U.S. Army Lieutenant General Maria Gervais and Bath Iron Works President Chuck Krugh shake hands after signing an agreement for BIW to join the Partnership for Your Success Program, guaranteeing job interviews for veterans. Gervais described the program on Monday as a “win-win for both the military and BIW — they need skilled, credentialed employees, and veterans offer that.” Luna Soley / The Times Record
Bath Iron Works is partnering with the U.S. Army to draw more military veterans into its workforce.
The shipyard, one of the state’s largest employers, is joining the Partnership for Your Success program. PaYS guarantees soldiers five job interviews with one of their partner companies after the completion of their service in the Army and greatly increases their odds of securing a job in the civilian sector. BIW is one of more than 1,200 companies to have signed on since 2000, when PaYS was founded.
The shipyard signed on during a ceremony Monday at its training center in Brunswick.
“This company is continually finding ways to show us that they care about what we do,” said Amy Hubmann, a BIW trades training specialist and one of dozens of BIW employees in the audience at the signing.
Hubmann, who is originally from Mississippi, is not a veteran herself. She worked at Ingalls shipyard as a pipefitter for seven years before working her way up to a supervisory role.
“I think it’s fantastic,” she said of the PaYS program. “It’s really hard to find trades people and it answers a call to our military as well — they’re not left in the lurch; they have a place to go to use their training.”
Of the nearly 6,500 employees at BIW, about 1,000 — or 15% — are veterans. Chuck Krugh, BIW’s president since May of 2022 and an Army veteran himself, hopes to increase that number.
“When I went into the army, my goal was to come out with a trade,” Krugh said at the ceremony. “I believe in serving my country again.”
Lt. Gen. Maria Gervais, who signed the agreement on behalf of the U.S. Army, said that veterans are disciplined, trustworthy, have established values and show up on time — all attributes that make them highly desirable employees.
“Their experience serving in the military also makes them a good fit for the mission of building advanced ships for the U.S. Navy,” Krugh added.
And BIW needs employees — there are hundreds of openings, according to Communications Director Julie Rabinowitz. She compared the shipyard, which also employs nurses, firefighters, buyers and designers, to “a small town.”
“We hope that many soldiers come to work at BIW,” Krugh said. “You are all welcome.”
Correction: Due to an editing error, a previous version of this story omitted Amy Hubmann’s first name.
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