On July 1, 2025, Governor Josh Stein signed SL 2025-34 into law, taking a major step in modernizing North Carolina state human resources. This bill codifies several key changes to the North Carolina State Human Resources Act that make the state's HR system easier, faster, and better. These changes are effective immediately, and will allow OSHR to focus on the important work of helping state government serve the people of North Carolina.
What SL 2025-34 Does For ...
Job Seekers
- Allows resumes and website profiles to be uploaded into the state job application.
- Increases the ability to substitute job experience for education.
- Simplifies minimum requirements to ensure qualified candidates aren't screened out.
State Agencies
- Makes it easier to post continuous positions, classify/reclassify positions, and set salaries.
- Speeds up hiring of previous candidates for similar future roles, across agencies.
- Expands temp-to-perm hiring program to all agencies.
State Employees, Local Government, & Beyond
- Requires OSHR to recommend performance management system improvements.
- Authorizes sign-on and retention bonuses for local governments.
- Sets the stage for a bigger overhaul of the State Human Resources Act in 2026.
Easier. Faster. Better.
How OSHR is transforming the state’s HR system to become modern and simple, attracting the next generation of state employees.
From left to right: Rep. John Bell, Sen. Kevin Corbin, Governor Josh Stein, OSHR Director Staci Meyer, SEANC President Kirk Montgomery, Sen. Joyce Waddell, and SEANC Executive Director Ardis Watkins. Photo courtesy of the Governor’s Office.
On July 1, 2025, Governor Stein signed S124 into law! This bipartisan win marked the first step in transforming North Carolina’s state human resources system, making it modern and simple.
Over the last six months, OSHR has worked collaboratively with various stakeholders, including the North Carolina General Assembly and the Governor’s Office, on legislation that would decrease barriers to entry for state employment. Now law, this legislative milestone helps streamline the state’s overall hiring process.
“It is all about making it simpler for people to get good state jobs,” said Governor Stein. “It simplifies job postings, and it streamlines the application process.”
Senate Bill 124, now Session Law 2025-34, decreases barriers to state employment by:
- Reducing the number of jobs that require a college degree.
- Allowing a resume or online profile to be used in all state job applications.
- Expanding temporary-to-permanent hiring to all agencies.
- And making hiring, pay, and classification more flexible.
Photo courtesy of the Governor’s Office.
OSHR Director Staci Meyer, who has spent her entire career in North Carolina state government, spoke to a full house at the Executive Mansion, emphasizing the importance of transformation. When referencing the 182-day average to hire a state employee, Meyer expressed that S124 was passed just one day shy of that timeframe.
“To meet the needs of future generations, we must transform our state human resources system,” said Director Meyer. “This legislation makes that system easier, faster and better.”
The director went on to emphasize that public service must be elevated. She shared with a packed room of press, legislators, and distinguished guests, that North Carolina is hiring! Meyer further promoted the need for public-spirited individuals to join our state’s workforce and closed her remarks with gratitude; in service of the state she loves.
“I am proud to be a public servant … I am proud to be a North Carolinian … and I am proud to support Governor Stein’s mission of creating meaningful opportunity for every North Carolinian to succeed.”
To learn more about and apply for careers in N.C. public service, visit Join NC.
Affected Policies
The changes in Session Law 2025-34 will result in changes to the following policies. OSHR will propose amendments to these policies at upcoming State Human Resources Commission meetings. Until the policies are amended, if anything in the statute contradicts a policy, follow the statute, not the policy.