How to hire a public works technician

How to hire a public works technician, step by step

Here's a step-by-step public works technician hiring guide:

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

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1. Identify your hiring needs

   First, determine the employments status of the public works technician you need to hire. Certain public works technician 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

   Hiring the perfect public works technician also involves considering the ideal background you'd like them to have. Depending on what industry or field they have experience in, they'll bring different skills to the job. It's also important to consider what levels of seniority and education the job requires and what kind of salary such a candidate would likely demand.

   Here's a comparison of public works technician salaries for various roles:

   Type of Public Works Technician	Description	Hourly rate
   Public Works Technician	General maintenance and repair workers fix and maintain machines, mechanical equipment, and buildings. They paint, repair flooring, and work on plumbing, electrical, and air-conditioning and heating systems.	$12-32
   Videographer	A videographer specializes in shooting and editing high-definition videos of different events, making them presentable to clients. They are primarily responsible for having their video equipment, coordinating with clients to learn any preferences or particular requests, capturing and recording from the best angle, and producing results quickly and accurately... Show more	$14-29
   Video Coordinator	A video coordinator normally works with sports teams to help them curate video footage of their games and training sessions. One important aspect of their job to travel away with the team for their games... Show more	$11-30

   Show more

2. Create an ideal candidate profile

   Common skills:

   • Social Work
   • Patient Care
   • Water Meters
   • Technical Assistance
   • GIS
   • Autocad
   • Windows
   • Water Lines
   • GPS
   • Mowing
   • Developmental Disabilities
   • Photoshop
   • Data Collection
   • Computer System

   Check all skills

   Responsibilities:

   • Maintain numerous automate scripts to assist in managing Linux systems.
   • Trim trees, lay sod, mowing, service mowers, lay asphalt, cement.
   • Research and purchase GIS and GPS products from Trimble and ESRI with Nikon Wifi cameras for wireless photo integration.
   • Use AutoCad to complete road design, building design work.
   • Repair plumbing fixtures and piping; install plastic, galvanize, and copper piping.
   • Install gas pipes and water lines to connect appliances to existing gas lines and plumbing.

   More public works technician duties

3. Make a budget

   Including a salary range in the public works technician job description is a good way to get more applicants. A public works technician 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 public works technician in Tennessee may be lower than in Pennsylvania, and an entry-level engineer typically earns less than a senior-level public works technician. Additionally, a public works technician with lots of experience in the field may command a higher salary as a result.

   Average public works technician salary

   $43,372yearly

   $20.85 hourly rate

   ---

   Entry-level public works technician salary

   $27,000 yearly salary

   Updated January 31, 2026

   Average public works technician salary by state

   Rank	State	Avg. salary	Hourly rate
   1	Pennsylvania	$52,148	$25
   2	California	$51,814	$25
   3	Illinois	$45,768	$22
   4	Massachusetts	$43,411	$21
   5	Oregon	$42,671	$21
   6	Michigan	$39,016	$19
   7	Minnesota	$37,240	$18
   8	Florida	$37,007	$18
   9	Arizona	$36,464	$18
   10	Iowa	$35,734	$17
   11	Kansas	$35,445	$17
   12	Georgia	$33,587	$16
   13	Oklahoma	$30,206	$15

   Average public works technician salary by company

   Company

   Rank	Company	Average salary	Hourly rate	Job openings
   1	Cenergy International Services	$72,555	$34.88
   2	General Electric	$72,532	$34.87	16
   3	City of Sunny Isles Beach	$51,556	$24.79	2
   4	St Luke's Hospital & Health Network Inc	$44,638	$21.46
   5	City of Alpharetta	$43,833	$21.07
   6	Bryant & Stratton College	$43,277	$20.81
   7	City of Grandview (Missouri)	$42,527	$20.45
   8	Northwestern Medical Center	$42,063	$20.22
   9	City of Stephenville	$42,048	$20.22	1
   10	City of Winston-Salem	$41,386	$19.90	3
   11	City of Iowa City	$41,207	$19.81
   12	City of Boise	$40,953	$19.69	2
   13	City of Ann Arbor	$40,936	$19.68	4
   14	City of West Palm Beach	$40,863	$19.65
   15	Coppell City Hall	$40,842	$19.64
   16	City of Medford	$40,649	$19.54	2
   17	City of Mesa	$39,919	$19.19	2
   18	University of Pennsylvania	$39,847	$19.16	3
   19	Atkore International	$39,230	$18.86	20
   20	Kaiser Permanente	$39,164	$18.83	8

4. Writing a public works technician job description

   A public works technician job description should include a summary of the role, required skills, and a list of responsibilities. It's also good to include a salary range and the first name of the hiring manager. To help get you started, here's an example of a public works technician job description:

   Public works technician job description example

   This position is considered a Safety-Sensitive position. Applicants who pass the interview process will be subject to drug and alcohol testing.
   This purpose of this position is to provide manual labor for the assigned division within the City.
   
   EXAMPLES OF ESSENTIAL DUTIES
   
   Essential Functions:
   
   * Safely performs extreme physical labor for extended periods. Work is performed outdoors under all weather conditions.
   * Trims grass, removes branches, and picks up litter in right of ways and medians around the City.
   * Works on construction and road repair crews; drives manual and automatic single axel dump trucks; picks up loads of gravel, binder, or topping; drives to landfill to dump construction debris.
   * Signals dump truck drivers for dumping gravel or hot mix, operates come-along and loop to smooth gravel and hot mix; operates packer or roller to smooth gravel and hot mix.
   * Operates concrete saw to cut out trouble spots in road and sidewalks.
   * Operates paving saw, packer, jack hammer, rakes, shovels, and push broom.
   * Loads and unloads materials such as dirt, asphalt, salt, storm drain pipes, and sign materials.
   * Removes and replaces manhole covers which can weigh up to 165 pounds.
   * Climbs in and out of manholes which can be up to 10 feet deep.
   * Ascends and descends ladders up to 24 feet high.
   * Manipulates both large and small tool parts.
   * Runs maps when weather does not allow for normal job duties; checks for problems with street drainage, road failures, street signs, and vegetation obstruction of street signs.
   * Cleans and maintains all equipment, tools, and vehicles.
   * Responsible for snow and ice removal, salts roads and walkways as needed.
   * Respond to natural disasters.
   * Participates in on-call and standby duties, which involves working alone or with co-workers at night, weekends, and holidays to resolve situations that occur after normal business hours.
   * Performs other work as assigned.
   
   Physical Demands:
   
   * Refer to Essential Functions Addendum #3.

   Copy this example

   

5. Post your job

   To find public works technicians for your business, try out a few different recruiting strategies:

   • Consider internal talent. One of the most important talent pools for any company is its current employees.
   • Ask for referrals. Reach out to friends, family members, and your current work to ask if they know any public works technicians they would recommend.
   • Recruit at local colleges. Attend job fairs at local colleges to recruit entry-level public works technicians with the right educational background.
   • Social media platforms. LinkedIn, Facebook, and Twitter have more than 3.5 billion users, and they're a great place for company branding and reaching potential job candidates.

   Post your job online:

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

6. Interview candidates

   Recruiting public works technicians 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.

   You should also ask about candidates' unique skills and talents to see if they match the ideal candidate profile you developed earlier. Candidates good enough for the next step can complete 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 public works technician

   Once you've selected the best public works technician candidate for the job, it's time to write an offer letter. In addition to salary, this letter should include details about the benefits and perks you offer the candidate. Ensuring that your offer is competitive is essential, as qualified candidates may be considering other job opportunities. The candidate may wish to negotiate the terms of the offer, and you should be open to discussion. After you reach an agreement, the final step is formalizing the agreement with a contract.

   It's also important to follow up with applicants who do not get the job with an email letting them know that the position is filled.

   Once that's done, you can draft an onboarding schedule for the new public works technician. 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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