Commercial and consumer goods firm Honeywell will relocate its corporate headquarters to Charlotte, North Carolina, leaving New Jersey just three years after it accepted tax credits worth up to $40 million to stay in the state.
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The company said it would transfer 150 to 200 senior management positions to Charlotte by Sept. 2019 and gradually add roughly 500 corporate employees in North Carolina over the next five years. About 1,000 Honeywell employees will stay at company’s facilities in New Jersey.
The decision came three years after then-New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie crafted a $40 million incentive package to keep Honeywell in the state and preserve more than 1,000 high-paying jobs. Despite the pending move, a Honeywell representative told the Wall Street Journal that the company plans to honor the agreement.
“Our decision does not reflect any issues with the quality of our experience in New Jersey,” Honeywell CEO Darius Adamczyk said in a statement. “We value the strong relationship that we have built with the state of New Jersey and with Governor [Phil] Murphy. New Jersey will remain a substantial employment center for us.”
The move is contingent on the expected passage of North Carolina Job Development Investment Grant legislation, which affects the state’s ability to offer incentives to lure corporations. Honeywell is set to receive $28 million in incentives from North Carolina’s Mecklenburg County and a further $18 million from Charlotte, according to preliminary terms obtained by the Journal.
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“Though we’re never happy when any jobs leave our state, we appreciate their continued commitment and confidence in New Jersey,” Murphy said in a statement.
