The most crucial problem facing departments of transportation inthe next decade will be the shortage of professional employees to create and maintain roadways. Between now and 2000, the work force will grow more slowly, the number of new workers entering the labor force will decline, and the fastest-growing job market will be in professional, technical, and sales fields, which also require the highest educational and skills levels. The challenge to meet staffing needs is compounded by high turnover at senior levels anticipated by state departments of transportation and the fierce competition for entry-level professionals. To explore this human resource situation, aashto and fhwa sponsored a study that addressed the shortages and the strategies employed by state departments of transportation to cope with or prevent shortages. An overview of the results of the study and the related activities being undertaken by the texas state department of highways and public transportation is presented. Among the strategies the responding states reported are broadening the mix of in-house technical skills; consistent upgrading of skills and knowledge, especially in computer technology; and the development of professional engineers and managers to fill the leadership void. Implementation of the strategies involves recruitment, training, and management development techniques that offer long- and short-term solutions. A common thread running through the survey responses from all stateswas the priority placed on creating a positive work environment--one born of the knowledge that human resources are both the present and the future of transportation. This paper appears in transportationresearch record no. 1276, Maintenance management 1990: proceedings of a workshop, jackson, mississippi, july 25-27, 1990.
Samenvatting