Title
Street Maintenance Worker Apprenticeship Program Update
Description
This report provides information to the Transportation, Infrastructure and Planning Subcommittee regarding the Street Transportation Department's Street Maintenance Worker Apprenticeship Program.
THIS ITEM IS FOR INFORMATION AND DISCUSSION
Report
Background
The City of Phoenix has seen a dramatic rise over the past several years in the number of staffing vacancies across all City departments. The Street Transportation Department (Streets), in particular, has seen these vacancies rise to more than twenty-five percent of its workforce, and its impact has been greater in our field divisions and sections. Among these field staff positions, Streets chose to focus on the Street Maintenance Worker position in a creative and collaborative approach. The Street Maintenance Worker position is a crucial piece of our operations and to help ensure Phoenix's streets are maintained in a safe and reliable condition for the traveling public.
Program Summary
While attracting and retaining qualified staff is a challenge for many City departments, the Street Maintenance Worker position within Streets is a particularly difficult position to fill and maintain due to both the physical demands and extreme working conditions. To help address these difficulties, Streets partnered with the Human Resources Department and the Laborers' International Union of North America (LIUNA) Local 777 to create the Street Maintenance Worker Apprenticeship Program. The goal of this Program is to create a "no experience necessary" pipeline of recruits to develop a highly skilled workforce and to showcase a viable career path.
The Street Maintenance Worker Apprenticeship Program features both in-class and on-the-job training totaling approximately 4,499 hours of instruction. This begins with four weeks of "hands on" and classroom training on the type of work performed by a Street Maintenance Worker, workplace safety, policies and procedures, CPR training, and technical instruction on the various types of equipment used. During their participation in the Program, apprentices also receive their Personal Protection Equipment (PPE), Certified Learners Permit, as well as their Commercial Drivers License. Both the permit and the drivers license are paid for by the City of Phoenix.
Community Outreach
In January 2022, staff created the outline of the Program and attended community outreach events at several locations around the City to reach potential apprentices. Staff partnered with several organizations within and outside the City of Phoenix to help promote the Program. Key partnerships include the Maricopa Community Colleges, Friendly House, Chicanos Por La Causa, Father Matters, US Vets, Fresh Start Women's Foundation, as well as several City departments (Neighborhood Services, Parks and Recreation, and Housing).
In May 2022, the Program selected and hired its first class of nine apprentices at the City's Union Hills Service Center. A second class of six apprentices began their training in July 2022, while a third apprenticeship class began with six apprentices in November 2022. Over the last year, the Program has created a great deal of interest in the community and has shown great potential to help Streets attract qualified candidates into this hard-to-fill position. However, it is important to note that the existing labor market presents unique challenges, and Streets has seen a total of seven apprentices that have left the Program, while three other apprentices are still with the City of Phoenix but are working for other departments, and four other apprentices have chosen to leave the Program and the City for other employment.
Department
Responsible Department
This item is submitted by Deputy City Manager Alan Stephenson and the Street Transportation Department.