NEWPORT NEWS, Va. — Virginia Gov. Abigail Spanberger signed two bills into law Wednesday to boost workforce development and train workers for the shipbuilding and offshore wind industries in Hampton Roads.
Spanberger signed the first bill Wednesday morning, providing more flexibility in how federal workforce development dollars can be used. Hampton Delegate Virgil Thornton sponsored the legislation.
"By signing this bill into law, the governor is strengthening the workforce pipeline that makes the tremendous work that is being done at Newport News Shipbuilding possible," Thornton said.
"To keep that edge, we need more workers, trained workers, credentialed workers, workers who are ready to contribute from day one," Spanberger said.
Later in the day at Norfolk State University, Spanberger signed a second bill aimed at training people for careers in offshore wind. A large offshore wind farm is currently under construction off the coast of Virginia Beach.
"A project this ambitious only delivers if we have the workforce to match it, and that is not a given and that has to be built," Spanberger said.
The push for skilled workers is already underway at Virginia Peninsula Community College's Newport News Trade Center, where welding instructor Rachel Pike teaches a three-week course to prepare students for jobs at Newport News Shipbuilding.
"This is basically a crash course, so they learn the initial welding. They learn safety. They start to get into the higher concepts and what not," Pike said.
"I myself love welding," Pike said.
"I think it's an art. I graduated from VCU with a Bachelor of Fine Arts degree and then I didn't want to be a broke artist, so I kind of fell into welding in a way," Pike said.
Toriono Farmer, an Army veteran who moved to the area from El Paso, Texas, is one of the students in the program.
"I like working with my hands. I'm also an Army veteran. I thought this would be a great opportunity. I think welding is a really fulfilling career," Farmer said.
"The more barriers that we can break down to allow more people to try something out, to try a trades out for the first time is great," Pike said.
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