Seasonal Landscape Assistant

Town of Blacksburg, VA; Blacksburg (VA); On-site; USD 28,000 - 36,000; Part time

Job summary

The Town of Blacksburg, VA seeks a Landscape Assistant to perform manual labor maintaining public areas, medians, and rights-of-way. You will mow, plant, and care for beds, trees, and shrubs, and prepare ball fields for play.

Duties include setting up for events, cleaning sites afterward, and assisting with snow removal. A valid driver's license is required, and teamwork and safety awareness are essential.

Qualifications

• High school diploma or GED required.
• Moderate experience in landscaping or groundskeeping preferred.

Responsibilities

• Mow and maintain flowers, shrubs, trees, and beds.
• Set up tents, tables and chairs for events and restore areas afterward.
• Maintain park facilities: empty trash, bathrooms, minor plumbing, and painting shelters.
• Maintain playground equipment and spread mulch; install equipment as needed.
• Assist with snow removal, events, grave openings, and seasonal cleanup.

Skills

Grounds maintenance tools

Safety awareness

Teamwork

Public interaction

Reading street signs

Landscaping equipment operation

Manual labor endurance

Education

High school diploma or GED

Tools

Lawn mowers

Landscaping equipment

Job description

The Landscape Assistant performs manual labor maintaining public areas and properties that may include: the downtown area, medians, and rights-of-way. Duties may include but are not limited to mowing, planting and maintaining flower beds, landscaped areas, and trees and shrubs, and preparing ball fields for play. This position may be responsible for sidewalk snow removal. Employees may be required to work in more than one public area/property and with more than one immediate supervisor during the course of employment.

Shift

Fall and Winter: Monday-Friday, 7:30 am - 4:00 pm. Other days and hours as necessary.

Spring and Summer: Monday-Friday, 6:30 am - 3:00 pm. Other days and hours as necessary.

Work schedule may vary and will be approximately 40 hours per week.

This position will not exceed 1,500 hours during the initial year of employment or during the Affordable Care Act measurement period of April 1st through March 31st.

The Town of Blacksburg is an EEO Employer M/F/D/V

To perform this job successfully, an individual must be able to perform each essential function satisfactorily. The requirements listed below are representative of the knowledge, skill, and/or ability required. Reasonable accommodations may be made to enable individuals with disabilities to perform the essential functions.

General Maintenance Duties

• Performs general maintenance duties, such as mowing; picking up trash along roadways and landscaped areas; weeding and watering landscape areas, hanging baskets, and planters; planting bulbs, flowers, shrubs and trees
• Sets up at multiple locations for various events by setting up tents, tables and chairs; cleaning and restoring the area after events
• Performs general park facility maintenance duties, such as emptying trash containers, sanitizing bathrooms, performing minor plumbing maintenance and painting shelters
• Maintains playground equipment; places mulch around playground equipment; installs new playground equipment
• Assists with snow removal, special events, grave openings, brush collection, leaf collection, Christmas tree collections and Fall and Spring cleanup

General Knowledge and Skills

• General knowledge of the tools, materials and equipment used in grounds maintenance work
• Some knowledge of safety precautions applicable to the duties of the position
• Ability to operate effectively in a team environment and work independently
• Ability to interact and communicate with the public, establish and maintain effective working relationships with associates
• Ability to understand and follow instructions and read basic street and traffic signs
• Ability to operate mowers and related landscaping equipment
• Ability to perform manual labor for extended periods of time

Education and Experience

• High school diploma or GED and moderate experience in landscaping, maintenance, or groundskeeping work, or equivalent combination of education and experience

Special Requirements

A valid driver's license and a satisfactory driving record

• Individuals must be able to work in various climatic conditions, be able to work in a crouched or kneeling position for extended periods of time and lift heavy objects.
• Work has standard vision requirements
• No special vocal communication skills are required
• No special hearing perception is required
• Work requires visual inspection involving small defects and/or small parts, use of measuring devices, assembly or fabrication of parts within arm's length, operating machines, operating motor vehicles or equipment, and observing general surroundings and activities
• Work regularly requires exposure to outdoor weather conditions and frequently requires working near moving mechanical parts, working in high, precarious places, exposure to extreme cold (non-weather), exposure to extreme heat (non-weather) and exposure to the risk of electrical shock
• Work is generally in a loud noise location (e.g. grounds maintenance, heavy traffic)