WASHINGTON – Aviation maintenance industry executives gathered on Capitol Hill March 15 to honor House Education & Workforce Committee Chairman Virginia Foxx (R-N.C.) with the Aeronautical Repair Station Association’s (ARSA) 2017 Legislative Leadership Award. ARSA is the trade association representing the global aviation maintenance, repair and overhaul sector.
During more than a decade in Congress, former community college president Foxx has established herself as champion for career technical education (CTE). She was a leading force behind efforts to modernize and reform the nation’s workforce development system through the 2014 Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act (WIOA) and has continued to work to improve CTE through Perkins Act reauthorization.
Aviation maintenance companies have consistently identified the skilled worker shortage as a major strategic threat to the industry. Fifty-six percent of respondents to ARSA’s 2017 member survey said they plan to add positions in the coming year, but industry leaders are concerned that a shortage of qualified applicants my restrict MRO sector growth. Eighty percent of ARSA survey respondents reported having difficulty finding workers to fill technical positions over the past two years and half reported their companies had open, unfilled technical jobs.
“Maintenance providers throughout the country owe Chairwoman Foxx a debt of gratitude for her tireless efforts to improve CTE,” ARSA Executive Vice President Christian A. Klein said. “ARSA looks forward to continuing to work with her in the 115th Congress to shed light on the nation’s skills crisis and work towards solving it.”
The award was presented during ARSA’s Legislative Day, which is held each March in conjunction with the association’s Annual Repair Symposium. To see what else happened during the event, visit ARSA.org/symposium.
ARSA is the only association devoted to the unique needs of the global civil aviation maintenance industry. It is dedicated to helping member companies operate more efficiently and effectively, while continuing to ensure the safety of aircraft worldwide. To learn more about the association’s work on behalf of both industry stakeholders and the flying public, please visit ARSA.org.
