Timber Crew Lead (Sequoia NF, Kern Ranger District)

Description

Position Description Summary:  

Kern Ranger District; Kernville, CA

USFS, California,

The Great Basin Institute, in cooperation with Sequoia National Forest is recruiting a Timber Stand Improvement (TSI) Crew to work with USFS and GBI staff to perform inspection of contracted vegetation management and restoration projects within forest/woodland areas. This work provides professional development opportunities in standard forest management practices while supporting USFS initiatives for healthy and productive forest landscapes and resources. 

A Timber Stand Improvement (Contract Inspection) Crew, comprising of one crew lead and two-four crew members per crew, will perform this work in coordination with USFS personnel. Please note that, for several consecutive weeks at a time, the work schedule of GBI crews aligns with the work schedule of contractors when the contractors are on site planting and applying herbicides. During these phases, extensive overtime (up to 12 hours (04:00 to 16:00 hours) of work per day, including travel from and to job sites, for up to six consecutive days, paid at 1.5 times regular wage for any hours over 40 in a work week) is expected. When performing work not related to contract administration, the normal work schedule will consist of 4-10 hour days per week working from approximately 07:00 to 17:30 hrs.

A Temporary Special Assignment (TSA) employee is one who is hired for a specific temporary assignment external from the institute’s administrative operations with one of GBI’s partners for 52 weeks or greater or less than 52 weeks and may work full-time (30 or more hours per week) or part-time (less than 30 hours per week).

Essential Job Functions may include the following:

• Duties will principally involve inspecting outcomes of reforestation treatments, including inspection of planting and herbicide contractors. 
• Additional duties will involve timber cruising and marking and flagging in timber stand improvement unit boundaries for subsequent TSI treatments.
•  Initial work will involve oversight of contractors preforming landscape improvements on targeted areas on USFS lands. GBI Timber Stand Improvement (Contract Inspection) crews will conduct compliance inspections for various vegetation treatment projects including planting, mastication, herbicide treatments and brush cutting. 
• In the latter half of the season, Crews will collect plot and regeneration data from reforestation treatments. 
• Additional duties may include training in timber marking and cruising and the application of these learned skills on large timber sales areas. 

This work greatly supports the regeneration of forested areas, facilitates the restoration of landscapes affected by type-conversion and high severity wildfire, the preparation of future timber sales and contributes to the development and refinement of management techniques and operations. 

As Crew lead: applicants are expected to exercise sound judgement, and be willing to work hard in a physically demanding position with an eye towards the safety and well being of their crew.  Leadership responsibilities of this position include communication with USFS and GBI staff, maintaining safety awareness and practices in the field, scheduling, logistics, and overseeing fidelity to methods and quality of outcomes.   

LOCATION

The incumbents will be based out of the Kernville Ranger District (Kernville, CA) of the Sequoia National Forest (SNF), which is one of 19 National Forests in California and takes its name from the giant sequoia, the world's largest tree. The SNF's landscape includes soaring granite monoliths, glacier-carved canyons, roaring whitewater, and more than 30 groves of sequoia trees in the forest's lower elevation slopes. Elevations range from 1,000 feet in the foothill region to peaks over 12,000 feet in the rugged high country, providing visitors with some of the most spectacular views of mountainous landscape in the entire west.

WORK SCHEDULE

This position will begin in mid-May and end as late as mid-November. Season start and end dates are project and weather dependent and may change slightly. 

Forestry Crew positions follow 10 hour days, 4 days a week schedule. 

Temporary Special Assignment employees are eligible to receive holiday pay, if partner approved. TSAs working four (4) ten (10) hour days per workweek will be paid ten (10) hours for all holidays.  Same with other approved/allowable workweek configurations; these can be accommodated accordingly with Banked Holiday(s).

COMPENSATION AND BENEFITS

Wage: $26/hour with overtime at 1.5x hourly rate. Full time, average 40 hours per week

In addition to a competitive base salary, this full-time,onsite position includes company-paid comprehensive medical, dental (with option to upgrade in coverage), and vision insurance, as well as $25,000 Life/AD&D policy. Voluntary short-term and long-term disability policies are available, and voluntary Life/AD&D policies for family members.  Mental health support resources are employer provided, competitive PTO accrual, and paid holidays.  Shared housing is provided. This exciting role contributes to GBI’s significant positive impacts within the fields of environmental research, education, and conservation.

TSA employees who serve a term under 52 weeks in duration, and have a thirty (30) day or less break between terms, and then sign a second term that (cumulatively) becomes greater than 52 weeks of employment, will be eligible for the >1-year TSA benefits (equivalent to Regular full-time employees).

Qualifications

Requirements/Qualifications

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

Preferred qualifications as follows:

•  Bachelor’s or Associate's degree in Forestry or a closely related field, plus applicable field experience in techniques for timber stand improvement; 
• Knowledge of the mixed conifer forests typical of westside-Sierra California, including common plants (woody and herbaceous), wildlife, and/or geology/topography; • Experience in chainsaw operation and pesticide application;
• Ability to communicate effectively, both written and orally, with a diverse audience;
• Ability to navigate and collect data using handheld GPS units; 
• Proficiency using a compass and topographic map to navigate; 
• Possess a clean, valid, state-issued driver’s license with ability to safely operate and maintain a 4WD vehicle on and off paved roads; 
• Ability to live and work in rural and remote field and office setting; 
• Physically fit to work outdoors, carry up to 50 pounds of field equipment and personal gear, and withstand the rigors of a forested and/or high desert environment in all seasons; 
• Willingness and ability to work extensive overtime hours for several consecutive weeks multiple times during the field season; 
• Familiarity with best practices for field safety and Leave No Trace principles; and 
• Willingness and ability to consistently enact high performance standards and a strong work and team ethic in support of the mission of GBI and the goals and objectives of the USFS. 
• Experience leading forestry crews in the field, including oversight of safety, communication, fidelity to methods, and quality of accomplishments; 
• Experience using ArcGIS to create maps preferred;

TO APPLY

Qualified applicants will be contacted to schedule an interview. For questions regarding this position, please contact

kmckinnon@gbinstitute.org

PHYSICAL DEMANDS  

The physical demands described here are representative of those that must be met by an employee to successfully perform the essential functions of this job. Reasonable accommodations may be made to enable employees with disabilities to perform the essential functions.

While performing the duties of this job, the employee is regularly required to sit, use hands, stand, walk, bend, and have specific vision abilities to include close and distance vision, and ability to adjust focus working with computer business equipment and other job/industry specific equipment. The noise level in the work environment is usually low.

NOTE:  This job description is not intended to be all-inclusive. Employees may perform other related duties as negotiated to meet the organization's ongoing needs.

Disclaimer: Although the organization has attempted to accurately and thoroughly describe this position, GBI reserves the right to change the same, including to change, add to or subtract from the duties outlined, within the sole discretion of the organization, at any time, with or without advanced notice.

Salary : $26