BATH, Maine — Bath Iron Works says it will eliminate 88 jobs over the next two weeks to match the workforce with current demand from the Navy.
Spokesman Jim DeMartini said Monday that the cuts were made in two announcements to employees over the last week or so. The cuts will be made through Oct. 5.
The shipyard is currently building three ships in the new Zumwalt-class before transitioning back to making Arleigh Burke-class destroyers.
DeMartini said the cuts are necessary because of the “unfortunate cyclical nature of shipbuilding and balancing needed resources against work in hand.”
Boy….Governor LePage’s policies are doing wonders for bringing jobs to Maine…
Lepage’s policies have something to do with BIW temporary layoffs? The same cycle that has been going on forever because it’s the nature of the business? Somanyidiots is right.
Wouldn’t that be President Obama’s policies? Unless Maine is forming their own Navy fleet. If so we just need a few 14′ Starcrafts to fend off the Canadian Navy in their canoes.
Yeah, the state governor should order the U.S. Navy to build more ships here.
Do you have any clue about the cyclical nature of ship building? Maybe your screen name should read “I’manidiot”.
^this. Beyond the cyclical nature of shipbuilding, any government contract work, especially in the defense sector, is notoriously unstable. If you have ever worked on that kind of contract, you know this to be true.
Very true since Ingalls in Louisiana is shutting down due to a lack of contract’s also.
You are indeed the ‘king’ of idiots to blame LePage for the failings of Pingree & Michaud & O bama. Congratulations!
Bush did it.
Didn’t Snowe or Collins just annouce recently that BIW got a new contract with the Navy?
Design work .
I don’t know what all this “King of Idiots” snarkiness is about. But thinking of the shipyard in Bath as being “Bath Iron Works” is really missing the current reality. The shipyard is one of the corporate arms (tentacles?) of General Dynamics, which is one of the two or three largest military contractors. They build airplanes, and tanks, and ships. They buy shipyards, like BIW or the Quincy (MA) yard of Bethlehem steel, and Electric boat (the submarine builders) in New London CT. Currently BIW/General Dynamic was squared off against Northrup-Grumman Inaglls/Newport News Shipbuilding, but not is appears that Northrup has thrown in the towel and is bagging the shipbuilding.
One thing you can be sure of is that the Hyde family and its traditions of quality work and community involvement are gone. BIW is a corporate subsidiary, and its business is making military hardware. A company that used to build tugs, barges, tankers, some of the first container ships, the famous, unbeatlable America’s Cup sloop “Ranger,” is now solely and exclusively in the business of military contracting.
Don’t be surprised if General Dynamics by Todd-Ingalls, and all the destroyer contracts go to Mississippi. Or the other way around. Who knows?
The nice thing about having a military shipyard in New England is that you have so many Senators on the hook to support “their” shipyard.
Union dues will be down a little. Just in time for christmas! Anyone ever meet the people who work there? their ego’s are the largest I’ve seen in New England.. Welcome to the real world..
Like, compared to your typical Red Sox fan?
Best post ever, man
Seems as though GD could keep 88 people employed doing something. What do you think the bonuses total to the top management?
Not in a UNION shop…All they could do is let them sit around all day at a “job bank” like GM used to do…Show up job…
What “job Bank” did GM have? The only one that I know of would give GM employees preference for jobs in plants that needed their skills. I am sure that you worked for them and know more about what you are talkin about that me. i only worked for them for 15 years. How about you?
Hey Lepage, turn off the eating machine in your face and do something for the money you and your family are stealing from all Mainers.
Libtard ALERT…
If the gov’t paid the bills the layoffs wouldn’t be needed, More to come!!!
Shipbuilding is at an all time high in this country and worlwide. BIW needs to get away from the gov’t trough and start building civilian ships. The yards in South Korea & Singapore are backlogged with semisubmersible contracts, and Petrobras in Brasil is building a fleet of supply boats & drillships as well. The work is out there.
It has been widely reported that BIW has been making ships for the navy that are actually in surplus, so the shutdown doesn’t seem like much of a surprise. Maybe it’s time for BIW to privatize and start a division that makes cruise ships, mega-yachts, bridges, or wind turbines. Why rely completely on twentieth-century national defense strategy for all of your work when that way seems to be fading out? BIW is a great resource and part of history for Maine, they should take steps to evolve.