJ employers believe employees are moderately or extremely engaged, versus 78.7% of employees who say the same about themselves

57.4

of employers believe a quarter or fewer of their workforce is looking. The reality: 41.4% are actively searching, and another 17.3% are open to it

of NY/NJ employees plan to leave within three months, well above the national average of 16.9%

1 in 4 NY/NJ employees plans to leave within three months.

Potential turnover risk, including those open to leaving, exceeds 58%. The engagement scores suggest a stable workforce; the turnover numbers say otherwise. In NY/NJ, people are staying engaged and looking at the same time.

Employee Engagement Levels

"How engaged are employees at work?"

Item	Not at All Engaged	Slightly Engaged	Somewhat Engaged	Moderately Engaged	Extremely Engaged
Employer	0 %	0 %	5.8 %	44.9 %	49.3 %
Employee	1.3 %	4.0 %	14.7 %	26.7 %	52.0 %

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Knowledge

Employers Anticipate More Skill Transformation Than Employees Do — Especially in Data and Leadership

New York and New Jersey employers and employees are aligned on the importance of AI expertise, but diverge sharply on how much broader skill transformation is coming. Employers anticipate significantly more disruption, while employees appear less convinced that fundamental reskilling is on the horizon.

65.2

of NY/NJ employers say data analytics skills will be critical — only 36.0% of employees agree

62.3

of employers cite leadership development — only 41.3% of employees do

46.7

of NY/NJ employees cite AI expertise as a top skill to develop — above the 36% national employee average

Skills Employees Need to Develop (Next 3+ Years)

“Which skills will be most important to develop?” | Note: NY/NJ employers anticipate far more data analytics and reskilling need than employees report.

Item	Data\nAnalytics	Leadership\nDev	Upskilling	AI\nExpertise	Creative\nSkills	Reskilling
Employer	65.2 %	62.3 %	47.8 %	44.9 %	37.7 %	52.2 %
Employee	36.0 %	41.3 %	42.7 %	46.7 %	44.0 %	26.7 %

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Empowerment

Employers and Employees Agree on Voices Being Heard. Everything Else Has Gaps.

New York and New Jersey employers and employees mean different things by "empowerment." Employees place the highest value on ownership and autonomy over their work, while employers point to mentorship, training, and seeking input as the defining features.

of employers say being heard defines an empowered employee, compared with 37.0% of employees

39.7

of employees name ownership over their work as the top driver of empowerment, the single most common employee answer

46.4

of employers believe mentorship is a top empowerment factor, compared with only 24.7% of employees

Why employees leave — and what employers think

Employers assume people leave for title, pay, or work/life balance. Employees point to growth opportunities first (33.3%), with pay further down. Most striking: 24.0% of employees say they left a toxic workplace, nearly double the 11.6% of employers who see it as a factor.

What an Empowered Experience Looks Like

“What does empowerment look like at work?”

Item	Employee\nVoice	Training\n& Dev	Info Shared Freely	Tech\nResources	Flexibility in Location	Mentorship	Autonomy over Time	Ownership over Work
Employer	58.0 %	55.1 %	50.7 %	50.7 %	46.4 %	46.4 %	43.5 %	49.3 %
Employee	37.0 %	34.2 %	37.0 %	32.9 %	35.6 %	24.7 %	37.0 %	39.7 %

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Benefits

Employees Place High Value on Core Benefits. Employers Misjudge Which Ones Matter Most.

New York and New Jersey employees rate the benefits that anchor a strong package, retirement and medical, as highly important, in some cases more than employers assume. The divergence isn't whether benefits matter; it's which ones employers choose to emphasize. Employees lean hardest toward retirement, while employers put more weight on benefits like life insurance and parental leave that employees rank lower. As benefit budgets face scrutiny, knowing where employees actually place value is what separates a package that retains from one that simply exists.

53.3

of NY/NJ employees rate pension and retirement (401(k)) extremely important, well above the 39.7% employers assume, making it the benefit employees value most

45.3

of employees rate medical insurance extremely important, nearly matching employers at 50.7%, confirming it as a shared top priority

42.6

of employers rate life insurance extremely important, compared with 32.0% of employees, one of the clearest cases of employers emphasizing a benefit employees weight less

Benefit Importance — "Extremely Important" Ratings

“% rating this benefit ‘Extremely Important’ when looking for a job” | Note: NY/NJ employees rate retirement significantly higher than employers assume.

Item	Medical Insurance	Pension & Retirement\n(401(k))	Paid Vacation & Sick\nTime	Life\nInsurance	Dental Insurance
Employer	50.7 %	39.7 %	44.1 %	42.6 %	40.3 %
Employee	45.3 %	53.3 %	42.7 %	32.0 %	33.3 %

Item	Mental Health Coverage	Vision Insurance	Parental\nLeave	Childcare Assistance	Education Reimbursement
Employer	35.3 %	39.7 %	37.3 %	32.4 %	27.9 %
Employee	33.3 %	40.0 %	24.0 %	29.3 %	34.7 %

Where employers misjudge the mix

Employees put retirement at the top and value medical and vacation nearly as much as employers do, so the core of the package lands. The gaps show up on the edges: employers over-emphasize life insurance and parental leave relative to how employees rank them, while underestimating retirement. The opportunity isn't spending more on benefits, it's weighting the package toward what employees in this region actually prioritize.

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HR Expectations

Both Sides Want 24/7 HR — And Employees Feel the Need More Viscerally

New York and New Jersey employers and employees broadly agree that HR shouldn't be a 9-to-5 function. More employers agree overall, but employees hold the conviction more intensely: they're far likelier to strongly agree, suggesting the need for around-the-clock access runs deeper than employers perceive.

70.0

of NY/NJ employers agree or strongly agree HR should be a 24/7 function, compared with 62.7% of employees

32.0

of employees strongly agree, versus 21.7% of employers, the clearest signal that employees feel the need more acutely

HR Should Be a 24/7 Function

“To what extent do you agree: HR should be a 24/7 function” | Combined Agree: 70.0% employers / 62.7% employees.

Item	Strongly Disagree	Disagree	Somewhat Disagree	Neither	Somewhat\nAgree	Agree	Strongly\nAgree
Employer	6.7 %	0 %	3.3 %	6.7 %	13.3 %	48.3 %	21.7 %
Employee	0 %	4.0 %	5.3 %	9.3 %	18.7 %	30.7 %	32.0 %

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AI in HR

NY/NJ Is One of the Most AI-Active Regions in the Study — on Both Sides.

New York and New Jersey has one of the most AI-integrated workforces in the study, and unlike most regions, the adoption runs deep on both the employer and employee side. The two groups align most closely on transactional tasks like benefits questions, where employee usage is high and employer acceptance is the strongest of any HR function, pointing to where AI in HR is likeliest to stick first.

80.6

of NY/NJ employers use AI at work at least weekly, above the national average

68.0

of NY/NJ employees use AI at least weekly, among the highest in the study

73.8

of employers rate AI acceptable for benefits questions, the highest acceptability of any HR function in the region

AI Frequency of Use

"How frequently do you use AI at work?”

Item	Never	Rarely (1-2x/yr)	Occasionally (1-2x/mo)	Moderate (1-2x/wk)	Great Deal (multiple/wk)
Employer	0 %	3.2 %	16.1 %	41.9 %	38.7 %
Employee	11.0 %	5.0 %	16.0 %	42.7 %	25.3 %

AI Acceptability vs. Employee Usage by HR Function

Employer acceptability = % rating Moderately or Extremely Acceptable. Employee use = % using Almost Every Time or Every Time.

Item	Payroll Questions	Benefits Questions	Interpersonal HR	Personal HR	Performance Reviews	Training\n& Dev	HR Advice
Employer	70.5 %	73.8 %	65.0 %	68.8 %	77.0 %	65.6 %	70.5 %
Employee	46.7 %	50.6 %	37.3 %	42.7 %	45.8 %	40.0 %	40.0 %

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Explore workplace trends across AI, employee engagement, remote work, and more in the full New York & New Jersey State of the Workplace report by TriNet.

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