Lockheed Martin recently announced that it would invest $5 million in vocational and trade programs and create 8,000 new apprenticeship opportunities over the next five years.
Programs will give new employees experience and help mid-career employees keep their skills current.
The investment is part of the company’s tax reform savings plan. The plan includes $100 million for the expansion of employee training and educational opportunities over the next five years and invests $50 million in support of science, technology, engineering and math scholarships.
“The U.S. aerospace and defense industry relies predominantly on an American workforce and is disproportionally impacted by the shortage of skilled manufacturing workers to fill critical jobs,” Marillyn A. Hewson, Lockheed Martin’s chairman, president and chief executive officer, said. “The president has raised this issue to a level of national urgency, and we are ready to do our part. Lockheed Martin’s pledge demonstrates our commitment to enacting workforce solutions that keep pace with technological innovation, preparing workers for the challenges of the 21st Century and helping to secure American prosperity and national security.”
The President’s National Council for the American Worker was created with the aim of developing and implementing a national workforce strategy. This strategy addresses vocational workers’ growing skills gap.