A railroad company is expanding and plans on hiring hundreds for skilled trade jobs in Pennsylvania and a variety of other locations.

Norfolk Southern Corporation plans to hire 500 employees in eight states by the end of 2011 to meet the growing demand for freight rail service and to replace employees retiring in coming years. (more…)

One state that has a lot of potential is creating buzz to be the hotbed for Virginia solar jobs.

According to new estimates by One Block Off the Grid, approximately 107,000 U.S. state and local level jobs could be created within a short period of time if solar energy policies were established or improved in the U.S. The figure represents six to ten percent of total U.S. job creation over the last two years.

Among the states the report identifies as having the greatest potential for solar job creation were: Texas, Florida, Virginia, Missouri, Georgia, Washington, Tennessee, South Carolina, Louisiana, and Michigan.
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As RKG expands, the firm will quite possibly be needing more employees for marketing jobs in Virginia.

The firm said recently it is also recruiting for marketing jobs in Boston.

RKG also announced the hiring of Paul Wilson to serve as Executive Vice President of Client Development. Wilson, who spent eight years at iProspect culminating in the role of Chief Revenue Officer, will further catalyze and manage growth at RKG as the company expands its proprietary service offerings and delivers marketing services to a broader set of vertical markets. During his tenure at iProspect, Wilson delivered a 10x increase in revenue, overseeing the firm’s new client development strategy through periods of dramatic marketplace evolution.
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The Boston Paralyzed Veterans of America Vocational Rehabilitation Office announced this week it is making a big push to help paralyzed veterans find jobs in Boston.

With the national unemployment rate for veterans with severe disabilities at 85 percent, a unique Boston program aims to drastically cut unemployment for veterans with disabilities—helping those who wore the uniform and were seriously injured secure good jobs and careers.

Officially opening today, May 18, the Boston Paralyzed Veterans of America Vocational Rehabilitation Office will empower veterans with disabilities by providing the services they need to reintegrate into the job market—while matching them with businesses and organizations with career positions. The new office, part of an emerging network, is based at VA Boston Healthcare System, Room AG 60, West Roxbury Division, 1400 VFW Parkway, West Roxbury, MA 02132.

It was established through an innovative public-private partnership between Paralyzed Veterans of America, Activision’s Call of Duty Endowment, and the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs (VA).

“Hiring more veterans with disabilities is a win-win for our country. Those who served secure good careers; employers get great employees; and, in turn, our economy becomes stronger,” said Bill Lawson, national president of Paralyzed Veterans of America, who officially opened the new office. “It’s a strategy that helps empower America’s best with everything they need to live full, self-sufficient and productive lives. It’s a strategy that’s good for business and great for our nation.”

Joining Lawson was Elias Rojas, a 25-year-old U.S. Marine Corps veteran with disabilities from the Boston area. Through the program Rojas secured a good job with the U.S. Department of Justice in Boston.

“Paralyzed Veterans worked with me, each step of the way—from figuring out what I wanted to do to matching me with an employer. Today I’m back at work. I love my job and enjoy continuing to serve our nation. I couldn’t have done it without Paralyzed Veterans of America,” Rojas said.

Former VA Deputy Secretary Gordon Mansfield and board member of Activision’s Call of Duty Endowment spoke of the importance of tackling unemployment in a tough economy and empowering more veterans.

“The national unemployment rate of veterans with severe disabilities stands at 85 percent. We must take on this terrible statistic and in doing so, access the untapped potential and talent of our veterans,” Mansfield said. “Today we challenge our nation’s job sectors—private and public—to step up and hire more veterans with disabilities.”

Corrine D. Smith, acting chief medical officer for VA New England Healthcare System continued this theme in her remarks. “This private-public sector initiative helps to strengthen and build-on existing work by focusing on Veterans with severe disabilities,” said Smith. “VA provides excellent healthcare and rehab services to its Veteran population, and is working hard with partners like PVA to address challenges such as unemployment and under-employment.”

With vocational rehabilitation offices in Richmond, VA; Minneapolis, MN; San Antonio, TX; Long Beach, CA; Augusta, GA; and now Boston, Paralyzed Veterans has helped hundreds of veterans find jobs in Virginia and is currently working with more than 200 major corporations in this nationwide effort.

Maryland’s unemployment rate held steady at 7.7 percent in March after the state added nearly 35,800 jobs in Maryland, the largest increase among all U.S. states.

Virginia added 24,500 jobs, second most in the nation, and posted a jobless rate of 7.4 percent, up from 7.2 percent. It stood at 6.4 percent a year ago in March.

D.C.’s unemployment rate dropped from 11.9 percent to 11.6 percent. A year ago, the rate was 9.1 percent. D.C. added 7,900 jobs over the month. Out of that figure, about 1,800 construction jobs were injected.

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Spending cuts in the state budget are expected to eliminate thousands of Virginia jobs, a new study suggests (click here).

The study says that Virginia will lose 37,000 jobs over the next two years.

The report, released Wednesday by the Commonwealth Institute for Fiscal Analysis, also indicates that the ripple effects of a thinning work force could slow an economic recovery.

According to HamptonRoads.com, the analysis by the public-policy think tank comes less than two weeks after the General Assembly adopted a biennial budget that overcame a more than $4 billion shortfall partly through deep funding cuts to education and health programs.

“Our lawmakers have refused to acknowledge that the cuts that they’ve included in the budget are going to result in substantial job losses, not gains,” Michael Cassidy, the institute’s executive director, said during a Wednesday news conference.

“At a time when Virginians need ladders to get ourselves out of this deep economic hole that we are in, our lawmakers are handing out shovels and digging the hole even deeper,” he said.

Cassidy said the projected job losses would exceed the number of people currently unemployed in Virginia Beach, Richmond, Danville, Arlington County and Charlottesville combined.

They also would “dwarf the gains that have been projected for various economic development initiatives, business tax breaks and credits.”

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Virginia Governor Bob McDonnell proposes spending to recruit new Virginia Jobs in many sectors, including manufacturing, finance, and government.

According to his office, here are some of his plans:

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One company is helping to create many new Virginia job openings.

American Foods Group recently sold its meat snack division to Tennessee-based Monogram Food Solutions, and that company plans to invest $3 million to expand production at its plant near the City of Martinsville in Henry County. That facility currently has about 130 workers, but that number will increase to 250 by October.

As part of the sale, Monogram Food Solutions took over four American Foods brands that produce sausages, salami, pickled pig’s feet and other meat snacks. According to an article by the Richmond Times-Dispatch, other details of the sale were not released to the public.

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Some officials and members of the working community are doing their part to help employers and employees in Virginia save a little bit of money. Visit http://www.jobfetch.com for more information on Virginia jobs.

Gov. Timothy M. Kaine, along with Telework!VA and Telework Exchange, recently announced that August 3rd will serve as Telework Day. On this day, individuals and organizations are encouraged to work from home or from a remote location. The Telework Day Web site allows employers to sign up to telework, calculate the potential cot savings and environmental savings, determine telework eligibility and access additional resources.

“Telework is a family-friendly, business-friendly public policy that promotes workplace efficiency, reduces strain on transportation infrastructure, and provides an opportunity to ‘green’ Virginia,” Kaine said. “We encourage organizations and individuals in Virginia to take the Telework Day pledge and see how telework can help them improve productivity and business operations, while also benefiting the environment.”

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The State of Virginia and Microsoft have teamed up to help prepare people for jobs in Virginia.

Gov. Timothy M. Kaine recently announced that the state and Microsoft are launching the Microsoft Elevate America program, an innovative public-private partnership to provide free technology training to displaced workers. Microsoft will work with the Virginia Community College System to distribute 11,250 vouchers for technology training and certification.

“Virginia already has one of the best workforce development systems in the country - this program means we’ll have another exciting tool at our disposal,” Kaine said. “This partnership will provide thousands of Virginians with the technology skills they need to attain and sustain employment as the economy recovers. At the same time, this critical training will ensure Virginia’s workforce emerges from this economic downturn stronger than ever, and ready to compete on a global level.”

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