Courtney touts historic, across-the-board hiring boost at Electric Boat

WASHINGTON, DC – After Electric Boat's 2013 legislative breakfast this morning, Congressman Joe Courtney applauded the steadily-improving employment situation at the Groton-based submarine manufacturer. According to information outlined by Electric Boat (EB) President Kevin Poitras, the company exceeded hiring targets in 2012, adding 1,260 employees during the year—700 more than anticipated—in order to support Virginia Class production, development work on the Ohio Replacement, and submarine maintenance.

"To fully appreciate the impact submarine production has and will continue to have in our region, you have to look not just at 2012's excellent workforce numbers, but at the future of submarines in our national security strategy," said Congressman Courtney. "Vice Adm. Michael Connor, submarine forces commander, said last year that the Ohio class replacement has the size, stealth and payload volume requirements to fulfill the platform's mission through 2080. To put that in perspective, the Ohio replacement is a generational investment on part with the Space Shuttle program, and upwards of 90 percent of the design work will be done right here in Groton."

EB was also successful in preventing layoffs and minimize furloughs by adding repair work. As a result, Poitras said in his presentation that 2012 marked the first time in four years that EB has hired in all areas of their business, including the trades along the Groton waterfront. Additional hiring in this area is expected in 2013 to support planned repair work, including restoration of the USS MIAMI.

"In 2012, as in the past three years, I have worked with the Navy to maximize repair opportunities for EB's waterfront workers as EB confirmed this morning," Courtney continued. "That initiative with the Navy generated tens of thousands of man hours which kept Connecticut's industrial base working. We are now poised to take on the new challenges of Virginia and Ohio growth."

Congressman Courtney is the sole member of the Connecticut Congressional delegation to sit on the House Armed Services Committee. He is a member of the Seapower and Expeditionary Forces Subcommittee, which has jurisdiction over the U.S. Navy, and he is the co-chairman of the bipartisan House Shipbuilding Caucus.