Document Type

Report

Publication Date

11-2017

Subjects

Career education, Apprenticeship programs, Vocational guidance

Abstract

Oregon, like all states across the U.S., has faced challenges in recruiting and retaining a diverse construction workforce. In 2011, the Oregon Bureau of Labor and Industries and the Oregon Department of Transportation partnered to fund the BOLI/ODOT Highway Construction Workforce Development Program, which is intended to improve the stability and diversity of the highway construction workforce by promoting recruitment and retention of apprentices (see Wilkinson and Kelly 2015). The program has provided funding for 1) Pre-apprenticeship programs (to improve recruitment and retention of apprentices); Supportive services (to improve retention of apprentices); and 3) Respectful workplaces (to improve retention of apprentices).

The first phase of the Respectful Workplaces project began in 2015, led by Oregon Tradeswomen Inc, in partnership with Constructing Hope, Green Dot Etc, Portland State University, and funded by the Oregon Bureau of Labor and Industries and Oregon Department of Transportation, as part of the BOLI/ODOT Highway Construction Workforce Development Program. The first phase of the project involved conducting ten focus groups with industry stakeholders to evaluate the potential for adapting the Green Dot Bystander Intervention Program for the construction trades in Oregon (see Kelly and Bassett 2015)

After the first phase of the project was completed, additional funding was secured from the BOLI/ODOT Highway Construction Workforce Development Program to pilot the Green Dot project on a job site in Oregon. Between 2015 and 2017, project collaborators worked to prepare for the pilot. Green Dot Etc adapted their bystander intervention program for the construction trades. Oregon Tradeswomen staff identified a contractor willing to participate and an appropriate pilot job site in the Portland, OR metro area. Contractor staff were trained to implement the program on the job site. Implementation began in October 2017.

The second phase of the project is evaluation of the program. To evaluate the implementation, Portland State University researchers will conduct three waves of surveys (prior to implementation, six months after implementation, and one year after implementation) to assess changes in attitudes and behaviors related to workplace aggression. The wave one survey was administered on the pilot job site in the Portland, OR metro area in September 2017. The findings from this survey are reported here.

Description

This project was conducted for Oregon Tradeswomen Inc and Constructing Hope, funded by the Oregon Bureau of Labor and Industries (BOLI) and the Oregon Department of Transportation (ODOT)’s Highway Construction Workforce Development Program.

Persistent Identifier

http://archives.pdx.edu/ds/psu/22679

Share

COinS