I keep asking myself this question. In principle, we are obligated to work for the employer for 2 weeks, and after that, we are free to go wherever we want. But by that time, it will already be mid-June, and I'm afraid that the chances of finding a good job in NY will decrease significantly.

I haven't found a concrete answer to this question on the internet. I only know that everything depends on the employer. If I call them and say that I won't be able to come because all my friends are in NY and I really like it here, they might very well call the IEC sponsor and complain. If they get really aggressive, the sponsor could close/cancel my J-1 Visa, and I would become undocumented.

If the employer doesn't complain to the sponsor, I will find a job in NY, update the new employer in SEVIS, and everything will be tip-top.

It turns out that everything depends entirely on the employer.

If anyone has already done this, that is, ditched the offer and went somewhere else, please tell me how you handled this difficult situation.