PAWTUCKET – In response to Hasbro Inc.'s planned move out of the city, a state-backed job fair will be held March 28 at 100 Freight St. from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m., Mayor Donald R. Grebien announced Thursday.
The Rhode Island Corporate Job Fair will have more than more than 30 employers who will be recruiting for professional and corporate-level roles. It is being organized with the help of the R.I. Department of Labor and Training, R.I. Commerce Corp. and the Quonset Development Corp.
Jobs include positions in business operations, finance, human resources, information technology, marketing, project management and related fields.
“Pawtucket is resilient and forward looking,” said Mayor Grebien. “We’re proud to partner with the state and our workforce agencies to connect residents with quality employment opportunities and to support Hasbro workers during this time of transition, and all those seeking employment opportunities.”
Hasbro officially announced last September it plans to move its headquarters from Pawtucket to the Seaport District in Boston at 400 Summer St. by the end 2026. The new space in Boston will house at least 700 full-time Hasbro employees.
It’s still unclear, however, just how many jobs Pawtucket will lose with Hasbro’s move.
In January, Pawtucket officials said they weren’t sure how many employees were working at Hasbro’s Pawtucket headquarters. R.I. Commerce Corp. didn’t know either, because the agency doesn’t track that data and said it hadn't received any communications from the company. A Commerce spokesperson could not immediately be reached for comment on Friday.
The Providence Business News 2026 Book of Lists put Hasbro’s headcount in Rhode Island at 1,000 in 2024 and 2025, and the city of Pawtucket had estimated it at about 900 last March.
But Hasbro has insisted that roughly 700 full-time roles will be moving to Boston when the global toy company entirely vacates its longtime home in Pawtucket, and it hasn’t offered an explanation for the discrepancy.
Even when Hasbro announced last June that it would cut 3% of its global workforce, the company said fewer than 30 jobs would be affected in New England.
A second job fair and reemployment event is expected to be organized closer to Hasbro’s anticipated final departure later in the year.
“The McKee Administration remains focused on connecting Rhode Islanders with employers who are hiring today and with opportunities that lead to long-term income growth,” said Matthew Weldon, director of the R.I. department of Labor and Training. “We are proud to partner with our colleagues to host this event and to support job seekers through personalized career services, direct connections to hiring employers, and training opportunities that open the door to good-paying, sustainable careers.”
