Last autumn, the Institute of Environmental Protection The Polish National Research Institute, together with the Polish Waterworks Chamber of Commerce, started a project entitled “Council of competences in the water sector”. The project is co-financed by the European Social Fund under the Operational Programme “Knowledge Education Development 2014-2020″. The main objective of the project is to increase the influence of entrepreneurs from the water sector on educational institutions (both from the area of formal and non-formal education), so that the acquired qualifications are adapted to the real needs of employers in the sector. The aim is to match the educational opportunities of universities, secondary schools and other training providers to the staff needs of water supply companies. The main task of the Council is to analyze the market and propose changes that will improve the adjustment of the training offer to the needs of the water sector. Therefore, the Council is to carry out studies covering the education market and the needs of the sector, to analyze the existing legal acts and, on the basis of the gained knowledge, recommend changes in education and regulations. The Council will develop competence needs, but also recommendations for the most vulnerable employees, including those over 50, disabled or low-skilled. A very important element of the activity is to initiate cooperation on creating educational agreements between water supply companies or service providers and the training sector. The Council is therefore intended to be a special link between our industry and the education sector. It is supposed to transfer information about the demand for competences to educational institutions, utilities and social partners identifying the development needs of enterprises.
On 6 February, the first meeting of the Council took place. The members were appointed by the Minister of Development. Members of the Board are representatives of universities, schools, social and training organisations, trade unions, as well as water supply companies and companies providing them with services and products. The representatives of the Polish Agency for Enterprise Development have introduced the subject of Sector Councils. Outside our industry, they include marketing communication sector, fashion (tailoring) or recovery of raw materials. They can be found on the PARP website: https://www.parp.gov.pl/component/site/site/sektorowe-rady-ds-kompetencji
The key issue in developing needs is of course knowledge of the sector. We already have some knowledge thanks to the experience of the Council members, but also thanks to systematic human resources research. Human Capital Balance is one of the largest European research projects in the area of competences, employment and the labour market. Its aim is to diagnose and monitor human resources existing on the Polish market and factors for their development. The results of the research are the basis for formulating recommendations in areas such as: science and education, labour market, development of entrepreneurship. Research on Human Capital includes population surveys (professional activity, education, quality of work, attitudes towards work, universal competences, adult learning), employer surveys (demand, recruitment difficulties, competence expectations, investments in human resources development, management, innovations) and research in the training and development sector (offer, condition, quality, personnel, cooperation, innovations). Members of the Council will also be assisted by industry-oriented research conducted by a specialist company. Its task will be to provide information on the needs of the water supply companies in terms of competence requirements.
During the inaugural meeting, the Council members received information about the Integrated Qualification System, presented by the Educational Research Institute. More information about the System can be found at https://www.kwalifikacje.gov.pl
During the inaugural meeting, the Council had to face the first challenge and give its opinion on the proposal to include in the Integrated Qualification System the market qualification ”service of small wastewater treatment plants”. The discussion was stormy, many comments were made, which is certainly a positive signal for the future. There are many challenges ahead of us, and the enthusiasm is great, so we hope that the results of the project will provide positive solutions for the water industry.
