The Midwest Transportation Workforce Center at the University of Wisconsin-Madison is surveying the County Highway Commissioners and highway maintenance officials throughout Wisconsin to:

  • Understand the demand for entry-level Highway Maintenance workers in Wisconsin
  • Capture recruitment and retention issues
  • Learn about current training practices for highway maintenance workers
  • Compile opinions on various workforce development topics

The information gathered through the Wisconsin Highway Maintenance Workforce Survey will help develop a career pathway in highway maintenance. Career pathways help in attracting, retaining, and training workers by identifying successful approaches to training and pinpointing where curricula should be broadened. The career pathways outlined through this project will be forward looking, taking into consideration emerging technologies such as, driverless cars, advanced pavement technology, drones, etc.

FAQs

Can I preview the survey? Yes, download the preview in PDF,  which can be printed out. Please note that the survey is dynamic, meaning that the total number of questions will depend on your answers.

How long will the survey take? Approximately 20-30 minutes.

Can I forward the email to someone else? No. The link in the survey is tied to your email address. Only one email per organization is receiving this invitation. Should you wish someone else to complete the survey please contact Maria Hart at (608) 262-6639 or maria.hart@wisc.edu with the name and email of the appropriate person.

Can I complete the survey over a few weeks? Yes. This survey is designed so that you can exit and return to the survey if you need to allocate your time over multiple sessions. Please bookmark the link.

Will I need other staff in my organization to provide data? Yes. If you are an official, you will need the assistance of your human resources office to complete employment statistics, number of employees, and salary data. We ask for salary ranges and actual salaries. Please see highlighted questions in the preview PDF document.

Where can I find out more about this project?  There is more information on the Highway Maintenance Engineering Career Pathways Initiative page .

Whom do I contact if I have questions? Questions or problems should be directed to: Maria Hart at (608) 262-6639 or maria.hart@wisc.edu.

Can I complete a paper survey? Yes, you may mail the survey to Maria Hart, Midwest Transportation Workforce Center, University of Wisconsin-Madison, 1415 Engineering Drive Room 2205, Madison, WI 53706.

I did not receive an invitation to take a survey. Survey invitations were emailed to the 72 County Highway Commissioners, Public Works heads of Cities, Villages and Towns or an equivalent representative, WisDOT State Maintenance Engineer, and the five Region Maintenance Supervisors as well as private contractors.  Please contact Maria Hart at maria.hart@wisc.edu.

Two people in my organization want to complete the survey. Can we both complete it? Ideally there should be one response per organization.

I am a Town representative and we contract out all our highway maintenance. Should I complete the survey? Yes! Please take the survey. You can indicate that you contract out the services. By completing the survey, you will help us to get a better understanding of who maintains the roads in Wisconsin.

I would like to have some assistance in taking the survey.  Contact  Maria Hart at (608) 262-6639 or maria.hart@wisc.edu.

When is the survey due? The survey will close on Dec 17, 2017.