How to hire a keeper

How to hire a keeper, step by step

Here's a step-by-step keeper hiring guide:

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

What does a keeper do?

Post a keeper job for free, promote it for a fee

Post free

1. Identify your hiring needs

   First, determine the employments status of the keeper you need to hire. Certain keeper roles might require a full-time employee, whereas others can be done by part-time workers or contractors.

   Determine employee vs contractor status

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

   Yes

   No

   A keeper's background is also an important factor in determining whether they'll be a good fit for the position. For example, keepers from different industries or fields will have radically different experiences and will bring different viewpoints to the role. You also need to consider the candidate's previous level of experience to make sure they'll be comfortable with the job's level of seniority.

   The following list breaks down different types of keepers and their corresponding salaries.

   Type of Keeper	Description	Hourly rate
   Keeper	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.	$11-23
   Irrigation Technician	An irrigation technician is responsible for installing, testing, and maintaining irrigation equipment such as sprinklers, suction valves, and pumps. Typical duties for this position include operating heavy machinery for trenching, installing wiring systems for irrigation timers, and inspecting equipment for a day's work... Show more	$12-21
   Ground Crew	Ground crews, also known as ground staff, are personnel that work at the airport. These crews are either avionics technicians, customer service and ramp agents, or flight dispatchers... Show more	$12-19

   Show more

2. Create an ideal candidate profile

   Common skills:

   • Guest Rooms
   • Animal Husbandry
   • Purchase Orders
   • Computer System
   • Inventory Control
   • Customer Orders
   • Medical Procedures
   • Diet Preparation
   • Coats
   • RAN
   • Medication Reminders
   • Cycle Counts
   • Animal Training
   • Mowing

   Check all skills

   Responsibilities:

   • Record statistics of players and run the game clock.
   • Work with both African and Asian species of elephants.
   • Participate in USDA and AZA inspections and make corrections as needed.
   • Wash and sanitize dirty dishes by hand and by using a dishwasher
   • Assist in lab coat department administering lab coats and scrub sets to hospital personnel.
   • Assist with the maintenance of vary size lawns mowing, seeding, weeding, and trimming lawns.

   More keeper duties

3. Make a budget

   Including a salary range in your keeper job description helps attract top candidates to the position. A keeper salary can be affected by several factors, such as geography, experience, seniority, certifications, and the prestige of the hiring company.

   For example, the average salary for a keeper in Oklahoma may be lower than in Hawaii, and an entry-level keeper usually earns less than a senior-level keeper. Additionally, a keeper with certifications may command a higher salary, and working for a well-known company or start-up may also impact an employee's pay.

   Average keeper salary

   $16.16hourly

   $33,606 yearly

   ---

   Entry-level keeper salary

   $23,000 yearly salary

   Updated December 11, 2025

   Average keeper salary by state

   Rank	State	Avg. salary	Hourly rate
   1	California	$38,880	$19
   2	Indiana	$37,130	$18
   3	Alaska	$36,856	$18
   4	Connecticut	$36,761	$18
   5	New York	$35,933	$17
   6	Ohio	$34,335	$17
   7	Oregon	$34,070	$16
   8	Missouri	$33,285	$16
   9	Pennsylvania	$33,003	$16
   10	Nebraska	$32,348	$16
   11	Nevada	$32,170	$15
   12	Colorado	$31,723	$15
   13	Virginia	$31,616	$15
   14	Arizona	$31,412	$15
   15	Texas	$30,459	$15
   16	North Carolina	$30,432	$15
   17	Florida	$29,565	$14
   18	Georgia	$29,469	$14
   19	South Carolina	$29,180	$14
   20	Louisiana	$28,973	$14

   Average keeper salary by company

   Company

   Rank	Company	Average salary	Hourly rate	Job openings
   1	The Boston Beer Company	$45,884	$22.06
   2	Saint-Gobain	$41,328	$19.87
   3	Domino's Pizza	$38,027	$18.28
   4	Berry Global	$37,134	$17.85
   5	Palace Entertainment	$36,901	$17.74
   6	SRC Logistics	$36,151	$17.38
   7	SRC Holdings	$35,715	$17.17
   8	SheerID	$35,505	$17.07
   9	Orica Limited	$35,505	$17.07
   10	JetStream Ground Services	$35,505	$17.07
   11	Kering Americas Inc	$35,505	$17.07
   12	BioDigital	$35,490	$17.06	2
   13	Lytics	$35,437	$17.04
   14	Americorps	$35,033	$16.84	1
   15	Westside	$34,975	$16.81
   16	Xanterra	$33,137	$15.93	1
   17	Ahmad, Zavitsanos, Anaipakos, Alavi & Mensing P.c. Or Aza	$31,732	$15.26	30
   18	Comfort Keepers	$30,504	$14.67	2
   19	Broward County Public Schools	$30,450	$14.64
   20	Audubon Nature Institute	$29,471	$14.17	1

4. Writing a keeper job description

   A good keeper job description should include a few things:

   • Summary of the role
   • List of responsibilities
   • Required skills and experience

   Including a salary range and the first name of the hiring manager is also appreciated by candidates. Here's an example of a keeper job description:

   Keeper job description example

   The Career Potential
   
   Ortho Clinical Diagnostics is committed to improving and saving lives with diagnostics. To do this we hire people who share this dream and are ready for new adventures. As a valued team member, you will carve your own career path and be part of building this company stronger and better than ever before. There is no limit to the experiences, opportunities and new directions you will have access to here at Ortho Clinical Diagnostics. More importantly, you will be driving the surge of a whole new direction in important medicine. That's something we can all take pride in as we take this journey together.
   
   Ortho is known in the industry as a leader in customer service and support. Deeply understanding and exceeding the needs of our clinical lab, hospital and blood bank customers is what we do. It's who we are. If you join Ortho, no matter what your role, you will be expected to keep that Customer Excellence focus in your work.
   
   The Opportunity
   
   As the company continues to grow we are seeking a Stock Keeper II/ Receiving Coordinator for our Rochester Warehouse and Building 313. The Stock Keeper II /Receiving Coordinator will be responsible to perform a variety of duties to receive, distribute, assemble and store incoming materials, products, supplies and equipment into storage or user departments. Unloads and loads delivery trucks at multiple docks. Operates material handling equipment (dollies, pallet jack, forklift). Organizes and performs shipping of finished goods. Strong independent judgment to process a high volume of goods and supplies including unpacking, verifying, labeling and distributing to appropriate locations. Organizes and sets up trucking schedule for multiple buildings. Creates and maintains records for Temp Tales used in shipping. Reviews orders and pulls items needed to fill trucks. Maintains and verifies tracking records for supplies received and dispensed. Records location information in appropriate log. Leads inventory audits and submits audit data to supervisor. Exercises extreme care in handling storing and disposing of hazardous and nonhazardous material in compliance with company policy and regulatory requirements. Performs general housekeeping duties such as sweeping, disposing of packing materials and garbage, and other related tasks.
   
   The Responsibilities
   
   The Stock Keeper will be responsible to perform a variety of duties
   Receive, distribute, assemble and store incoming materials, products, supplies and equipment into storage or user departments.Unload and load delivery trucks at multiple docks.Operate material handling equipment (dollies, pallet jack, forklift).Organize incoming products for verification against shipping documentation.Process a high volume of goods and supplies including unpacking, verifying, labeling and distributing to appropriate locations.Review orders and pull items needed to fill each order.Maintain and verify tracking records for supplies received and dispensed.Record location information in appropriate log.Assists in inventory audits.Performs general housekeeping duties such as sweeping, disposing of packing materials and garbage, and other related tasks as needed.
   
   The Individual
   
   High School Diploma or equivalent0-2 years experience in operations/manufacturing/warehouse environment.Experience with SAP product management system strongly preferred.Basic computer skills (MS Office).Ability to read and write English.Strong attention to detail.Troubleshooting skills.Able to lift up to 50lbs and use force to pull or push up to 800lbs on devices with wheels.Ability to work multiple shifts and overtime and weekends as needed to meet production requirements.Visual acuity, intermediate math and computational skills and solving of equations and use of scales and gauges.
   
   EOE/AA Disability/Veteran

   Copy this example

   

5. Post your job

   There are a few common ways to find keepers for your business:

   • Promoting internally or recruiting from your existing workforce.
   • Ask for referrals from friends, family members, and current employees.
   • Attend job fairs at local colleges to meet candidates with the right educational background.
   • Use social media platforms like LinkedIn, Facebook, and Twitter to recruit passive job-seekers.

   Post your job online:

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

6. Interview candidates

   Recruiting keepers requires you to bring your A-game to the interview process. The first interview should introduce the company and the role to the candidate as much as they present their background experience and reasons for applying for the job. During later interviews, you can go into more detail about the technical details of the job and ask behavioral questions to gauge how they'd fit into your current company culture.

   It's also good to ask about candidates' unique skills and talents. You can move on to the technical interview if a candidate is good enough for the next step.

   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 keeper

   Once you have selected a candidate for the keeper position, it is time to create an offer letter. In addition to salary, the offer letter should include details about benefits and perks that are available to the employee. Ensuring your offer is competitive is vital, as qualified candidates may be considering other job opportunities. The candidate may wish to negotiate the terms of the offer, and it is important to be open to discussion and reach a mutually beneficial agreement. After the offer has been accepted, it is a good idea to formalize the 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.

   Once that's done, you can draft an onboarding schedule for the new keeper. Human Resources should complete Employee Action Forms and ensure that onboarding paperwork is completed, including I-9s, benefits enrollment, federal and state tax forms, etc. They should also ensure that new employee files are created for internal recordkeeping.

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 keeper?