Maintenance Worker

Pierce County; Tacoma (WA); On-site; USD 45,000 - 65,000; Full time

Job summary

Pierce County is seeking a Maintenance Worker to join the Maintenance & Operations Team within the Planning and Public Works Department. You will perform a variety of maintenance tasks across roads, surface water areas, and facilities, including flagging, repairs to roadways and culverts, debris pickup, and landscaping along rights-of-way.

The role requires a valid driver’s license, a safe driving record, and physical stamina for work in all weather.

Qualifications

• One or more years of experience performing skilled or semi-skilled labor such as road maintenance, landscaping, or heavy construction.

Responsibilities

• Perform repairs to roadways, roadway shoulders and related structures such as bridges, guard rails and guard rail posts; install and remove culverts; pick up rubbish, debris and dead animals; clean ditches and culverts by using a hand shovel; sweep bridges and traffic islands.
• Cut brush, trees and other vegetation on the right of way; assist in the landscaping of County road rights-of-way and in the planting and maintenance of a variety of ground cover, plants and trees.
• Perform preventive maintenance on equipment and hand tools; paint, replace and repair guard rail posts and beams; fabricate and paint sign posts, barricades and buildings with a brush, roller or spray gun.
• Square and clean holes in the roadway and knock off rough edges with a pneumatic hammer or other tools and patch with Portland cement concrete, or hot or cold asphalt mix.
• Perform routine road maintenance such as brushing, cleaning culverts, cleaning ditches with a hand shovel or scoop, blading, reshaping and improving shoulders and clearing debris from the roadway surface and right-of-way.
• Excavate and back fills trenches with hand tools; load and unload trucks with heavy materials; shovels asphalt, cinders, rocks, sand and gravel; spreads and rakes asphalt.
• May operate Class I equipment on a regular basis.
• Act as flagger, place traffic cones and other traffic control devices to ensure a smooth flow of traffic.

Job description

Why It's a Great Opportunity:Start a great career with Pierce County as a Maintenance Worker on the Maintenance & Operations Team in our Planning and Public Works Department. You will be performing various maintenance functions across Pierce County on roads, surface water areas, and facilities. These tasks will include flagging, performing repairs to roadways, roadway shoulders and related structures, installing and removing culverts, picking up debris, and dead animal removal from roadways. The work will also include cutting brush, trees, and other vegetation in the areas of right of way, ponds, and flood control facilities to assist in the landscaping upkeep of various County roads and properties.

Why It's a Great Department:PPW stewards a healthy and vibrant community by collaboratively planning and investing in our people, infrastructure, systems, and policies. PPW’s team has more than 800 members that collaborate, innovate and inspire in performing essential services to the community. The department is responsible for the County road and levee systems, sewer systems, airports, ferries, building permits, environmental review, sustainability, community planning, and code enforcement - just to name a few!

Learn more about Planning and Public Works here.

How to be Successful in the Role:Your success will come from showing up on time, caring about the quality of the work you do, functioning well in a team, an eye for detail, desire to learn, and growing your skills. This is a physical job in all kinds of weather, so it takes strength and commitment to be successful. This position requires daily driving of a Pierce County vehicle therefore a safe driving record is a must.

Your Future in this Role:You will have access to professional development through robust online learning and other training opportunities throughout your career to ensure your success. This position has multiple career growth and promotional opportunities in Pierce County to build on a great career while directly impacting the communities in Pierce County.

Core Daily Responsibilities:

• Perform repairs to roadways, roadway shoulders and related structures such as bridges, guard rails and guard rail posts; install and remove culverts; pick up rubbish, debris and dead animals; clean ditches and culverts by using a hand shovel; sweep bridges and traffic islands.
• Cut brush, trees and other vegetation on the right of way; assist in the landscaping of County road rights-of-way and in the planting and maintenance of a variety of ground cover, plants and trees. Plant, transplant, trim, prune, weed, sow seeds, fertilize, mulch, collect and dispose of litter, stakes, and waters landscaped areas; trim and mow grass.
• Perform preventive maintenance on equipment and hand tools; paint, replace and repair guard rail posts and beams; fabricate and paint sign posts, barricades and buildings with a brush, roller or spray gun.
• Square and clean holes in the roadway and knock off rough edges with a pneumatic hammer or other tools and patch with Portland cement concrete, or hot or cold asphalt mix.
• Perform routine road maintenance such as brushing, cleaning culverts, cleaning ditches with a hand shovel or scoop, blading, reshaping and improving shoulders and clearing debris from the roadway surface and right-of-way. Maintenance includes grading, snow clearing and removal, hauling gravel, rock and asphalt oil, as well as sanding and salting ice and snow.
• Excavate and back fills trenches with hand tools; load and unload trucks with heavy materials; shovels asphalt, cinders, rocks, sand and gravel; spreads and rakes asphalt.
• May operate Class I equipment on a regular basis.
• Act as flagger, place traffic cones and other traffic control devices to ensure a smooth flow of traffic.

A classification description with a more detailed list of essential functions can be found here.

• One or more years of experience performing skilled or semi-skilled labor such as road maintenance, landscaping, or heavy construction.
• Possession of a valid Driver's License and a safe driving record is required.
• Satisfactory physical condition, as determined by a County-approved physical examination, will be required prior to appointment.

As a condition of employment, the applicant will need to authorize and complete a background check. Information received from the background check is reviewed case-by-case and will not necessarily remove an applicant from consideration.

Our Recruitment Practices: This is a competitive and meritorious selection process. Pierce County applications are reviewed by human hiring staff in accordance with the qualifications listed for the position. Pierce County understands applicants may use AI tools when preparing application materials. We recognize these tools can make the process easier; however, we ask that everything you submit genuinely reflects your own experience, skills, knowledge, and writing style.

During the interview process, you may be asked to demonstrate your skills, including writing and subject knowledge, and to speak to your experience in your own voice. Applicants should be prepared to respond to interview questions without relying on AI-generated responses or reading prepared answers from a screen. Any misrepresentation may result in disqualification or separation.

Applicants whose qualifications most closely align with the County’s needs will be eligible for further consideration. Notification of application status typically occurs within two to three weeks after the closing date. Some applicants may receive short notice to participate in additional selection steps, which may include assessments, phone screens, or interviews.

Upon offer, compensation is based on a range of job-related factors, including the requirements of the role, your skills and experience, and internal pay equity.

Our Welcoming Workplace Commitment: Pierce County is committed to fostering a Welcoming Workplace where employees are supported, respected, and able to thrive. We believe a strong public workforce is representative of the community it serves and that fair and just access to opportunity strengthens public service.

Guided by the County Executive’s Forward Together mission, Pierce County works to build communities that are safe, welcoming, and connected. This same commitment shapes how we recruit, develop, and retain our employees. County employees make a direct and visible impact in the lives of residents every day, and we invite you to join us in helping keep Pierce County a place people are proud to call home.