Md. positioned to draw skilled workers

Maryland is better-positioned to find skilled workers than the rest of nation, even as it braces for an influx of thousands of defense-sector personnel, labor experts said Monday at a business policy conference here sponsored by the Maryland Chamber of Commerce.

A recent study determined Harford County alone will need 4,600 electricians to meet the demands of military workers realigned to Aberdeen Proving Ground, said Bernard Antkowiak, assistant secretary of workforce development at the state?s Department of Labor, Licensing and Regulation. However, last time the industry was surveyed, the county was only producing 130.