US representatives, union workers warn ‘critical' Boston Ship Repair vanishing without investment, work
U.S. representatives and Boston Ship Repair workers gathered at one of the country's few remaining large dry docks in the Seaport on Monday, calling for investment and support for U.S. ship building and repair as the facilities struggle to survive overseas competition.
'Let me be clear, if immediate action is not taken by our federal, state and city agencies, this year, this facility will face the same fate,' said Boston Ship Repair CEO Edward Snyder, citing the closure of the company's shipyard in Philadelphia. 'We will become a once-talked-about graveyard with a history but no future.'
Rep. Stephen Lynch of Massachusetts, along with Rep. Joe Courtney from Connecticut and Rep. Jared Golden from Maine, all Democrats, called for 'urgent investments' in facilities like the Boston dock supporting U.S.-based ship building and repair industries.
Flanked by a hulking gray-and-black vessel docked in the facility's basin over 1,000 feet long, the politicians, union and company leadership called the movement of work critical to military and commercial vessels a threat to the local economies and jobs, as well as the country's national security.
As layoffs hit the industry, Boston Ship Repair has shrunk from about 300 workers to now just 60, IAM Union Eastern Territory General Vice President David Sullivan said.
About 80 U.S.-flagged ships are currently engaged in international commerce while China has more than 5,500, Sullivan said, calling on Americans to 'pay attention to these numbers.'
'It was facilities like this that allowed us to build and repair a Navy that preserved democracy when democracy hung in the balance,' said Lynch. 'That is our role, and we are losing that capacity here in this country.'
The group expressed support for U.S. Trade Representative penalties on Chinese ships, pushed by the Trump administration, and incentives related to U.S.-built vessels. They also heralded the SHIPS for America Act introduced in Congress, aiming to rebuild U.S. shipyard infrastructure.
There is need for oversight in the work distribution, Golden said, noting that the Boston facility only sees 60% to 70% utilization while others face a backlog of repair work.
'When the shipyard is empty, our members get laid off,' said IAM Union Local S25 President Andre Lavertue. 'Too often we see younger workers get let go and never return to work. These jobs need to be secured, and we need consistent, efficient use of our shipyard here at home.'
Rep. Courtney noted the 'hypercompetitive environment in Washington' in terms of funding priorities but the bipartisan support for the issue.
'We're in the process now of writing the 2026 National Defense Authorization Act, the 2026 budget, which Jared and I can tell you needs a lot of work in terms of what's been given to us by the administration,' said Courtney. 'But again, I'm an optimist that, with the right partnership and the right coalition of forces, this is an issue that rises above partisanship in terms of what the nation needs.'
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