Per Diem Transmitter Engineer

Fox Television Stations; Seattle (WA); On-site; USD 80,000 - 113,000; Full time

Job summary

Fox TV Stations is seeking a per-diem Transmitter Engineer to support its transmitter facilities at Capitol Hill (Seattle) and Gold Mountain (Bremerton). The role demands experience in transmitter site operations, maintenance, and on-call availability for outages.

Responsibilities include daily maintenance, testing, signal flow checks, and FCC compliance, with travel to sites as needed. Must have 2–3 years of relevant experience and a valid driver’s license.

Qualifications

• 2–3 years of experience in electronics repair, studio AV setup, IT/networking, or military technical roles.
• Solid grasp of signal flow, electrical safety, and basic tools.
• Basic IT/networking skills (IP addresses, subnets, switches, PCs).
• Valid driver's license with clean driving record; ability to drive in varied weather.
• Ability to lift up to 50 lbs., climb ladders, and work behind equipment racks.
• Flexible schedule and on-call availability for outages.
• Experience with soldering, custom cable fabrication, and reading schematics.

Responsibilities

• Manage daily operation, routine calibrations, and emergency troubleshooting of high‑power transmitters and RF switchgear.
• Perform transmitter testing, failover testing, and baseband signal flow checks; assist during high-profile events.
• Monitor site power, IT/network systems, microwave/telecom links, UPS and generator systems.
• Respond to outages; travel to Gold Mountain site to maintain on-air status.
• Ensure transmitter sites comply with FCC standards.

Skills

Electronics repair

IT networking

Signal flow

Electrical safety

Soldering

Reading schematics

Driver's license

Physical endurance

On-call readiness

Education

Technical degree or equivalent training

Tools

Multimeters

Oscilloscopes

Hand tools

Job description

OVERVIEW OF THE COMPANY

Fox TV Stations FOX Television Stations (FTS) owns and operates 29 full power broadcast television stations, including stations in 14 of the top 15 markets and duopolies in 11. Eighteen are FOX Network affiliates, and together the stations produce approximately 1,300 hours of local news every week. FOX LOCAL, the company's free ad-supported digital and streaming product, extends that news, weather and local content across connected TV & mobile devices. LiveNOW from FOX expands the FTS portfolio even further as the only national streaming services to be truly live 24/7, covering breaking news and events as they happen.

JOB DESCRIPTION

KCPQ Fox 13 is seeking a per-diem Transmitter Engineer to support our primary broadcast transmitter facilities at Capitol Hill in Seattle, and Gold Mountain near Bremerton.

This role requires extensive experience in television transmitter site operations and maintenance.

Key Responsibilities

• Primary Sites Ownership: Manage the daily operation, routine calibrations, and emergency troubleshooting of our high-power solid-state/air and liquid-cooled transmitters and RF switchgear.
• Transmitter testing, failover testing, transport signal path monitoring, local MPEG encoder operation and baseband signal flow testing. Ability to work during high-profile events such as Sunday football games, The World Series, and other events.
• Infrastructure & Power: Monitor critical site support systems, including site-located IT systems, microwave and terrestrial signal transport systems, satellite downlinks, UPS and generator systems, and other site-located equipment.
• Emergency Restoration: Respond to transmitter outages, which includes driving up to the Gold Mountain site in various weather conditions to keep the station on the air.
• Compliance: Ensure the transmitter site complies with FCC standards.

What We Are Looking For (Requirements)

• Experience: 2–3 years of experience in electronics repair, studio AV setup, IT/networking, or military technical roles. (A technical degree or equivalent training is highly valued).
• Technical Aptitude: A solid grasp of signal flow, electrical safety, and how to use basic tools (such as multimeters, oscilloscopes, and hand tools).
• IT Knowledge: Basic IT/networking skills (IP addresses, subnets, switches, PC’s ).
• Driving & Logistics: Must have a valid driver's license, a clean driving record, and the confidence to drive mountain roads in rain, fog, or light winter conditions.
• Physical Demands: Ability to lift up to 50 lbs., climb ladders, and work comfortably behind equipment racks.
• Availability: Ability to work a flexible schedule, including being on‑call for emergency transmitter or critical studio outages during off‑hours.
• Cable Management: Experience with soldering, custom cable fabrication, and reading schematics.

We are an equal opportunity employer and all qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, religion, sex, national origin, gender identity, disability, protected veteran status, or any other characteristic protected by law. We will consider for employment qualified applicants with criminal histories consistent with applicable law.

Pursuant to state and local pay disclosure requirements, the pay rate/range for this role, with final offer amount dependent on education, skills, experience, and location is $70.00 per hour.