Navy and Coast Guard work now moving through U.S. shipyards ranges from first-in-class icebreakers to submarine maintenance and cutter life extensions. Each type of work asks something different of the workforce, and the plan has to account for all of them.
When people talk about U.S. shipbuilding, the conversation usually starts with new hulls. That is only part of the picture.
On any given month, the maritime industrial base is cutting steel for new Coast Guard icebreakers, building submarines and destroyers, running maintenance availabilities on Navy surface ships, overhauling submarines at the public shipyards, and extending the service life of cutters that have been in the fleet for decades.
Federal funding is reinforcing that range of work. The Navy's FY2027 budget request seeks $65.8 billion for shipbuilding. The One Big Beautiful Bill Act provided the Coast Guard nearly $25 billion. Neither number translates directly into a hiring figure, and much of that money is spread over years. But both point to a workload that will continue to include new construction and fleet sustainment at the same time.
For shipyard and marine industry leaders, the useful question is not simply how much work is coming. It is what kind of work is coming, when each phase peaks, and which trades each type of work will need.
The U.S. maritime industrial base is not one type of shipyard doing one type of work.
The White House's Maritime Action Plan, released in February 2026, counts 66 U.S. shipyards capable of working on large vessels: eight active shipbuilding yards, 11 yards with build positions, 22 repair yards with drydocking, and 25 topside repair yards. That breakdown alone shows how much of the base is organized around repair rather than new construction.
How Navy work is divided reinforces the point. According to CBO, most maintenance for conventional Navy ships is performed under contract at private shipyards, while most maintenance for nuclear-powered ships is performed at the Navy's public shipyards. GAO reported in February 2025 that 12 companies conduct major repair periods for Navy surface ships.
The Coast Guard follows a similar pattern. New cutters are built at commercial yards, while its In-Service Vessel Sustainment program, which covers service-life extensions and major maintenance on existing cutters, is performed primarily at the Coast Guard Yard in Curtis Bay, Maryland, and at commercial shipyards.
Workforce implication: A yard's workforce needs depend on where it sits in this mix. A new-construction yard, a drydock repair yard, and a topside repair contractor may all hire welders and pipefitters, but they will not need them in the same numbers, for the same durations, or on the same schedule.
Navy work currently reaches U.S. shipyards through several channels at once.
New construction. The Navy's FY2027 budget request, released April 21, 2026, asks for 34 ships: 18 battle force ships and 16 auxiliary ships. The request includes one Columbia-class submarine, two Virginia-class submarines, one Arleigh Burke-class destroyer, one FF(X) frigate, amphibious ships, six Medium Landing Ships, two John Lewis-class oilers, and incremental funding for the CVN 80 and CVN 81 carriers. This is a budget request, not enacted funding, and it describes planned procurement rather than current shipyard workload.
Work already under contract is behind schedule in several programs. GAO reported in April 2026 that:
Repair and maintenance. Maintenance is a separate and substantial workload. CBO's December 2025 analysis found that conventional Navy ship maintenance periods often take 20 to 100 percent longer than the Navy's final schedules. CBO also reported that contracts are sometimes awarded only one or two months before a maintenance event starts, which can delay parts, materials, and the hiring of workers for the job.
GAO reported in February 2025 that the Navy estimates its planned surface ship repair workload could exceed private repair companies' workforce capacity in San Diego, Mayport, and Pearl Harbor at some times through fiscal year 2031.
On the submarine side, GAO found in August 2026 that maintenance delays cost the Navy more than 15,000 attack submarine operational days over fiscal years 2016 through 2025, with limited dry dock capacity at the naval shipyards among the contributing factors.
Modernization. Modernization adds new systems or capabilities to ships already in service. CBO found that maintenance and modernization contracts are separate and originate in two different Navy organizations, and that completing both types of work simultaneously was challenging and often led to delays. CBO reported that a Navy official identified poor integration of modernization activities as a key driver of delays and labor overruns.
Shipyard infrastructure. The Navy is also rebuilding the public shipyards themselves. Its Shipyard Infrastructure Optimization Program (SIOP) covers dry docks and facilities at the four public naval shipyards. GAO reported in September 2026 that SIOP costs are expected to surpass $200 billion, with planned projects extending past 2080.
Workforce implication: Navy work is not one demand curve. Construction programs ramp over years, maintenance arrives in fixed windows that often extend, and modernization can add specialized scope inside those windows. Each needs its own labor forecast.
Which statement best describes your current approach?
The Coast Guard is in an unusual position: it is recapitalizing several cutter classes at the same time it works to keep older cutters in service. The One Big Beautiful Bill Act, enacted in July 2025, provided the service nearly $25 billion, which it described as the largest single funding commitment in its history.
Sustainment and service-life extension. The Coast Guard's In-Service Vessel Sustainment program decides class by class which cutters receive major maintenance or service-life extension work. As of the program's June 2026 update, current projects include service-life extensions for 270-foot medium endurance cutters and 47-foot motor lifeboats, major maintenance availabilities for 175-foot coastal buoy tenders starting in 2025, planning for a Healy service-life extension with phased production from 2027, and major maintenance planning for the 418-foot National Security Cutters. The Polar Star service-life extension was completed in 2025.
Workforce condition, documented: GAO reported in November 2025 that OPC shipbuilders have struggled to hire and retain qualified workers, resulting in the need to hire more inexperienced workers. In April 2026, GAO also reported that Coast Guard officials said the service was not investing in the shipbuilding trades workforce because it lacked funding for those investments.
Workforce implication: Coast Guard work is concentrated in specific yards and regions, especially along the Gulf Coast, and spans first-in-class builds, serial production, and life extension. The same region may see several of these at once.
New construction, repair, modernization, and service-life extension all draw on skilled marine trades. GAO's April 2026 report names welders, pipefitters, and machinists among the trades that Navy and Coast Guard shipbuilders find hard to train, recruit, and retain. What changes from one type of work to the next is how, when, and for how long those trades are needed.
The comparisons below are workforce-planning considerations rather than documented industry standards. They will vary by yard, vessel, and contract.
Workforce implication: A headcount number for a yard says little on its own. The more useful plan breaks demand out by type of work, by trade, and by phase.
The practical challenge for shipyards is not any one program. It is the combination of work on the schedule, and how that combination changes over time.
A few planning considerations follow from the research:
None of this assumes every yard faces a shortage. It does mean that the type and timing of work should drive the workforce plan, rather than the plan being built around a single headcount target.
Consider your next 12 to 24 months:
Whether your next project is a new build, a repair availability, or a modernization package, the trade mix and timing will be different. NSC Marine supports shipyards and marine employers across new build, conversion, and repair work with skilled trades including welders, shipfitters, pipefitters, electricians, fabricators, blaster/painters, riggers, and firewatch. If you are planning around an upcoming project, we can help you think through the trades it will need and when.
Explore Marine Staffing Request TalentU.S. shipyards support new construction of submarines, destroyers, frigates, amphibious ships, and auxiliaries, along with repair, maintenance, and modernization of ships already in the fleet. CBO reports that most conventional ship maintenance is done at private shipyards, while most nuclear-powered ship maintenance is done at the Navy's public shipyards.
As of 2025 and 2026 sources, the Coast Guard has the Polar Security Cutter, Arctic Security Cutter, Offshore Patrol Cutter, Fast Response Cutter, and Waterways Commerce Cutter programs in construction or under contract, along with service-life extension and major maintenance work under its In-Service Vessel Sustainment program.
New construction usually builds demand over a longer period, with trade emphasis shifting as work moves from structural fabrication to outfitting and testing. Repair work is tied to fixed availability windows and can change once work begins. CBO has found Navy maintenance periods often run 20 to 100 percent longer than scheduled.
It depends on the type of work and the phase. GAO has reported that Navy and Coast Guard shipbuilders face challenges hiring and retaining trades workers such as welders, pipefitters, and machinists. Shipfitters, electricians, and other craft trades are also used across construction, repair, and modernization.
Start by forecasting each project's labor needs by trade and phase, then combine them to see where peaks overlap. Planning for schedule changes and starting recruitment for critical trades before peak production gives a yard more time for qualification and onboarding.
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