Huntington Ingalls details wage gains, capital plans and distributed shipbuilding strategy

Eric Chuening, executive vice president for maritime systems and corporate strategy at Huntington Ingalls Industries, told the House Appropriations Defense Subcommittee that HII sustained a 14% year-over-year throughput increase in 2025 and is targeting further acceleration in 2026.

Chuening described recent collective-bargaining agreements that he said provide an immediate base-wage increase of at least 18% at Ingalls and average base-wage increases of about 20% at Newport News, with projected multi-year wage growth reflected in company contracts. He said HII is committing roughly $600,000,000 in capital investments for 2026 and announced a potential robotics partnership contract worth up to $900,000,000 contingent on certification and performance.

To address geographic concentration of skilled trades, Chuening said HII is pursuing a distributed shipbuilding approach and plans to outsource about 2,000,000 hours of work in 2026 to partner shipyards, "creating jobs in communities across the country." He described apprenticeship investments — including a multiyear apprentice-school model with company-paid training — as central to recruitment and retention.

Members followed with questions about whether market forces alone could solve shortages; Chuening said employer investments, mission-focused recruiting and livable wages are necessary complements to market signals.