El Paso County holds annual ‘Snow School’ training for public works employees
Scott Harrison
COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. (KRDO) — Residents in unincorporated areas of El Paso County may see faster snow removal on their roads and highways for the first time since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020.
On Tuesday, the county’s transportation department told KRDO 13’s The Road Warrior that it has virtually erased a worker shortage that had affected operations during the outbreak.
“We’ve got 140 total that will go on a full call-out, and we are probably around that 135 mark right now,” Scott Hall, a training manager, revealed. “We’re very close again.”
As he prepared to lead the 50 newest employees on a three-day training session for snowplow operations, he elaborated on why the pandemic caused the worker shortage that was also experienced by other local governments in the Pikes Peak region.
“When you put people in close vehicles and have people together, we were all told to get away from each other,” Hall explained. “We can’t do that here. So, it was hard. No one knew what to do. We’ve moved past it and now we know how to play the game.”
The lack of employees led county officials to take several measures that have solved the problem.
Officials dropped the high school diploma requirement, while offering to help new hires earn their equivalency diploma (GED) if they sought to earn it.
In an effort to save applicants time and expense, the county also dropped the requirement to have a commercial driver’s license (CDL) — and now provides in-house training to receive it.
Finally, county commissioners approved increasing worker pay and benefits to be more competitive with other employers.
“Most of our employees are staying and not leaving,” Hall said.
Another factor in the turnaround is that the county now leans on high school students as an underutilized labor force.
The county holds career day events at the transportation complex on Akers Drive, and also sends transportation representatives to local schools — exposing them to the possibilities of a career in public works.
Students can enroll in paid internships during the school year and even be hired after they graduate.
“Not every kid is going to college or joining the military,” Hall said. “This is an opportunity for us and for them. I was exposed to all of this when I was a kid, but how are kids exposed to it now?”
One of thse kids, Angel Bustamante, was hired after graduating from Sand Creek High School.
“I was going to do concrete work,” he said. “Then, I met (Scott Hall) at his job fair. I got hired full-time after I worked a few hours a week in the program. I learned how to drive a snowplow and it was easy. I like working here. I’m here because of the people. We have fun.”
The annual training covers lasts ten hours daily for three days; trainees will learn snowplow driving, maintenance and tire chain installation.