Call for Proposals Water and Wastewater Sector Workforce Strategy Development and Implementation Plan

Transcription

1 Call for Proposals Water and Wastewater Sector Workforce Strategy Development and Implementation Plan 1 Purpose In 2015, the BC Water & Waste Association (BCWWA) and Environmental Operators Certification Program (EOCP) worked together to develop a profile of the workers responsible for the day-to-day operations and maintenance of water and wastewater treatment, distribution, and collections systems in both the public and private sectors in BC. The research produced quantifiable data about the size and composition of the sector s workforce today as well as a forecast for the next 10 years. It also identified a number of barriers facing the water and wastewater sector s workforce. With support from the BC Ministry of Jobs, Tourism and Skills Training, the BCWWA and EOCP are working together again to develop a comprehensive workforce strategy and implementation plan to address the barriers raised by last year s workforce profile project. The goals for the current project are to ensure that British Columbia s drinking water and wastewater systems have: 1. A competent workforce, with people who have the demonstrated knowledge, skills and abilities required to safeguard public health and the environment; 2. A sustainable workforce, where there are a sufficient number of appropriately trained operators, engineers, managers, and technical support staff, so that there is a continuous pipeline of trained and certified workers when and where they are required. At this time, the BCWWA and EOCP are seeking the services of a qualified Consultant to create a facilitation guide and engage with industry stakeholders from across the province in order to further refine key workforce and human resource issues impacting the water and wastewater sector and uncover solutions identified by the industry. The Consultant will develop a report outlining the overall strategy, informed by industry and the project advisory committee, which describes a prioritized list of programs/actions to address the issues and an implementation plan for two to four of the high-priority programs/actions, including how the programs/actions will be sustained. 2 Background The BCWWA is a not-for-profit organization that represents over 4,600 water professionals who are responsible for ensuring safe, sustainable and secure, water, sewer and stormwater systems in BC and the Yukon. Our members work every day to keep our water systems clean and safe from source to tap to drain and back. They include water and wastewater facility operators, utility managers, engineers, consultants, government policy and regulatory staff, backflow assembly testers and cross connection control specialists, researchers, and suppliers. The BCWWA ensures our water systems continue to protect public health and the environment by: delivering operator education that prepares operators for, or helps them maintain their certification administered by the Environmental Operators Certification Program (EOCP), BCWWA: Suite W. Pender St., Vancouver, BC V6E 2N7 T: F: EOCP: Suite Henning Dr., Burnaby, BC V5C 6N5 T: F:

2 providing professional development and networking events, administering a cross connection control certification program, and advocating to government and educating the public about water and wastewater issues. The EOCP is a member-based organization, and an Agent of Government, responsible for the Certification of Operators and the Classification of Facilities to enable the prudent management of water and wastewater in British Columbia. The EOCP s objective is to protect human health, the environment, and the investment in facilities through increased knowledge, skill and proficiency of the members of the Program in all matters relating to water treatment and distribution and wastewater collection, treatment, and disposal. The EOCP carries out its work by: maintaining the classification system for water and wastewater facilities, establishing the competencies required for operator certification in British Columbia, accrediting training organizations, administering the certification exams for operators, and certifying operators. 3 Situation Analysis The 2015 report, BC Water & Wastewater Sector Workforce Profile, indicates that BC s water and wastewater sector employs over 6,200 trained professionals that operate and maintain the systems that we depend on each day to transport water from its source to our taps and return it safely to the environment. Jobs in the sector are well-paid and are located in every community throughout BC, including roles as diverse as operators, laboratory technicians, instrumentation technicians, utility managers, engineers, and consultants. Depending on the occupation, average salaries can range from entry level positions that pay $40,000, up to $130,000+ for managers; public sector salaries are, on average, about 30% higher than similar roles in the private sector. Across BC, the workforce is nearly evenly distributed between water and wastewater facilities. 62% of the sector works in the Mainland/Southwest region of the province, 16% on Vancouver Island/Coast, 13% in the Interior and 9% in Northern BC regions. Projections show that the BC water and wastewater sector will see significant workforce turnover in all regions between 2015 and 2025 due to retirements, attrition, and industry growth. Over 3,300 new hires will be needed; almost 60% of these job postings will be for operators, 20% for technical support staff, 14% for supervisors, and 12% for management staff. The majority of positions will be in the Mainland/Southwest and Vancouver Island/Coast regions, but good job opportunities will be seen throughout all regions of province. Workforce demographic findings indicate that the sector is predominantly comprised of men 87% of all employees are male and the number of young workers in the industry is below the provincial average. There are differences in workforce demographics depending on job roles and region; for example, women comprise 35% of workers in technical support roles, yet only 6% of operator roles. Women account for 15% of workers in the Mainland/Southwest region, but only 9% in other regions of the province. Call for Proposals Page 2

3 To fill all of the roles coming available in the next ten years, there is a need to bring over 3,000 new workers into the water sector workforce and advance workers within the sector. Several barriers to ensuring a competent and sustainable workforce were identified in the 2015 report (draft for discussion at September Project Advisory Committee meeting), including: Gaps in knowledge, skills and abilities Educational curriculum must continually evolve to provide the water and wastewater workforce with the knowledge, skills and abilities required to address new technologies, changing regulations and other sector needs in areas such as leadership, communication, conflict resolution, IT, environmental and legal issues, etc. The changing needs of the sector highlight the urgency for needs assessments, standardized competency profiles by occupational type, and updated educational, certification and accreditation requirements to address existing gaps. Knowledge loss due to an aging workforce nearing retirement Over 1,100 current workers will be retiring within the next ten years. 44% are operators with the remainder comprised of technical support staff, and utility supervisors and managers. There is a need for succession planning at the sector level that includes knowledge transfer to younger, existing employees. Limited pathways for entry and advancement in operations Operators typically require a valid certification to obtain a job, but cannot become certified without work experience. A limited number of post-secondary programs that prepare entry-level individuals for operational roles in the water and wastewater sector are available. Furthermore, no career pathways exist to advance from an operational role into a supervisory, management or more technical role such as a technician or engineer. Recruitment challenges The water and wastewater sector workforce is aging, yet the industry is not attracting an equal share of younger workers compared to the overall workforce in BC. It also employs a low percentage of female workers compared to other utility industries. Career opportunities in the sector are not well understood In order to meet the demand for new workers, the sector will need to bring attention to employment opportunities among secondary school students and their parents, university students with a related degree (science, environmental health or engineering), workers from constricted industries i.e. mining and oil and gas, as well as immigrants with related education and experience. These barriers need to be confirmed, solutions and resources to address them have to be identified, and support and commitment to the solutions must be achieved, through consultation with industry. 4 Scope of Work 4.1 Create a facilitation guide for industry consultation sessions The facilitation guide used in the consultation sessions should: Present the workforce barriers identified through the 2015 report, BC Water & Wastewater Sector Workforce Profile Ask participants to refine the existing barriers and/or identify additional barriers and explain their rationale. Solicit participant suggestions as to the causes and impacts of the workforce barriers identified. Call for Proposals Page 3

4 Solicit participant suggestions on specific and concrete programs, resources and actions to overcome each of the workforce barriers. Facilitate communication between participants, fostering collaborative solutions to workforce barriers, for the industry, by the industry. Invite participants to identify resources, expertise and assistance their organizations can provide to support the solutions. 4.2 Facilitate industry consultation sessions Facilitate industry consultations with stakeholders and education providers, using the facilitation guide, through three face-to-face regional workshops and 8-10 key informant interviews. 4.3 Incorporate feedback from the Program Advisory Committee Work with the project leads to facilitate and incorporate feedback from the Project Advisory Committee, through meetings with the committee and written responses, regarding the following: Finalization of the workforce barriers. Development of the facilitation guide, prior to hosting the industry consultation sessions. Development of initial findings from the industry consultation sessions. Development of the strategy and implementation plan to address the workforce barriers. Identification of progress measures to gauge effectiveness of the strategies in achieving the project goals. 4.4 Write reports i. Interim report summarize the initial findings from industry consultation sessions, identifying key themes or trends from each region and/or industry group. ii. iii. Draft report incorporate feedback obtained from the project leads and the Project Advisory Committee. Final report finalize the report, conducting any follow-up or clarification work required. Work with the project leads and a graphic designer on final layout, design and edits. Available Background Information The following reports and studies are available as background information for this project: BC Water & Wastewater Sector Workforce Profile BCWWA and EOCP, 2015 Includes labour market information including workforce demographics, compensation, training and certification details, as well as a forecast of labour supply needs over the next 5 to 10 years. A Strategic Direction for Technology Education and Skills in British Columbia Applied Science Technologists and Technicians of BC, January Deliverables The deliverables for this project include: i. A facilitation guide for the consultation sessions with industry stakeholders and education providers. ii. An interim report, summarizing discussions during the consultation sessions and initial findings, including any themes or trends. iii. Up to 3 meeting agendas, used to facilitate and obtain feedback from the Project Advisory Committee. Call for Proposals Page 4

5 iv. A draft report detailing: o Methodology used to consult industry stakeholders and education providers; o Description of each workforce barrier, including refinement and additions from the consultation sessions; o Overall strategy to address the workforce barriers, including a prioritized list of programs and actions, as identified by the consultation sessions, grouped into distinct phases; o Implementation plan for two to four high priority programs/actions, accompanied by a sustainability plan and progress measures to gauge effectiveness in addressing the workforce barrier and project goals. o A complete list of the names and organizations that participated, and citations for any research referenced in the report. v. A final report, including revisions to the draft report. 6 Project Team The project is jointly led by Ashifa Dhanani, Senior Manager of Program Development for the BCWWA, and Kalpna Solanki, CEO of the EOCP. A Project Advisory Committee, consisting of representatives from water sector employers, education providers, industry associations, BC government, and certification bodies, has been struck to provide feedback and advice on the process and results of the project. 7 Term of Contract and Milestones It is expected that the contract term will start in early September and end at the end of March. Deadline By September 14, 2016 By September 26, 2016 September 30, 2016 By October 14, 2016 By December 2, 2016 By December 16, 2016 January 13 or 20, 2017 By January 27, 2017 By February 10, 2017 By March 10, 2017 March 24, 207 March 2017 Milestone Solicit proposals from qualified consultants Select consultant Project kickoff meeting with the project leads Project Advisory Committee meets to review and finalize project charter, including workforce barriers Conduct regional workshops and key informant interviews Interim report completed Project Advisory Committee meets to review interim report, provide direction on the strategy and implementation plan for high priority programs/actions Draft report completed Project Advisory Committee to review draft report and provide feedback Final report completed Public launch of report Project close-out meeting Call for Proposals Page 5

6 8 Budget The maximum budget for this project is $40,000, including all applicable expenses and taxes. Payment will be made based on completion of project activity/deliverables to the satisfaction of Project Manager. 9 Proposals 9.1 Proposal ContentThis reflects the language in the cost sharing agreement from the Ministry Proposals should include: a detailed methodology and approach to carrying out the work that incorporates both approach and structure of the consultation activities, and describes how the methodology will effectively utilize results of the consultation and the expertise of the Project Advisory Committee to inform the development of the strategy and implementation plan; a description of the project team, including details about the role of each team member; a budget that outlines project tasks, expected time commitment and hourly charge out rates; a detailed schedule of project milestones and deliverables; an outline of requirements from the BCWWA and/or EOCP; 3 references, including names and contact details. Proposals should not exceed 12 pages in length. 9.2 Deadline The deadline for proposal submissions is Wednesday, September 14, 2016 at 6:00 pm. 9.3 Submission Method Please submit proposals in electronic format to adhanani@bcwwa.org by the proposal deadline, with Workforce Strategy Proposal in the subject line. An confirmation will be sent to acknowledge receipt of the proposal. 9.4 Other Neither the BCWWA nor EOCP are responsible for any costs associated with proponents preparation of proposals. 10 Evaluation Criteria Please note that the project managers will select the proposal that best meets the objectives of the project; the lowest priced proposal will not necessarily be the selected proposal. Proposals will be evaluated on the following criteria: - Experience of the team in successfully delivering projects of a similar nature - Methodology/approach - Value for money 11 Questions Questions about this project can be directed to the Project Manager, Ashifa Dhanani via at adhanani@bcwwa.org or by phone at Call for Proposals Page 6