How to hire a ground crew

How to hire a ground crew, step by step

Here's a step-by-step ground crew hiring guide:

• Step 1: Identify your hiring needs
• Step 2: Create an ideal candidate profile
• Step 3: Make a budget
• Step 4: Write a ground crew job description
• Step 5: Post your job
• Step 6: Interview candidates
• Step 7: Send a job offer and onboard your new ground crew
• Step 8: Go through the hiring process checklist

What does a ground crew do?

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1. Identify your hiring needs

   Before you post your ground crew job, you should take the time to determine what type of worker your business needs. While certain jobs definitely require a full-time employee, it's sometimes better to find a ground crew for hire on a part-time basis or as a contractor.

   Determine employee vs contractor status

   Is the person you're thinking of hiring a US citizen or green card holder?

   Yes

   No

   You should also consider the ideal background you'd like them a ground crew to have before you start to hire. For example, what industry or field would you like them to have experience in, what level of seniority or education does the job require, and how much it'll cost to hire a ground crew that fits the bill.

   This list presents ground crew salaries for various positions.

   Type of Ground Crew	Description	Hourly rate
   Ground Crew	Grounds maintenance workers ensure that the grounds of houses, businesses, and parks are attractive, orderly, and healthy in order to provide a pleasant outdoor environment.	$12-19
   Keeper	A storekeeper is responsible for managing all a store's operations and overseeing the care and maintenance of stocks, including inventory management. Your duties will include receiving, unloading, and shelving supplies, inspecting deliveries for discrepancies and damage, and managing all documentation... Show more	$11-23
   Landscape Labour	When it comes to landscape labor, one of the primary responsibilities is to perform landscape support tasks such as trimming the lawn, digging holes, planting flowers and trees, placing garden designs, and installing devices such as sprinkler systems. The majority of the tasks require physical work; there are instances where they must create structures such as ponds, fences, borders, patios, and other outdoor features... Show more	$11-17

   Show more

2. Create an ideal candidate profile

   Common skills:

   • Mowing
   • GRASS
   • Snow Removal
   • Safety Procedures
   • General Upkeep
   • Fairways
   • Mowers
   • Blowers
   • Manual Labor
   • Rakes
   • Course Maintenance
   • Dump Truck
   • Grounds Maintenance
   • Lawn Care

   Check all skills

   Responsibilities:

   • Manage the maintenance for all generators: small Honda 4000 and Onan 6500K's.
   • Used hand saws and hand pruners as well as motorized saws to manage tree cuttings on the ground.
   • Used rakes, shovels, pruning saws, brush trimmers, axes, and other equipment.
   • Collect debris and refuge from tree trimming and removal operations into piles using shovels, rakes, and other tools.
   • Use landscape tools-rakes, shovels, and shrub pruners.
   • Synchronize missile defense operations within NATO's southern region.

   More ground crew duties

3. Make a budget

   Including a salary range in the ground crew job description is a good way to get more applicants. A ground crew salary can be affected by several factors, such as the location of the job, the level of experience, education, certifications, and the employer's prestige.

   For example, the average salary for a ground crew in North Carolina may be lower than in Massachusetts, and an entry-level engineer typically earns less than a senior-level ground crew. Additionally, a ground crew with lots of experience in the field may command a higher salary as a result.

   Average ground crew salary

   $16.05hourly

   $33,390 yearly

   ---

   Entry-level ground crew salary

   $26,000 yearly salary

   Updated January 21, 2026

   Average ground crew salary by state

   Rank	State	Avg. salary	Hourly rate
   1	Alaska	$42,403	$20
   2	Washington	$41,013	$20
   3	New York	$40,988	$20
   4	Oregon	$39,188	$19
   5	California	$38,493	$19
   6	Illinois	$38,008	$18
   7	Michigan	$36,694	$18
   8	Ohio	$36,608	$18
   9	Colorado	$35,395	$17
   10	Idaho	$35,079	$17
   11	Minnesota	$34,739	$17
   12	Indiana	$34,504	$17
   13	District of Columbia	$34,455	$17
   14	Texas	$34,102	$16
   15	Pennsylvania	$33,398	$16
   16	Maryland	$33,366	$16
   17	South Carolina	$30,539	$15
   18	Florida	$29,254	$14
   19	North Carolina	$29,172	$14
   20	Arkansas	$28,797	$14

   Average ground crew salary by company

   Company

   Rank	Company	Average salary	Hourly rate	Job openings
   1	Elcona Pro Shop	$41,735	$20.06
   2	AEG	$40,054	$19.26	7
   3	Loyola University Maryland	$39,298	$18.89
   4	Golden Sands General Contractors	$38,301	$18.41
   5	Robbinsdale Area Schools	$38,218	$18.37	2
   6	Worcester Academy	$37,605	$18.08
   7	Ilitch Holdings	$37,271	$17.92	2
   8	Hayden & Associates Inc.	$37,208	$17.89	3
   9	UFP Industries	$36,580	$17.59	6
   10	Hollywood Park Casino	$36,370	$17.49
   11	Washington County	$35,132	$16.89	1
   12	Fallon	$34,979	$16.82
   13	MyrtleBeach.com	$34,712	$16.69
   14	St Joseph Medical Group	$34,669	$16.67
   15	Cleveland Indians Baseball Company Limited Partnership	$34,504	$16.59	1
   16	Landscapes Unlimited	$34,340	$16.51
   17	Advance Holding Corporation	$34,340	$16.51
   18	Scioto Services Llc	$34,336	$16.51	1
   19	Ball Horticultural	$34,302	$16.49
   20	Denali Water Solutions	$34,103	$16.40

4. Writing a ground crew job description

   A job description for a ground crew role includes a summary of the job's main responsibilities, required skills, and preferred background experience. Including a salary range can also go a long way in attracting more candidates to apply, and showing the first name of the hiring manager can also make applicants more comfortable. As an example, here's a ground crew job description:

   Ground crew job description example

   Dallas Country Club is currently seeking qualified individuals for the Golf Course Greens & Grounds Crew positions. DCC, founded in 1896, is the most exclusive and prestigious private club in the area and we pride ourselves on hiring the best of the best

   This position is an entry level, crew member position. Under the direction of the Superintendent and/or the Assistant Superintendent, the selected candidate will be responsible for the maintenance of grass, trees, shrubs, sod, foliage and flowers. In addition, the selected candidate will assist in project work in accordance with his experience and or level of training, as well as performing other duties as directed by the respective supervisor.

   Please keep in mind that this position entails working outdoors, often times in severe, inclement weather conditions.

   Overtime may be available and/or required most weeks

   Requirements:

   • Able to lift up to 80 pounds
   • The ability to stand for long periods of time
   • Able to perform tasks while bending, twisting, kneeling, walking
   • Must have reliable transportation
   • Must clear a pre-employment drug screen and background
   • Must provide employment eligibility
   • Ability to work Monday through Friday, every Saturday and every other Sunday

   Job Duties:

   • Operates mowers and string trimmers in trimming greens, aprons, tees, around trees, fence lines, banks and hillsides; edges cart paths, edges, rakes and maintains sand bunkers.

   · Sets tee markers and cups on greens daily; maintains ball washers; replaces tee towels and flags when needed; removes debris; sands and seeds tee and drop area divots; and clean flower beds.

   · Maintains fuel and fluid levels for all types of equipment on a daily basis; reports equipment problems or failure to the equipment manager immediately.

   · Returns all equipment to the designated location at the maintenance facility; and cleans the maintenance areas.

   · Waters and fertilizes tees, greens and fairways, and under direct supervision of a certified applicator, sprays chemicals on landscape areas.

   · Under the direction of the superintendent or assistant superintendent, the groundskeeper marks the course for cart control weekly; moves cart control barriers and replaces worn, or lost ropes and signs; and may mark hazard and drop areas.

   · Assists in project work; assists in the construction of new greens, tees and fairways; grades and prepares soil base; lays sod; and seeds trees, greens and fairways.

   · Installs forms and lays walks and paths using gravel and asphalt mixes; excavates and backfills ditches and trenches with hand tools; repairs and replaces pipe on irrigation systems.

   · May be asked to operate mowers, dump trucks or other light equipment.

   · Performs other duties as directed by his / her supervisor.

   
   

   Copy this example

   

5. Post your job

   There are various strategies that you can use to find the right ground crew for your business:

   • Consider promoting from within or recruiting from your existing workforce.
   • Ask for referrals from friends, family members, and current employees.
   • Attend job fairs at local colleges to find candidates who meet your education requirements.
   • Use social media platforms like LinkedIn, Facebook, and Twitter to reach potential job candidates.

   Post your job online:

   • Post your ground crew job on Zippia to find and recruit ground crew candidates who meet your exact specifications.
   • Use field-specific websites.
   • Post a job on free websites.

6. Interview candidates

   Your first interview with ground crew candidates should focus on their interest in the role and background experience. As the hiring process goes on, you can learn more about how they'd fit into the company culture in later rounds of interviews.

   Remember to include a few questions that allow candidates to expand on their strengths in their own words. Asking about their unique skills might reveal things you'd miss otherwise. At this point, good candidates can move on to the technical interview.

   The right interview questions can help you assess a candidate's hard skills, behavioral intelligence, and soft skills.

7. Send a job offer and onboard your new ground crew

   Once you've decided on a perfect ground crew candidate, it's time to write an offer letter. In addition to salary, it should include benefits and perks available to the employee. Qualified candidates may be considered for other positions, so make sure your offer is competitive. Candidates may wish to negotiate. Once you've settled on the details, formalize your agreement with a contract.

   It's also good etiquette to follow up with applicants who don't get the job by sending them an email letting them know that the position has been filled.

   To prepare for the new ground crew first day, you should share an onboarding schedule with them that covers their first period on the job. You should also quickly complete any necessary paperwork, such as employee action forms and onboarding documents like I-9, benefits enrollment, and federal and state tax forms. Finally, Human Resources must ensure a new employee file is created for internal record keeping.

8. Go through the hiring process checklist

   • Determine employee type (full-time, part-time, contractor, etc.)
   • Submit a job requisition form to the HR department
   • Define job responsibilities and requirements
   • Establish budget and timeline
   • Determine hiring decision makers for the role
   • Write job description
   • Post job on job boards, company website, etc.
   • Promote the job internally
   • Process applications through applicant tracking system
   • Review resumes and cover letters
   • Shortlist candidates for screening
   • Hold phone/virtual interview screening with first round of candidates
   • Conduct in-person interviews with top candidates from first round
   • Score candidates based on weighted criteria (e.g., experience, education, background, cultural fit, skill set, etc.)
   • Conduct background checks on top candidates
   • Check references of top candidates
   • Consult with HR and hiring decision makers on job offer specifics
   • Extend offer to top candidate(s)
   • Receive formal job offer acceptance and signed employment contract
   • Inform other candidates that the position has been filled
   • Set and communicate onboarding schedule to new hire(s)
   • Complete new hire paperwork (i9, benefits enrollment, tax forms, etc.)

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How much does it cost to hire a ground crew?