CHESAPEAKE, Va. — During her 50-state "America at Work" tour, U.S. Labor Secretary Lori Chavez-DeRemer stopped at the Volvo Penta North American Headquarters and Training Center on Monday.
She was joined by Virginia Rep. Jen Kiggans to discuss efforts to hire more skilled trade workers here in Hampton Roads and across America. The Volvo Penta facility is a key supplier of marine and industrial engines — a major asset for various military and governmental agencies.
"We want to have economic growth, and we want those job numbers to grow. 22,000 isn't what we had expected, but that's why I'm on the road," Chavez-DeRemer said. "This job is an important one to the president, to this economy."
"We need more of those skilled jobs," Kiggans said. "Just incentivize people to go into that line of work."
This wasn't DeRemer's only stop in Hampton Roads, as she also toured Newport News shipbuilding on the following day. She held a roundtable discussion at the Newport News Shipbuilding Apprentice School to discuss how the next generation of skilled laborers can support America's maritime security.
