ontractor Qualifications - Contractor Employees Assigned to Watts Bar Nuclear Plant Unit 2 Construction Project

We reviewed the qualifications for contractor and subcontractor employees working on the Watts Bar Nuclear Plant Unit 2 (WBN U2) construction project to assess the hiring process and determine if those hired met minimal qualifications for their designated labor category (grades). We determined: TVA's engineering, procurement, and construction contract did not include minimum requirements for the 20 specified labor categories; moreover, the contractor lacked corporate criteria specifying minimum requirements for filling these positions at WBN U2. To establish the hiring requirements for positions to be filled for the WBN U2 project, the contractor relied on the job requisition process, resulting in varying and inconsistent minimum requirements for these positions. Requirements established through this requisitions process were sometimes not met. For example, when we compared employee qualifications to requirements in the associated job requisitions, we found 8 of the 56 individuals reviewed, or 14.3 percent, did not meet the requirements outlined in the requisitions. However, when questioned, the contractor provided explanation and asserted that all individuals were qualified for the work being performed. We recommended the Vice President, WBN U2, Nuclear Generation, Development and Construction, in conjunction with the contractor Project Director (1) require that job requisitions include minimum requirements for each position and the requirements be reviewed and approved by the contractor's Human Resource personnel to ensure consistency among job classifications and eliminate errors and document the rationale for hiring any candidate not meeting the minimum requirements but who is deemed qualified for the position; (2) evaluate the qualifications of the employees not meeting the qualifications in the job requisitions to determine if they are qualified to perform the assigned work; and (3) take steps to ensure resumes are thoroughly reviewed, and identified discrepancies are resolved prior to individuals being hired. Summary Only