Inside Business: Recent flurry of contracts feeds region (Virginia Beach, Chesapeake: tenants, asbestos)

[cityboi757]

Recent flurry of contracts feeds region | Articles/Archives | Inside Business - The Hampton Roads Business Journal

llustrating how government contracts remain the lifeblood of the region’s economic vitality, millions of dollars worth of federal contracts were awarded in the last two weeks, bringing with them the promise of stable sources of revenue, job security and new jobs to Hampton Roads while much of the nation stagnates on those fronts.

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Not only do the contracts provide jobs and revenue, many of the jobs are highly technical positions, bringing with them the above-average salaries so coveted by homebuilders in the surrounding areas.

[Randomdude]

Bottom line, more government tit jobs. This is not good news. These government contracts have been "substitutes" for actual coporate presence for decades.

[Erma]

Originally Posted by Randomdude

Bottom line, more government tit jobs. This is not good news. These government contracts have been "substitutes" for actual coporate presence for decades.

Why wouldn't it be good news? It gives the 8A businesses a chance to flourish and offer many without jobs a chance to get on their feet. The people I see working their tales off in shipyards would definetly disagree that they have a tit job. It also gives alot of young people with clean backgrounds a chance to earn money and have health benefits other than working in fast food chains at minimum wage with no outlook of the future.

[Randomdude]

Originally Posted by Erma

Why wouldn't it be good news? It gives the 8A businesses a chance to flourish and offer many without jobs a chance to get on their feet. The people I see working their tales off in shipyards would definetly disagree that they have a tit job. It also gives alot of young people with clean backgrounds a chance to earn money and have health benefits other than working in fast food chains at minimum wage with no outlook of the future.

Yeah, until the government decides it doesnt need any more ships built here. Please see "Brooklyn Ship Yard".

Depending on something that can be taken away at the drop of a dime is unbelievably near sighted.

[Erma]

Originally Posted by Randomdude

Yeah, until the government decides it doesnt need any more ships built here. Please see "Brooklyn Ship Yard".

Depending on something that can be taken away at the drop of a dime is unbelievably near sighted.

Heck, they sold it to the city of New York...and the yard didn't have the technology to build newer ships.

The Navy decommissioned the yard in 1966 and sold it to the City of New York. It then became an area of private manufacturing and commercial activity. It now has over 200 tenants with more than 3,500 employees, and is managed and operated by the Brooklyn Navy Yard Development Corporation for the City of New York.[2]

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Brooklyn_Navy_Yard

[Randomdude]

Originally Posted by Erma

Heck, they sold it to the city of New York...and the yard didn't have the technology to build newer ships.

The Navy decommissioned the yard in 1966 and sold it to the City of New York. It then became an area of private manufacturing and commercial activity. It now has over 200 tenants with more than 3,500 employees, and is managed and operated by the Brooklyn Navy Yard Development Corporation for the City of New York.[2]

Brooklyn Navy Yard - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

What that wikepedia article does not show is what the loss did to the surrounding area for the decades until it was fully developed. There were whole tracts of nearby housing that completely emptied.

Even today, those 3,500 people working in the private industries that have developed there, are about 2/5's of what the lean ship yard work force was. That ship yard was one of the largest employers in the whole city. It would be the equivalent of Northrop Gruman laying off over 50% of its workforce.

Thats not even digging in to the countless feeder companies who solely depended on contracts from the ship yard.

In reality, the closure of that Brooklyn yard probably cost 10's of thousands of jobs overall in the NYC metro area.

[Erma]

Originally Posted by Randomdude

What that wikepedia article does not show is what the loss did to the surrounding area for the decades until it was fully developed. There were whole tracts of nearby housing that completely emptied.

Even today, those 3,500 people working in the private industries that have developed there, are about 2/5's of what the lean ship yard work force was. That ship yard was one of the largest employers in the whole city. It would be the equivalent of Northrop Gruman laying off over 50% of its workforce.

Thats not even digging in to the countless feeder companies who solely depended on contracts from the ship yard.

In reality, the closure of that Brooklyn yard probably cost 10's of thousands of jobs overall in the NYC metro area.

All in the same for the Philadelphia Naval Shipyard. It's usefullness was fulfilled an closed. Environmentally, both those yards were loaded with asbestos and the Govt. was not going to take the fall for the health of the workers.http://www.asbestosnews.com/workplac...-shipyard.html

[Randomdude]

Originally Posted by Erma

All in the same for the Philadelphia Naval Shipyard. It's usefullness was fulfilled an closed. Environmentally, both those yards were loaded with asbestos and the Govt. was not going to take the fall for the health of the workers.Mesothelioma in Brooklyn Navy Shipyard Workers

So what? The reasoning behind closing the shipyard is moot. The fact is, the government decided to not use the yard for one reason or another, and boom, its gone.

Where do all those shipfitters, riggers, and maritime welders go then? If you guessed "try to move where there is actually a shipyard still functioning" you are probably correct. Losing the government tit when its all we depend on would completely destroy the area. Why do you think people go insane when there is talk of closing one base or another?

If there was actually a real corporate center, if one businesses closes up, the accountants, managers, analysts, admin assistants, etc, can filter in to the remaining businesses, because their skills will be in demand.

[Erma]

Originally Posted by Randomdude

So what? The reasoning behind closing the shipyard is moot. The fact is, the government decided to not use the yard for one reason or another, and boom, its gone.

Where do all those shipfitters, riggers, and maritime welders go then? If you guessed "try to move where there is actually a shipyard still functioning" you are probably correct. Losing the government tit when its all we depend on would completely destroy the area. Why do you think people go insane when there is talk of closing one base or another?

If there was actually a real corporate center, if one businesses closes up, the accountants, managers, analysts, admin assistants, etc, can filter in to the remaining businesses, because their skills will be in demand.

They relocate and follow the contracts...it's been going on for ages. As far as people going insane over base closings, it's one reason no one wants to hear the whiners complaining about Jet Noise. Oceana closes due to transients complaining, the locals lose jobs. This is why many say "if you don't like it, go somewhere else." It's not a statement to say get the heck out, just that the livlihood of the military is what pays people's bills.

[Randomdude]

Originally Posted by Erma

They relocate and follow the contracts...it's been going on for ages. As far as people going insane over base closings, it's one reason no one wants to hear the whiners complaining about Jet Noise. Oceana closes due to transients complaining, the locals lose jobs. This is why many say "if you don't like it, go somewhere else." It's not a statement to say get the heck out, just that the livlihood of the military is what pays people's bills.

And you are exactly right. The government pays most of our bills, whether its from contracts, or the military personel, or the countless service businesses depending on their patronage.

Because weve been depending on the military for decades (its most of the fuel behind Virginia Beach, Newport News and Chesapeakes growth), we have never built up anything else. Outside of the government there is only a couple businesses that employ more then 500 people. That is absolutely rediculous. Most of us work for 10-100 person mom and pops that are going nowhere fast.