EB to hire 8,000 this year

The Day

By: Lee Howard

February 7, 2026


Groton — Electric Boat is gearing up to hire 8,000 new employees this year, a significant ramp-up compared to the 3,000 hires the submarine manufacturer was planning in 2025.

EB President Mark Rayha, in his 2026 President's Intent memo to employees last week marked "sensitive," didn't give specific plans on how he expected to increase hiring, but stated that 3,500 of the new jobs would be at Quonset Point, 2,500 would involve tradespeople in Groton, another 1,000 would be divided between engineering and design, and the final 1,000 split throughout other aspects of the company.

He estimated the submarine manufacturer currently has about 25,000 employees spread among its sites in Rhode Island and Connecticut. Hiring of such magnitude could increase total employees by more than 25%, depending on how much attrition occurs this year. EB, a division of General Dynamics Corp., last year settled with two of its unions to increase pay and benefits significantly.

"Collectively, we must put every effort into training and up-skilling our people to accomplish our mission," Rayha said in the six-page company plan for 2026 released via email and an internal link.

U.S. Rep. Joe Courtney, reached Friday by phone from Washington, confirmed that EB plans to significantly increase its hiring this year as it expects to eventually reach 33,000 total employees. His office has noted a large increase in job openings listed at the submarine manufacturer in recent weeks, with the most recent numbers showing 3,141 openings in Groton and another 946 at Quonset Point. More than 1,000 of the new openings are for engineers spread over the two shipyards.

Meanwhile, he said, unions have been enjoying an increase of overtime hours.

"The Metal Trades Council is definitely happy to have people work extra hours, and the third shift, which has been kind of skeletal, they're trying to fill out more," Courtney said. "As far as job openings, we're at a real high."

But, he added, "I think the number is going to have to stay very aggressive."

Courtney said he isn't sure about the current attrition rate at EB. But the company has reported it's trending downward to about 10%, he said, thanks to higher pay and a tight overall job market.

The congressman added that the Eastern Connecticut Workforce Investment Board has been working hard to ramp up training associated with filling sub manufacturing jobs, citing one program that recently graduated 700 students, compared to a previous six-month period in which it had only 300 people complete the program. EWIB is also pushing its training programs farther to the west and north of Connecticut, he added.

In many cases, he added, tuition is being paid for by the U.S. Navy thanks to new funds authorized by Congress to boost shipbuilding.

The official announcement of EB's plans for the new year is expected to be released Feb. 23 at an invitation-only Legislative Breakfast planned at Electric Boat.

Reached last week for more information about company plans, EB spokeswoman Myra Lee demurred, saying she preferred that the news not get out until the formal announcement.

But Tony Sheridan, president and chief executive of the Chamber of Commerce of Eastern Connecticut, said Thursday that he is excited about EB's plans to ramp up hiring.

"EB deserves an enormous amount of credit for putting the area and New London on the map," Sheridan said in a phone interview. "We want to help EB get the quality people they want. When you hire new people, it's not just a benefit to the economy; they end up volunteering on boards and agencies, and the whole area is uplifted."

EB has been averaging more than 4,000 new hires over the past three years. At one point, its president had foreseen the need for 5,000 hires a year well into the future. But this is the first time since the end of the Cold War that the company's hiring was expected to reach anywhere close to 8,000.

Among the highlights of EB's plans for 2026 was the goal of completing design and starting construction at the Crystal Mall site that EB acquired in two phases last year, with the expectation that about 4,000 people would eventually work there. EB also plans to reconfigure its waterfront area to support stepped-up production, as well as beginning new construction at Quonset Point, R.I., as it expands into unspecified "new product lines."

Goals for the new year included delivering the Virginia class fast-attack sub USS Hyman G. Rickover (SSN-795) in the first quarter, and completing the Virginia class fast-attack sub USS Utah (SSN-801) with delivery in the fourth quarter, according to the President's Intent letter.

"We made significant strides in 2025; now is the time to take the next step and achieve even more in 2026," Rayha said in his note to employees.

Specifically, Rayha suggested that EB could reach a build rate of 1.5 Virginia-class submarines this year, up significantly from the 1.1 to 1.2 sub build rate the company has maintained in recent years.

"That's a national military priority that's being watched," Sheridan said. "I think they're capable of doing that."

Rayha, in his note, agreed, saying "Our mission … demands that we accelerate the delivery of Virginia- and Columbia-class submarines to meet the needs of our nation."

A Congressional Research Service report last month noted that EB has never been able to crack the two-subs-a-year goal of the Navy, though it came close in the years before the pandemic. Much of the slowdown in production after the pandemic was blamed on supply-chain interruptions, but there also were times when finding skilled labor was difficult, a problem that has been mitigated recently as Congress kicked in more funding for workforce training.

But for all the talk about the Virginia class, Rep. Courtney maintained that the Columbia class is currently a top priority at EB, calling the schedule "very intense," and a focus of many of the new hires.

He noted that the Columbia, when fully operational, weighs about 21,000 tons, compared with only 8,000 tons for the Virginia class.

"That's sucking up a lot of tonnage," he said.

Sheridan said he believes the 8,000 new hires at EB can be quickly absorbed into the local housing market, pointing out that New London alone has added nearly 1,000 new units to its stock in the past few years, and other towns such as Waterford and Stonington have been creating new residences at a fast pace as well.

Overall, Rayha said in his note that EB has a goal of delivering one Columbia-class and two Virginia-class subs a year "with room to grow our output above that if circumstances dictate."

"Electric Boat's unique role in designing, constructing, maintaining, and enhancing those submarines is key to maintaining our freedoms," Rayha's letter stated. "We must continue to deliver submarines at a faster rate — this is our moment."

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