Gov. Glenn Youngkin says while federal employees are poised to lose their jobs, employers in Virginia are waiting with open arms.
“Virginia has jobs … but I particularly want our federal workers who are experiencing real anxiety and may experience job disruption to know that there is opportunity here,” Youngkin said, speaking at a Stihl manufacturing plant in Virginia Beach Tuesday. “Your skillset, your capabilities, are transferable to another career in the commonwealth of Virginia.”
The Republican governor called the controversial and chaotic efforts by President Donald Trump and ally Elon Musk to reduce the size of the federal government “necessary,” acknowledging that the loss of jobs will “hurt.”
But Youngkin touted the jobs listing clearinghouse set up by his administration a few weeks ago, saying there are 250,000 jobs waiting to be filled across the state.
The site includes job listings sourced from various public and private business websites. Listings include an insulator trainee for high school students at Huntington Ingalls Industries in Newport News, a call center rep in Virginia Beach and an electrical engineer in Norfolk.
They also feature local government jobs, such as a middle school band teacher in Norfolk, an aquatics instructor in Hampton and a chief academic officer for Chesapeake schools.
Youngkin noted job seekers submitted more than 13,000 applications during a 5-hour virtual job fair hosted by the state earlier this month.
“The resources are there, the resources are there, and what’s so exciting is the desire and ambition are there to find that next career,” he said.
Virginia is home to some 145,000 federal workers, according to the federal Office of Personnel Management, with nearly 52,000 of them located in Hampton Roads.
Hampton Roads officials have said there’s no question that broad-based firings of government workers would negatively impact the region’s economy. In the last week, unemployment claims have jumped 40% in the state over the previous week, though Youngkin said Tuesday the number remains lower than the average.
“We are not seeing a skyrocketing, but what we are recognizing is there are some federal employees filing for unemployment benefits,” Youngkin said.
Denise Watson contributed to this report.
