Prevailing Wage and Apprenticeship Manager

Deutsche Windtechnik • Houston, TX

8d • Onsite

About The Position

DWT, Inc. is Germany’s largest Independent Service Provider, offering a comprehensive service package for Wind Turbine Generators (WTG) from one single source. With more than 9,000 WTGs under contract and more than 2,200 worldwide employees operating in Europe, the US, and Asia, DWT sets the bar for Independent Service Provider services. DWT Inc. came to North America and started operations here in 2018. Headquartered in Houston, TX., it is our goal to set the standard for best-in-class levels of quality, safety, efficiency, and customer service in the US market. Ready to start your career and as an important part of our People & Culture team? The Prevailing Wage & Apprentice Manager is a key member of the US team, responsible for managing and ensuring adherence to the apprenticeship program requirements approved by the US Department of Labor. This role also serves as the organization's subject matter expert and lead auditor for US prevailing wage regulations and processes, including wage determinations, conformance requests, and other activities in compliance with the Davis-Bacon Act, Inflation Reduction Act, and related federal and state requirements. Additionally, the position supports the coordination of training and administrative functions through the company's Learning Management System (LMS). The Manager will assess technical skills and competencies, providing reports to internal DWT leadership, the US Department of Labor, and client representatives to ensure program compliance with all contractual, state, and federal regulations. The Prevailing Wage & Apprenticeship Manager will be dynamic, adaptable, and a strong collaborator. Responsible for developing and administering project-specific prevailing wage and apprenticeship compliance programs to support IRA-qualified projects, mitigate regulatory and contractual risk, and protect tax credit eligibility. The role serves as a key advisor to Project Management, Commercial, Contracts, Training, Total Compensation and Operations teams throughout project planning and execution.

Requirements

• 5 years of experience in a similar role, or a combination of knowledge and experience with training programs
• Valid driver’s license (NON CDL or CDL) with a clean driving record.
• Bachelor’s Degree from an accredited college or university
• Thorough knowledge of MS Office products (Word and Excel)
• Experienced in using an LMS
• Good writing skills
• Strong presentation skills
• Ability to effectively organize and manage multiple training initiatives simultaneously
• Flexibility to travel 10-20% of the time (at times), based on business needs
• Comfortable and competent to hold the authority to identify, escalate, and recommend corrective actions for prevailing wage and apprenticeship compliance issues that may expose the company to contractual, regulatory, financial, or tax-credit related risk.
• Ability to read and interpret documents, and follow instructions, such as safety rules, operating and maintenance instructions, and procedures manuals.
• Ability to work with minimal supervision, given proper instructions.
• Ability to deal with problems involving at least one concrete variable in standardized situations.
• Must be able to pass a physical exam and drug/alcohol screening.
• The employee must be capable of lifting and/or moving up to 100 pounds.
• Specific vision abilities required by this job include close vision, distance vision, depth perception, and ability to adjust focus because of potential work in close confines.
• Employee must be physically fit enough to free climb 300 ft multiple times a day while wearing 25+ lbs. of climbing gear and work in extreme weather conditions.
• Must be capable of rescuing team mate anywhere in tower in the event of emergency.
• Employees who climb wind turbines may not exceed a maximum personal body weight of 260 lbs.

Nice To Haves

• Experience with a registered apprentice program and prevailing wage requirements is strongly preferred
• Experience supporting utility-scale construction, EPC, industrial, infrastructure, or renewable energy projects preferred
• Knowledge of project controls, subcontract administration, construction documentation, and change management
• Experience supporting Davis-Bacon compliance and apprenticeship requirements on federally funded or IRA-qualified projects preferred

Responsibilities

• Supervise and guide the career development progress of apprentices, regularly assessing their acquired skills and competencies from on-the-job and related training hours.
• Ensure apprentices are enrolled appropriately with Veteran’s Affairs to make use of their GI bill in conjunction with their apprenticeship training.
• Establish and nurture relationships with Department of Labor Apprenticeship program and Wage and Hour Division (WHD) personnel, ensuring the success of DWT, Inc.’s programs.
• Generate written and oral reports covering all facets of the apprenticeship program, including individual apprentice performance, program achievements, related documentation, and mandated reports for state, federal, and customer requirements.
• Serve as the subject matter expert within the organization regarding regulatory requirements for apprentice programs and the federal Inflation Reduction Act (IRA).
• Formulate and implement recommendations for training program policies, procedures, and practices, serving as an advisor on program-related issues for internal and external entities.
• Serve as a critical point of contact for external customers and their auditing partners on Prevailing Wage and Apprenticeship compliance matters, and support successful reporting in their preferred tool(s) or format(s) – such as LCP Tracker, WH-347, SkillSmart or eMars certified payroll system.
• Plan, develop, and deliver training and staff development programs, utilizing various methods such as classroom training, demonstrations, on-the-job training, meetings, conferences, and workshops.
• Be the company expert on the Davis Bacon Act and Inflation Reduction Act prevailing wage requirements and reporting.
• Provide guidance to instructors and supervisors of apprentices on evaluating work progress, recognizing acceptable work behaviors, and addressing unacceptable work behaviors.
• Lead prevailing wage and apprenticeship compliance efforts across multiple projects and business functions, ensuring compliance with contractual, regulatory, and tax-credit requirements.
• Collaborate with Total Compensation to develop and implement corrective actions when IRA-related discrepancies or compliance issues are identified.
• Coordinate project workflows across Project Management, Project Controls, Engineering, Commercial, Contract Management, Legal, Operations, Safety, Quality, Supply Chain, Finance, and Human Resources to ensure compliance with project objectives, contracts, budgets, schedules, and prevailing wage requirements.
• Conduct data collection and reporting to ensure compliance with state and federal prevailing wage and apprentice-to-journey worker requirements.
• Prepare weekly, monthly, quarterly, and annual customer reports, demonstrating adherence to prevailing wage requirements.
• Assist in assigning prevailing wage labor classifications.
• Develop policies and procedures necessary for the successful implementation of the apprentice program and prevailing wage determination, tracking and reporting.
• Coordinate training activities, both online and in-person, as well as third-party training initiatives.
• Manage administrative functions within the company's Learning Management System.
• Collaborate with Operations field management to identify training opportunities.
• Ensure program adherence to policies, procedures, practices, and federal apprenticeship requirements.
• Provide competent technical support with minimal oversight for assigned projects, resulting in successful project delivery.
• Drive efficiency and cost reductions through effective project planning and execution.
• Report project budget, schedule and scope status to senior DWT leadership.
• Develop project-specific prevailing wage and apprenticeship compliance plans prior to project mobilization.
• Review subcontracting and staffing strategies for compliance risks.
• Review certified payroll records and supporting compliance documentation.
• Conduct field audits and compliance assessments at project sites.
• Support customer, third-party, and Department of Labor audits.
• Monitor apprentice utilization, workforce ratios, and compliance forecasting across active projects.
• Identify, evaluate, and communicate financial, contractual, and regulatory risks associated with compliance requirements.

Benefits

• 401(K) with immediately vested, generous company match starting after your 1st month.
• Generous PTO, Excellent Medical/Dental/Vision Benefits.
• Competitive Compensation.
• Personalized and Ongoing Training.

What This Job Offers

• Job Type: Full-time
• Career Level: Manager