AWWA partners with Veolia on free workforce training

Veolia Workforce Academy North America is a new online training platform that provides free training materials for anyone interested in starting a career in the water sector.

AWWA provided three self-paced sets of courses — about 180 hours of content — from its Water Treatment Operator education series for the academy.

“The water sector is only as strong as the people that provide these vital services to our communities. Utilities cannot provide safe, clean water without a trained and committed workforce,” said John Albert, deputy CEO at AWWA. “By making these courses accessible, we hope to support utility efforts to attract and retain qualified operators.”

Just over two-thirds of utility executives who responded to AWWA’s latest State of the Water Industry survey, due out this spring, say their utility fully funds training programs. (An additional 12% expect to fully fund training within the next three years.)

Veolia’s Workforce Academy North America provides aspiring water professionals a starting point to operator-focused training content.

“As part of our global Green Up commitment to supporting our communities, we are proud to sponsor this initiative and to train and upskill the next generation of water workers to help the entire industry recruit the driving forces they need,” said Nadège Petit, CEO of Veolia in North America.

The workforce skills gap is growing, with about 10% of the water workforce under the age of 24. Utilities need to address gaps in knowledge — especially those that address new and emerging treatment processes and technological advances — to support the future sustainability of the workforce.

“A skillset gap is growing, especially as the current water workforce retires and technology advances,” said Veronica Cavera, education and workforce manager at AWWA.

Workforce development is a central pillar of AWWA’s Water 2050 initiative, which envisions a sustainable water future. Current AWWA efforts include the Veterans Workforce Initiative that connects veterans with utility jobs; the Young Professionals Committee, which helps early career professionals build their water network, upskill, and explore the array of jobs available in the sector; the Transformative Water Leadership Academy, a 10-month professional development program for emerging leaders; WorkforWater.org, a joint project between AWWA and WEF that helps job-seekers find careers in protecting public health and the environment; and most recently, a partnership with Xavier University to offer the nation’s first master’s degree program in water utility management.