What does a sanitation worker do?
A sanitation worker is employed to carry out valuable community tasks like garbage collection, hauling, and disposal. Sanitation workers take responsibility for the cleanliness and maintenance of the community. They ride or drive garbage trucks to collect trash from businesses and residents every day. They may work within companies as well following their respective corporate policies. One can become a sanitation worker if they have a college degree, high school degree, or any relevant job experience.
Sanitation worker responsibilities
Here are examples of responsibilities from real sanitation worker resumes:
- Operate a forklift for logistic, to manage and relocate BMW's fixture material.
- Use power equipment such as floor sweepers, vacuums, scrubbers, mops, power washers.
- Maintain cleanliness of entire facility according to OSHA and FDA regulations
- Drive heavy equipment with CDL'S.
- Train on (loto) lockout tag out
- Landscape work including edging, mulching and mowing.
- Clean all production areas according to SQF regulations.
- Ensure that all health and safety guidelines are followed with GMP compliance.
- Operate hand tools such as pickers, brooms, rakes and shovels.
- Wash all bins, shovels and other used utensils for later use.
- Work closely with all business units to ensure SQF / MCS compliance.
- Maintain a working knowledge of equipment, proper LOTO procedure for machinery.
- Provide excellent home sanitization, pet care and run errands for clients.
- Maintain an environment in the food processing area that complies with FDA guidelines.
- Disassemble machines, sanitize, foam rinse and reassemble production lines for use.
Sanitation worker skills and personality traits
We calculated that 14% of Sanitation Workers are proficient in Cleanliness, Pallet Jack, and Food Safety. They’re also known for soft skills such as Interpersonal skills, Mechanical skills, and Time-management skills.
We break down the percentage of Sanitation Workers that have these skills listed on their resume here:
- Cleanliness, 14%
Maintained cleanliness and sanitary conditions on bakery grounds* Cleaned bakery ovens and stations* Obtained company provided forklift certification
- Pallet Jack, 13%
Experienced in operating Electric Ride-on Pallet Jacks and other industrial equipment.
- Food Safety, 11%
Disassembled equipment to properly clean and sanitize following food safety guidelines and regulations.
- Safety Standards, 9%
Collected and organized materials for recycling, while adhering to all sanitation facility safety standards.
- Production Equipment, 5%
Job duties included working independently and managing time wisely, ensuring proper sanitation of production equipment and surrounding areas.
- Safety Procedures, 4%
Followed all standard safety procedures to ensure a safe work environment, while preparing and handling sanitation equipment
Most sanitation workers use their skills in "cleanliness," "pallet jack," and "food safety" to do their jobs. You can find more detail on essential sanitation worker responsibilities here:
Interpersonal skills. The most essential soft skill for a sanitation worker to carry out their responsibilities is interpersonal skills. This skill is important for the role because "janitors and building cleaners must interact well other cleaners and the people who live or work in the buildings they service." Additionally, a sanitation worker resume shows how their duties depend on interpersonal skills: "gathered carts for customers, assisted store management with customer service, utilized interpersonal skills to deal with the public. "
Mechanical skills. Another essential skill to perform sanitation worker duties is mechanical skills. Sanitation workers responsibilities require that "janitors and building cleaners need to understand general building operations and should be able to make routine repairs, such as to leaky faucets." Sanitation workers also use mechanical skills in their role according to a real resume snippet: "operated mechanical brooms, cleaned vacate lots, and performed snow removal via front-end loaders, dump trucks, and plows. "
Time-management skills. This is an important skill for sanitation workers to perform their duties. For an example of how sanitation worker responsibilities depend on this skill, consider that "janitors and building cleaners must plan and complete tasks in a timely manner." This excerpt from a resume also shows how vital it is to everyday roles and responsibilities of a sanitation worker: "strive to meet all deadlines and maintain strict safety regulations. ".
Physical strength. For certain sanitation worker responsibilities to be completed, the job requires competence in "physical strength." The day-to-day duties of a sanitation worker rely on this skill, as "janitors and building cleaners often must lift and move heavy cleaning materials and equipment." For example, this snippet was taken directly from a resume about how this skill applies to what sanitation workers do: "cleaned meat cutting machines with high pressure hot water hoses and industrial strength chemicals. "
The three companies that hire the most sanitation workers are:
- McLane37 sanitation workers jobs
- Parallel LLC30 sanitation workers jobs
- US Foods21 sanitation workers jobs
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Compare different sanitation workers
Sanitation worker vs. Carpet technician
A floor technician's role is to maintain the cleanliness and sanitation of various areas within an establishment. Their responsibilities include operating cleaning equipment, conducting minimal repairs and inventory checks, arranging furniture and fixtures, organizing supplies, and keeping floors free from obstructions. There are also instances where they must replenish soap or tissue dispensers, use strong chemicals, and even dispose of hazardous waste. Furthermore, a floor technician follows directives from managers or supervisors, reporting to them should there be any issues.
These skill sets are where the common ground ends though. The responsibilities of a sanitation worker are more likely to require skills like "cleanliness," "pallet jack," "food safety," and "safety standards." On the other hand, a job as a carpet technician requires skills like "upholstery," "customer service," "clean carpets," and "carpet care." As you can see, what employees do in each career varies considerably.
Carpet technicians tend to reach similar levels of education than sanitation workers. In fact, carpet technicians are 0.3% more likely to graduate with a Master's Degree and 0.1% more likely to have a Doctoral Degree.Sanitation worker vs. Floor technician
A custodian, also referred to as janitor, is responsible for maintaining cleanliness and helping protect all facilities. Custodians make sure everything is clean, neat, in order, and free from clutter and safe. They perform routine maintenance tasks and heavy cleaning duties. They do everyday things to sweep floors, mop, scrub, vacuum, collect and empty trash, dust furniture, walls, and equipment. They mix solutions and chemicals in containers based on proportions for disinfecting windows, mirrors, and other partitions requiring cleaning. Some also do minor building maintenance and light repairs, while others are exposed to biohazardous materials.
While some skills are similar in these professions, other skills aren't so similar. For example, resumes show us that sanitation worker responsibilities requires skills like "pallet jack," "food safety," "safety standards," and "production equipment." But a floor technician might use other skills in their typical duties, such as, "extraction," "patients," "safety guidelines," and "safety precautions."
Floor technicians earn a lower average salary than sanitation workers. But floor technicians earn the highest pay in the health care industry, with an average salary of $31,091. Additionally, sanitation workers earn the highest salaries in the government with average pay of $38,278 annually.floor technicians earn similar levels of education than sanitation workers in general. They're 0.5% more likely to graduate with a Master's Degree and 0.1% less likely to earn a Doctoral Degree.Sanitation worker vs. Custodian
A floor care specialist is in charge of the maintenance of floors in public or private establishments. They typically ensure the cleanliness of floors by sweeping, dry and wet mopping, disinfecting areas, extracting or sanitizing carpets, vacuuming, and scrubbing bathroom floors. They may also participate in installing or refinishing floor tiles, preparing facilities, and re-arranging furniture. Moreover, a floor care specialist must maintain the cleanliness of floors while maintaining an active communication line with co-workers and managers for a smooth and efficient workflow.
There are many key differences between these two careers, including some of the skills required to perform responsibilities within each role. For example, a sanitation worker is likely to be skilled in "pallet jack," "food safety," "safety standards," and "production equipment," while a typical custodian is skilled in "work ethic," "customer service," "minor maintenance," and "ladders."
Custodians earn the best pay in the education industry, where they command an average salary of $31,075. Sanitation workers earn the highest pay from the government industry, with an average salary of $38,278.custodians typically earn similar educational levels compared to sanitation workers. Specifically, they're 1.0% more likely to graduate with a Master's Degree, and 0.0% more likely to earn a Doctoral Degree.Sanitation worker vs. Floor care specialist
Types of sanitation worker
Updated January 8, 2025
