Hudson County
County Government · Hudson County
2,707 people are enrolled in a State pension fund through Hudson County, reporting a median pensionable salary of $63,920.
Hudson County, a county government in Hudson County, operates under New Jersey's Title 11A civil service system rather than setting its own hiring rules independently.
Within Hudson County, 40 local government entities in total carry this same confirmed status.
About county governments in New Jersey
New Jersey's 21 counties run services that cross municipal lines: courts, county roads, parks, corrections, and often social services. A county's civil service status covers its own direct employees; the municipalities inside it each make their own separate decision about whether to join the system.
See all 40 civil service jurisdictions in Hudson County, or browse the full employer directory.
Who is on the pension rolls at Hudson County
2,707 people are enrolled in a State-administered pension fund through Hudson County. That is a count of active memberships reported by the employer, not a payroll headcount: anyone not enrolled in one of these funds does not appear in this data at all, and no separate headcount for a New Jersey local employer is published anywhere we can check against.
| Fund | Name | Members | Share |
|---|---|---|---|
| PERS | Public Employees' Retirement System | 2,048 | 76% |
| PFRS | Police and Firemen's Retirement System | 659 | 24% |
Within PFRS, the fund records 659 police officers. PFRS enrolment is the only occupational detail this dataset carries; it lists no job titles, so nothing here says which civil service titles Hudson County actually appoints.
23 of these members hold a second public job in New Jersey: their reported salary across all public employers exceeds what they are paid here. Shared and part-time appointments are common in local government, and the salary figures below count only the portion earned at Hudson County.
Pensionable salary at Hudson County
Half of the pension-enrolled workforce at Hudson County reports a pensionable salary above $63,920 and half below, across 2,707 members with a reported figure.
| Point in the distribution | Pensionable salary |
|---|---|
| 10th percentile | $40,722 |
| 25th percentile | $47,096 |
| Median | $63,920 |
| 75th percentile | $90,932 |
| 90th percentile | $120,892 |
The range runs from the 10th to the 90th percentile because the extremes are not informative: the lowest reported figures belong to part-time and partial-year members, whose credited salary is a fraction of a full-time equivalent.
Among the 15 civil service jurisdictions in the same county with pension data, that median sits at the 40th percentile, below the county's midpoint of $66,228. Against the 20 bodies of the same kind statewide, it sits at the 55th percentile.
These figures are pensionable salary reported to the NJ Division of Pensions and Benefits for the four most recent quarters, not total pay and not take-home pay. Snapshot of March 31, 2026. How we compile this.
How long people stay at Hudson County
The median enrolled member at Hudson County has 10.4 years of credited service, with the middle half falling between 4.5 and 19 years. 22% have passed twenty years, which matters locally because retirement eligibility and the pension formula both turn on service credit.
| Credited service | Members | Share |
|---|---|---|
| Under 5 years | 723 | 27% |
| 5 to 10 years | 581 | 21% |
| 10 to 15 years | 400 | 15% |
| 15 to 20 years | 419 | 15% |
| 20 to 25 years | 337 | 12% |
| 25 years or more | 247 | 9% |
Membership tier records which pension rules a member was hired under, so the mix is a rough picture of how recently a workforce turned over. At Hudson County, 47% sit in the most recently hired cohort.
| Membership tier | Members | Share |
|---|---|---|
| Tier 1 (longest-serving cohort) | 836 | 31% |
| Tier 2 | 79 | 3% |
| Tier 3 | 455 | 17% |
| Tier 4 | 55 | 2% |
| Tier 5 (most recently hired cohort) | 1,282 | 47% |
What civil service status means for jobs at Hudson County
A county government is among the largest employers in this directory, and its civil service status reaches across the county jail, the road and bridge crews, the parks system, the clerk and surrogate offices, and in most counties a share of health and human services staff.
Several county titles have no municipal equivalent at all. County correctional police officer is the clearest case: its own entry examination, its own academy requirement, and its own closed promotional ladder up through sergeant, lieutenant and captain. A county's status also stops at its own payroll, which is why a county can operate under Title 11A while most towns inside it do not.
New Jersey does not require an employer to hire whoever scored highest. When a list is certified, the appointing authority may choose among the top three interested candidates, which is why a rank of two or three on a list is still a serious position and why interviews still decide outcomes.
Promotional examinations are closed. They are open to employees already serving in the unit, scored on a combination of the examination and seniority, and they are how most supervisory positions in local government get filled. It is the main reason entry-level appointments matter so much: they are the door to the ladder above them.
Countywide civil service employers in Hudson County
Hudson County is the county government itself, so its civil service status covers county employees rather than anyone working for a town inside the county. Municipalities, libraries, authorities and districts each decide separately, and most of the county's towns are not in the listing at all.
One other countywide body in Hudson County is in the listing as well. They are separate employers with separate hiring, and a candidate list certified to one is not certified to another.
- North Hudson Regional Fire Rescue Service, fire district
Civil service titles used by New Jersey county governments
Real classifications that New Jersey county governments draw on, each linked to its official specification: the definition of the work, the requirements, and any licence the title depends on. A sample of the system rather than a roster or a list of openings.
Civil service coverage across Hudson County
Hudson County holds 40 confirmed jurisdictions in the Commission's listing: 15 municipal departments, 9 municipalities, 8 public libraries, 2 housing authorities, 2 school districts, 1 county government, 1 fire district, 1 redevelopment agency, and 1 municipal utilities authority.
9 of the county's 12 municipalities are among them.
Also in the directory: West New York Parks and Public Property, West New York Public Affairs, West New York Public Safety, West New York Public Works, West New York Revenue and Finance, Bayonne, Bayonne Housing Authority, Bayonne Library. See all 40 in Hudson County.
Common questions about Hudson County
Is Hudson County a civil service employer?
Yes. Hudson County appears in the New Jersey Civil Service Commission's listing of local civil service system jurisdictions as of July 2024, which makes it an appointing authority under Title 11A. Permanent appointments to competitive titles there come from eligible lists the Commission certifies, rather than from purely local hiring.
How long does it take to get hired through this process?
Longer than an ordinary job application, and the timing is not in the hands of the employer. An announcement has to close, the examination has to be held and scored, the eligible list has to be promulgated, and only then can the employer request a certification. Several months between filing and an appointment is normal rather than a sign that something has gone wrong.
Does the Civil Service Commission decide who gets hired?
No. The Commission runs the examination, ranks the candidates and certifies the list. The employer is the appointing authority: it decides whether to fill the position at all and which of the reachable candidates to appoint. That division is why a high score improves your odds without guaranteeing anything.
How many Hudson County employees are in a State pension system?
2,707 active memberships are reported through Hudson County, split across 2,048 in PERS and 659 in PFRS. This counts pension enrolment rather than payroll, so employees who are not in one of these funds are not included.
What is the median pensionable salary at Hudson County?
$63,920, with the middle half of members between $47,096 and $90,932. These figures are pensionable salary reported to the NJ Division of Pensions and Benefits for the four most recent quarters, not total pay and not take-home pay. It excludes overtime and most supplemental pay, and it is before tax, before the member's own pension contribution and before health premiums.
How does pay at Hudson County compare with the rest of Hudson County?
Its median pensionable salary of $63,920 sits at the 40th percentile among the 15 civil service jurisdictions in Hudson County with pension data, where the midpoint jurisdiction reports $66,228. Local pay is set by ordinance rather than a State schedule, so spreads inside one county are wide.
How long do people stay at Hudson County?
The median enrolled member has 10.4 years of credited service, and 22% have passed twenty years. Credited service drives both retirement eligibility and the pension formula, so a long-tenured workforce usually means fewer open competitive appointments in the near term.