MORGANTOWN, W.Va. District 13 State Senate candidates, Democrat Joey Garcia and Republican Jonathan Board, are talking about support for labor and opportunity on Labor Day.
Joey Garcia (D, Marion, 76), said over the last five to eight years, many new opportunities have come to that state. The North Central West Virginia Airport has both Pierpont Community and Technical Colleges with aviation maintenance-related training programs that companies on site can immediately hire graduates from.
“There are a lot of opportunities for young people—not just young people but people that are looking for work to get into a trade,” Garcia said. “Make good money, get good benefits, and learn a skill that will help them for the rest of their lives.”
Garcia wants an improved relationship with educators in the state. He said since the 2018 strike, teachers have been discriminated against by state lawmakers for standing up to protect their insurance benefits. As a result, teachers and the education profession have suffered at a time when job vacancies for teachers statewide top 1,100.
“There are a lot of cases—the respect that teachers get in the classroom and bills that go against that,” Garcia said. “I’d like to see us have a better relationship as a full legislature with our teachers and our representatives of teachers.”
Vice President of External Affairs, West Virginia First Foundation board member, and member of the executive board of the Marion Regional Development Corp., Jonathan Board, said workers are one of the most important assets in the region. The accomplishments of West Virginia labor have improved safety and wages for all workers.
“Coming from a family of blue-collar workers, entrepreneurs, and teachers, I can assure you there is nothing more important to this state than its hard-working people,” Board said. “I learned a lot serving as Chairman of the Marion County Chamber of Commerce, and we’re enjoying enormous growth throughout this area.”
Board said that as the son of two teachers, he wants a positive, working relationship with educators. Developing a productive dialog to address needs is what students and families expect.
“We’ve got to work to heal that because the reality is we all want the absolute best, not only for our children but for generations to come,” Board said.
Board added that state lawmakers have to take a strong stance against drugs and for treatment options. Having a workforce that is job-ready is an important part of maintaining the economic momentum that has developed over the last several months.