Empire State Realty Trust Joins Forces with the New York City Department of Youth and Community Development

NEW YORK, May 15, 2017 /PRNewswire/ -- The Empire State Building (ESB) today announced that seven students from the New York City Department of Youth and Community Development's (DYCD) Ladders for Leaders program will join the Empire State Building Observatory staff this summer. The students will serve as front-line hosts and cashiers at the "World's Most Famous Building." The Ladders for Leaders is a nationally recognized program that offers high school and college students the opportunity to participate in paid professional summer internships with leading corporations, non-profit organizations, and government agencies in New York City.

The Empire State Building will provide employee training via a two-day orientation with a strong focus on customer service.  Each student will also shadow current employees before assuming full responsibility in his or her role at the Empire State Building's Observatories.

"Our partnership with Ladders to Leaders has not only helped our recruiting efforts but has also given the Empire State Building additional opportunities to give back to our community," said Jean-Yves Ghazi, Senior Vice President of the Observatory.

"I am thrilled that our Ladders for Leaders participants will get the opportunity to work this summer at New York City's most iconic skyscraper, the Empire State Building," said DYCD Commissioner Bill Chong. "This internship will not only help enhance our young people's skills in hospitality and customer service but will also open up doors for them to interact with people from all over the world. DYCD is proud to work with Empire State Realty Trust and the Mayor's Fund to ensure NYC youth are exposed to unique jobs that help build the necessary skills to succeed."

"The Mayor's Fund is excited to count Empire State Realty Trust among our dedicated group of Ladders for Leaders employers this summer," said Darren Bloch, Executive Director of the Mayor's Fund to Advance NYC. "The partnership will provide an invaluable experience, at an iconic New York City location, for these young adults – while giving the organization valuable seasonal support from these up-and-coming students. We are proud to have such strong partners that believe in building our future workforce."

For more information about Ladders for Leaders, please visit http://www1.nyc.gov/site/dycd/services/jobs-internships/nyc-ladders-for-leaders.page.

About the Empire State Building

Soaring 1,454 feet above Midtown Manhattan (from base to antenna), the Empire State Building, owned by Empire State Realty Trust, Inc., is the "World's Most Famous Building." With new investments in energy efficiency, infrastructure, public areas and amenities, the Empire State Building has attracted first-rate tenants in a diverse array of industries from around the world. The skyscraper's robust broadcasting technology supports all major television and FM radio stations in the New York metropolitan market. The Empire State Building was named America's favorite building in a poll conducted by the American Institute of Architects, and the Empire State Building Observatory is one of the world's most beloved attractions as the region's #1 tourist destination. For more information on the Empire State Building, please visit www.empirestatebuilding.com, www.facebook.com/empirestatebuilding, @EmpireStateBldg, www.instagram.com/empirestatebldg, http://weibo.com/empirestatebuilding,  www.youtube.com/esbnyc or www.pinterest.com/empirestatebldg/.

About Empire State Realty Trust

Empire State Realty Trust, Inc. (NYSE: ESRT), a leading real estate investment trust (REIT), owns, manages, operates, acquires and repositions office and retail properties in Manhattan and the greater New York metropolitan area, including the Empire State Building, the world's most famous building. Headquartered in New York, New York, the Company's office and retail portfolio covers 10.1 million rentable square feet, as of March 31, 2017, consisting of 9.4 million rentable square feet in 14 office properties, including nine in Manhattan, three in Fairfield County, Connecticut, and two in Westchester County, New York; and approximately 708,000 rentable square feet in the retail portfolio.

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SOURCE Empire State Realty Trust, Inc.