Career Opportunity

Electrical Line Helper (7432) - Citywide (U00009)

Recruitment: REF18353C

Published: March 02, 2023

Apply using SmartRecruiters, the City and County of San Francisco's application portal.

About:

Filing deadline updated: 3/6/2023 at 5 PM 
Filing deadline updated: 3/1/2023 at 5 PM 

This announcement has been amended and extended to reflect changes with the application deadline date. Applicants who already applied during the filing period from February 16, 2023, through February 28, 2023, need not reapply and will be included in the applicant pool.

THIS IS A CITYWIDE EXAM

San Francisco is a vibrant and dynamic city, on the forefront of economic growth & innovation, urban development, arts & entertainment, as well as social issues & change. This rich tapestry of culture and ideas is sustained by our City's commitment to heighten the quality of life for the diverse population of San Franciscans and residents of the greater Bay Area. Our employees play an important role not only in making our City what it is today, but also in shaping the future of San Francisco.

• Application Opening: Thursday, February 16, 2023
• Application Filing Deadline: Interested applicants are encouraged to apply as soon as possible as this announcement will close at 5:00 PM (PT) on Monday, March 6, 2023 (*Updated on 3/1/2023) 
• Annual Salary:  $86,892 - $105,612
• Recruitment ID: CBT-7432-U00009 / REF18353C

Role description

Under supervision, the 7432 Electrical Line Helper performs semi-skilled line work in the maintenance, repair, and installation of communication and traffic and street lighting systems, transit power lines, and high voltage overhead and underground electrical transmission lines; and performs related duties as required.

Essential duties and responsibilities

1. Digs holes and trenches for installing wood, concrete, and steel poles and laying underground cables.
2. Assists in the replacement of fire alarm boxes, police call boxes, traffic and street lighting systems, and overhead and underground wires.
3. Assists line crew to disassemble and install foundations for poles, structures, and distribution and transmission towers.
4. Assists line crew in assembling poles and cross arms; trims trees and removes other obstructions along overhead line right-of-way; preparing materials.
5. Assists cable splicers and line crew on public safety underground jobs. Sets up job sites and prepare splicing materials.
6. Performs general housekeeping at maintenance yards, line trucks, and job sites including the cleaning and caring of hand tools and pneumatic tools (e.g. pavement breaker).
7. Transports material, equipment, and crew to job sites in heavy line trucks.

Nature of Work: Nature of work involves: extensive physical effort and dexterity in the use of fingers, limbs and body; continuous exposures to physical and working conditions where moderately serious injuries may be encountered; may work in and around switch stations and substations; work may include exposure to inclement weather conditions. This work requires the safe use and operation of pneumatic and hydraulic equipment.

Positions will be utilized by various departments of the City and County of San Francisco. 

How to qualify

Minimum Qualifications:
Education: Possession of a high school diploma or proof of successful completion of an equivalency test (G.E.D or California High School Proficiency Examination).

Experience: Two (2) years of full time verifiable general electrical and mechanical work experience in maintenance/construction. [Note: experience as an auto technician/mechanic will not be considered qualifying.]

License: Possession and maintenance of, or the ability to obtain and maintain, a current valid California Class C driver license.

Some positions allocated to this class require possession and maintenance of a current valid California Class B driver’s license.

One year of full-time employment is equivalent to 2000 hours. (2000 hours of qualifying work experience is based on a 40 hours work week.) 

Applicants must meet the minimum qualification requirement by the final filing date unless otherwise noted.

CONDITIONS OF EMPLOYMENT:
MEDICAL EXAMINATION/TB TESTING: Prior to appointment, eligible candidates being considered for employment must successfully pass a medical examination and/or TB testing process.

SECURITY CLEARANCES AND BACKGROUND INVESTIGATIONS: Positions in this classification may require that successful candidates who become eligible for appointment may be required to go through a background investigation to determine the candidate's suitability for employment in this classification. Factors considered in the investigation may include employment history, use of illegal/controlled substances. Reasons for rejection based on this investigation may include, but not limited to: applicable convictions, repeated or serious violations of the law, inability to accept supervision, inability to follow rules and regulations, falsification of application materials and/or other relevant factors. Failure to obtain and maintain security clearance may be basis for termination.

SAFETY SENSITIVE POSITION REQUIREMENTS: The City and County of San Francisco’s Substance Abuse Policy, in compliance with the Department of Transportation Omnibus Transportation Employer Testing Act of 1991 employing the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA) and Federal Transit Administration (FTA) regulations, requires drug and alcohol testing for employees in “safety-sensitive” positions. This Class 7432 Electrical Line Helper position qualifies as “safety-sensitive” as defined by the FMCSA and FTA regulations. The selected applicants for “safety-sensitive” positions will be required to pass a Pre-Employment drug test prior to appointment and shall be subject to Random, Post-Accident, Reasonable Suspicion, Return-To-Duty, and Follow-Up testing during employment. Prior to appointment to an FMCSA “safety-sensitive” position, each applicant who has participated in a DOT drug and alcohol testing program within the immediately preceding three (3) years will be required to sign a consent form authorizing the City to contact his/her prior employers concerning his/her drug and alcohol test history.

SFMTA-SPECIFIC SAFETY-SENSITIVE REQUIREMENTS
Medical Examination/Drug Testing: Candidates who are being considered for appointment may be required to pass a medical examination. Candidates who cannot meet the medical requirement will be placed under waiver until this requirement is met. The medical examination will be administered only to those applicants who are being considered for appointment. 

The San Francisco Municipal Transportation Agency (SFMTA) has determined that Class 7432 Electrical Line Helper is a “safety-sensitive” position, under regulations issued by the Federal Transit Administration (49 CFR Part 655). Federal law requires that all transit employees who perform safety-sensitive functions be subject to random, post-accident, reasonable suspicion, return-to-duty and follow-up drug and alcohol testing. All applicants for Safety-Sensitive positions shall undergo urine drug testing prior to employment and within 90 days prior to performing Safety-Sensitive functions for the first time. Receipt by the SFMTA of a negative test result is required prior to the employee being placed on the payroll. A positive, adulterated, negative dilute or substituted test will result in a decision not to hire, and the applicant’s name will be removed from the list of eligibles for Safety-Sensitive positions. The SFMTA will not consider hiring any person who tested positive, adulterated, substituted or refused to submit to testing for a minimum of two years following the positive test.

In addition, each applicant who has worked for a Department of Transportation (DOT) – regulated employer(s) within the last two years will be required to sign a consent form, prior to appointment, authorizing SFMTA to obtain information from their prior employers concerning their drug and alcohol test history. Each applicant will also be required to provide SFMTA with information regarding whether, during the last two years, the applicant tested positive or refused to test on any pre-employment drug or alcohol test administered by an employer to which the applicant applied for, but did not obtain, safety-sensitive transportation work covered by DOT drug and alcohol testing rules. SFMTA will not hire any applicant for a safety-sensitive position who fails to provide this information or fails to provide written consent for the release of information from prior employers.

Verification:
Applicants may be required to submit verification of qualifying education and experience at any point in the application, examination and/or departmental selection process. More information can be found here.

Note: Falsifying one’s education, training, or work experience or attempted deception on the application may result in disqualification for this and future job opportunities with the City and County of San Francisco.

All work experience, education, training and other information substantiating how you meet the minimum qualifications must be included on your application by the filing deadline. Information submitted after the filing deadline will not be considered in determining whether you meet the minimum qualifications.

Resumes will not be accepted in lieu of a completed City and County of San Francisco application.

Applications completed improperly may be cause for ineligibility, disqualification or may lead to lower scores.

What else should I know?

Selection Procedure:
After application submission, candidates deemed qualified must complete all subsequent steps to advance in this selection process, which includes the following:

1. Minimum Qualification Supplemental Questionnaire (MQSQ) (Weight: Qualifying) Candidates will be required to complete a MQSQ as part of the employment application after the filing deadline. The MQSQ will be used to evaluate if the applicant possesses the required minimum qualifications.

2. Written Multiple Choice Examination (Weight: 100%)
Candidates who meet the Minimum Qualifications will be admitted to the examination process and invited to participate in a written multiple-choice exam designed to measure knowledge, skills and/or abilities in job-related areas which may include but are not limited to: knowledge of basic maintenance, repair, and installation of electrical transmission lines; knowledge of safe working practices; skills in the care and use of basic tools; and interpersonal skills. 

This is a standardized examination and, therefore, test questions and test answers are not available for public inspection or review.

Note: A passing score must be achieved on the Written Multiple-Choice Examination in order to be placed on the Eligible List Score Report. The hiring department may administer additional position-specific procedures to make final hiring decisions.

Eligible List/Score Report: A confidential eligible list of qualifying candidates will be created and used for certification purposes only. A score report will be established, so applicants can view the ranks, final scores and number of eligible candidates. Applicant information, including names of applicants on the eligible list, shall not be made public unless required by law. However, an eligible list shall be made available for public inspection upon request once the eligible list is exhausted or expired and referrals resolved. The eligible list/score report resulting from this selection process is subject to change after adoption (e.g., as a result of appeals), as directed by the Human Resources Director or the Civil Service Commission.

The duration of the eligible list/scores report resulting from this examination process will be 12 months and may be extended with the approval of the Human Resources Director.

To find Departments which use this classification, please click here.

Certification: The certification rule for the eligible list resulting from this examination will be Rule of Three Scores. 

Terms of Announcement and Appeal Rights: Applicants must be guided solely by the provisions of this announcement, including requirements, time periods and other particulars, except when superseded by federal, state or local laws, rules or regulations. [Note: The correction of clerical errors in an announcement may be posted on the Department of Human Resources website at https://careers.sf.gov/] The terms of this announcement may be appealed under Civil Service Rule 110.4. Such appeals must be submitted in writing to the Department of Human Resources, 1 S Van Ness Avenue, 4th Floor, San Francisco, CA 94103-5413 by close of business on the 5th business day following the issuance date of this examination announcement. Information concerning other Civil Service Commission Rules involving announcements, applications and examination policies, including applicant appeal rights, can be found on the Civil Service Commission website at http://sfgov.org/civilservice/rules.

Additional Information Regarding Employment with the City and County of San Francisco:

• Information About The Hiring Process
• Conviction History
• Disaster Service Worker
• Employee Benefits Overview  
• Equal Employment Opportunity 
• ADA Accommodation
• Veterans Preference
• Seniority Credit in Promotional Exams
• Right to Work
• Copies of Application Documents
• Diversity Statement

HOW TO APPLY:
Applications for City and County of San Francisco jobs are only accepted through an online process. Visit https://careers.sf.gov and begin the application process.

• Select the "Apply Now" button or “I’m Interested” button and follow instructions on the screen.

Applicants may be contacted by email about this announcement and, therefore, it is their responsibility to ensure that their registered email address is accurate and kept up-to-date. Also, applicants must ensure that email from CCSF is not blocked on their computer by a spam filter. To prevent blocking, applicants should set up their email to accept CCSF mail from the following addresses @sfgov.org, @sfdpw.org, @sfport.com, @flysfo.com, @sfwater.org, @sfdph.org, @asianart.org, @sfmta.com, @sfpl.org, @dcyf.org, @first5sf.org, @famsf.org, @ccsf.edu, and @smartrecruiters.com).

Applicants will receive a confirmation email that their online application has been received in response to every announcement for which they file. Applicants should retain this confirmation email for their records. Failure to receive this email means that the online application was not submitted or received.

All your information will be kept confidential according to EEO guidelines.

Recruitment Analyst Information: If you have any questions regarding this recruitment or application process, please contact the analyst, Vivian Yeung via email at VYeung@sfwater.org or (628) 215-1236.

CONDITION OF EMPLOYMENT:  All City and County of San Francisco employees are required to be fully vaccinated against COVID-19 as a condition of employment. Someone is fully vaccinated when 14 days have passed since they received the final dose of a two-shot vaccine or a dose of a one-shot vaccine. Any new hire must present proof of full vaccination status to be appointed. Any new hire who will be routinely assigned or occasionally enter High-Risk Settings, must provide proof of having received a COVID-19 booster vaccine by March 1, 2022, or once eligible.

The City and County of San Francisco encourages women, minorities and persons with disabilities to apply. Applicants will be considered regardless of their sex, race, age, religion, color, national origin, ancestry, physical disability, mental disability, medical condition (associated with cancer, a history of cancer, or genetic characteristics), HIV/AIDS status, genetic information, marital status, sexual orientation, gender, gender identity, gender expression, military and veteran status, or other protected category under the law.