LBE Program

Webcor's Workforce Development Philosophy.
Webcor Builders has worked within the San Francisco Bay Area since 1971, and has been a dominant builder within the City of San Francisco for the last ten years. With this scale and influence comes the responsibility to be a leader of the community. Just as Webcor has previously worked with the Department of the Environment and the Department of Building Inspection in looking toward the future, now is the time to continue to be proactive in our approach to community involvement through the CityBuild. Webcor's involvement in the construction of San Francisco General Hospital represents an opportunity to continue our commitment to hire local firms that represent the richness and diversity of San Francisco.

Webcor's contract with the City requires that we comply with two major programs intended to increase participation of local business 1) HRC 2) CityBuild. In addition to these two programs, Webcor is committed to conduct an aggressive outreach program to increase the level of participation by actively partnering in planning and contributing training programs to provide timely resources for both City projects and privately developed projects.

The Human Rights Commission (HRC) requirements of the Local Business Enterprise (LBE) and Non-Discrimination Ordinance set forth in Chapter 14B of the San Francisco Administrative Code will apply to the SF General Hospital Project. The Project LBE goals will be met with LBE firms that are certified as LBE firms by the San Francisco Human Rights Commission.

SF General's trades will be awarded either through the core trades or the traditional bidding process. Below are the strategies for maximizing HRC LBE participation:

Once the design documents are at a stage in development where the Core Trade Contractors can submit a final proposed cost for performance of their respective scope(s) of work, Webcor Builders will require each Core Trade Contractor to submit a final proposed cost for performance of its respective scope of work. The Core Trade Contractor bidding schedule and LBE trade packages are currently out to bid, due May 18, 2011.

Core Trade Contractors will be required to follow the (5) steps below in order to demonstrate good faith efforts to hire LBE second tier subcontractors:

1. In advance of the bid process, Core Trade Contractors and Webcor will review the certified LBE list and identify LBE material purchase and subcontracting opportunities for the LBE participation. Core Trade Contractors will be required to demonstrate to Webcor how they plan to achieve their respective LBE participation goals.
2. A minimum of 10 days prior to the Bid date, the Core Trade Contractors will advertise the Bid Package in the SF Chronicle publication and post the Bid Package notifications on the City website.
3. As bid packages are issued by the CORE TRADE Contractors, Core Trade Contractors will select LBEs and as part of the Good Faith Outreach effort, will telephone the selected LBEs, Fax and or mail an LBE Outreach notification letter which will list the date of the Pre-Bid conference for their respective trade along with the bid date.
4. LBEs will be invited to attend Pre-Bid conferences to learn more about the specifics of the individual Bid Packages, they will have an opportunity to ask questions and meet the representatives of the Core Trade Contractors. The HRC department will also be present to explain the LBE program and answer questions.
5. In the event that Core Trade Contractors are not able to meet the LBE participation goal before they submit their bids to Webcor, they will be strongly encouraged to meet and discuss with HRC staff and Webcor to make sure to review reasonable ways for the goals to be obtained.

LBE Proposals will be solicited by Trade Subcontractors generally in the following manner:

1. A minimum of 10 days prior to the Request for Qualification submission date, the Trade Subcontractor Bid Packages will be advertised in the SF Chronicle.
2. Webcor Builders will review the certified LBE list for bidding Trade Packages, select LBEs and as part of the Good Faith Outreach effort, will telephone the selected LBEs and Fax and or mail a LBE Outreach notification letter which will list the date of the Pre-Bid conference for their respective trade.
3. Webcor will schedule Pre-bid conferences. If multiple Trades are bidding, trade pre-bid conferences will be combined.
4. LBEs will be invited to attend Pre-Bid conferences where-in the specifics of the individual Bid Packages will be discussed and questions answered. HRC will be present to explain the program and answer questions.
5. Webcor Builders / City will post SFGH Project Bid Package notices on the City's website under the Office of City Administrator www.sf.gov.or/oc..... OCA Website. There will be a link on the City OCA website to the Project Webpage where additional Project and Bid Package information will be available.
6. During the bid process, Trade Subcontractors will identify LBE material purchase and subcontracting opportunities for the Trade Bid Packages they are submitting proposals on.
7. Webcor will publish in the project website and the City's website the contact information for all the Core Trade Contractors. LBEs are encouraged to contact Trade Subcontractors to make arrangements for submission of bids. Trade Subcontractors will be directed to outreach and solicit proposals for select Project bid packages from LBE's, for participation in the Project.

During Bidding and Construction Webcor Builders will coordinate and administer HRC / LBE goals, guidelines and procedures:

Policy Intent
CityBuild is an initiative of the Mayor's Office of Economic and Workforce Development (MOEWD), in partnership with other City departments and the Transportation Authority. CityBuild was created to establish a single, responsible and accountable entity to direct construction employment and training efforts across projects and departments. At its core, the purpose of CityBuild is to professionalize the delivery of construction related workforce development activities in the City, to centralize construction hiring activities in one place in the Mayor's Office, to maximize hiring opportunities, make strategic investments of public funds in support of recruitment and training and build greater accountability throughout the system. The end result will be to develop trained, committed men and women to become the construction workforce of the future.

SFGH Workforce

Planning - Forecast the Need
Webcor teams will work to actively forecast apprentice labor needs in addition to calling CityBuild prior to needing apprentice labor. The preconstruction period for SFGH allows the development of a manpower-loaded schedule, forecasting the entry-level openings for each trade. This information can or will then be used to communicate with CityBuild staff the anticipated needs over the lifetime of the project, and allow training programs to focus on providing the right skills at the right times.

Planning - Engage Trades to Shape Training Programs
Webcor's relationships with the subcontracting community and union leadership permit us to bring the right people to the table with CityBuild to help craft the training programs that result in valuable entry-level employees. We have previously made this push for concrete operations; and will work with the Core Trade Contractors and Trade Subcontractors to expand on this program as well.

Planning - Foster Interest in the Program
Just as Webcor currently reaches out to school-age children through the Junior Achievement program, it is now time to reach out to high school students interested in careers in the building trades. This can be achieved through school visits and job-site tours for classes or groups of interested students. These efforts will help to educate students who may not have interest in college, but are also unaware of the rewards of a career within the construction industry. And because the CityBuild program requires a high school diploma or GED equivalent, to some degree we will continue to participate doing our part in the community to encourage kids to stay in school.

Implementation - Prebid Meetings & Bid Criteria
Both the California Academy of Sciences and the New Administration Office Building for the SFPUC projects incorporated the requirements of CityBuild participation into the bid criteria and contracts for subcontractors, with mandatory prebid meetings that included CityBuild representatives. This will continue on San Francisco General Hospital with subcontractors held accountable to participate in the program.

Implementation - Administration
Implementing and managing SFGH Project City Build Program goals and procedure compliance will be the responsibility of Webcor Project Manager Ted Huang. General oversight of the CityBuild program goals will be the responsibility of Webcor Project Director Tolga Acar.

Human Rights Commission