SUFFOLK, Va. — Steven Rollins is looking for a new job in a shipyard.
“The work has kind of gotten slack at a few of the yards," said Rollins.
But he may be in luck: employers at a job fair Tuesday at the Suffolk Workforce Development Center said they’re hiring.
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“I could use at least 50 more fire watches in Newport News and about 20 more brush and roll painters down in Norfolk," said Noa Moore.
Moore is a recruiter for Mills Marine Ship Repair and said there's a high demand for workers in the maritime industry.
“Our problem is, this is not a glamorous job," Moore said.
According to the Hampton Roads Workforce Council, local employers in Hampton Roads need to fill over 11,000 jobs in positions such as welding, pipefitting, shipfitting, outside machining, marine electrical, commercial driving, port logistics, and offshore wind.
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For Rollins, it’s work that gives him a lot of pride.
“It’s beautiful when you can see a boat and say, ‘Oh, it just went back out. Okay, I was on that boat. That boat is here because of my work and I’m here at home eating, watching TV on my couch because of that ship,'” Rollins explained.
Not only are the jobs in demand, they’re important. According to Statista, 80 percent of the world’s goods are estimated to be shipped by sea.
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Retired Vice Admiral Herm Shelanski said the high demand and lack of skilled mariners creates a lot of competition for the workers. That’s one of the challenges the Military Sealift Command faces when trying to hire.
“If you're on the Military Sealift Command and you're a third mate or second mate or chief mate or navigator, those skills work across the civilian sector and these people are hiring and they're paying a lot of money for skilled mariners," Shelanski said. "So yeah, there’s a huge issue here."
The Military Sealift Command is made up of 5,500 civilian mariners who work on ships primarily to supply Navy ships around the world.
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The Navy is reportedly considering putting 17 Military Sealift Command ships into extended repair because of a lack of workers.
“It’s kind of a tip of the iceberg focus now on the depth of the issues that are happening in our Navy, in our maritime industry, our maritime people," said Shelanski.
Rollins said the shortage of workers is concerning especially because many older workers are aging out of the business, leaving fewer people for new workers to learn from.
“If you don’t do it, who will do it? Then, when you need it done, who’s there to do it?" Rollins said.
Another job fair is scheduled to be held on Aug. 29 at the Suffolk Workforce Development Center for MSC. That runs from 10 a.m. to 12 p.m. For more information, click here.
