Gov.-elect Glenn Youngkin on Tuesday tapped Caren Merrick, who works in venture capital and led Youngkin’s nonprofit focused on workforce training during the pandemic, to serve as Virginia’s next commerce and trade secretary.
Youngkin names Caren Merrick as commerce and trade secretary
December 21, 2021 | Virginia
Merrick is the CEO of the Virginia Ready Initiative, which Youngkin co-founded in June 2020 to help out-of-work Virginians get credentials to work in high-demand fields. The initiative is a partnership between 20 large companies and the state’s community college system.
“Virginia’s jobs machine has stalled out, and Caren is going to play a pivotal role on the team that will jumpstart our economy and reinvigorate job growth here in the Commonwealth,” Youngkin said in a statement.“Caren is an innovator, a business builder, and a true leader in workforce development — the kind of experience needed to develop talent, train workers, attract investment.”
Youngkin, who takes office Jan 15, promised during his campaign to create 400,000 new jobs in Virginia, and said filling the state’s workforce shortage is among his top priorities. During a recent meeting of the Governor’s Advisory Council on Revenue Estimates, several business leaders said finding workers was a top concern.
