Job Description

The Facilities Management unit of the Division of Facilities and Services is seeking applications for a Roads & Grounds Trades Specialist Lead I position. About the Opportunity: Under direction of the Roads and Grounds Director, Landscape Operations Manager, and Supervisor, shall provide leadership and training to a group of five to ten Landscape Workers. Shall perform skilled landscape tasks. Apply fertilizers to turf, ornamental shrubs, flowers, and trees as needed. Apply herbicides to stone and mulch beds. We strongly believe in work-life balance and keeping time for things we love outside our work. WVU offers generous benefits, including:

• 37.5-hour work week
• 13 paid holidays (staff holiday calendar)
• 15 annual leave (vacation) days per year or more based on years of service (employee leave)
• 18 sick days per year
  (for when you\xe2\x80\x99re ill, for when you need time to care for sick family, for your own, or your family\xe2\x80\x99s, regularly scheduled medical appointments. Who is family for the purpose of this leave? A lot of people in your life including immediate relatives and in-laws as well as others considered to be members of your household living under the same roof)
• WVU offers a range of health insurance and other benefits
• 401(a) retirement savings with 6% employee contribution match, eligibility to continue health insurance, and other retiree perks. Looking for more retirement benefits information? Check out retirement health insurance benefits, retirement income, and FAQ\xe2\x80\x99s.
• Wellness programs

Work hours: Mon-Fri 6a-2p Pay Grade: 14, WVU provides competitive wages for its employees, and takes experience and related education into consideration when determining appropriate salary. What you\'ll do:

• Functions as a team leader, providing guidance to Landscape Worker Lead, Landscape Workers, Campus Service Workers Leads, Campus Service Workers, and any other support personnel as required. Follows procedures and makes work assignments to those individuals assigned to the crew to ensure work is completed in a timely fashion ensuring proper quality and quantity. Inspects completed work assignments to ensure quality control. Ensures that proper safety procedures are used while performing job duties.
• Receives work orders. Interfaces with Trade Specialist Lead II, Managers, and requesting party to finalize project needs and scope. Assists supervisor with multi-craft projects related to overall work assignments. Communicates work schedules and goals to employees and customer, creating efficiency and a timely completion of assigned tasks.
• Provides continual inspection of assigned area to ensure maintenance is completed on schedule; recommends to the Supervisor major repair needs; assists Supervisor in updating deferred maintenance.
• Individual will maintain knowledge of state, federal, and local codes and requirements pertaining to maintenance and construction. Individual will interact with contractors, vendors, and engineers as needed.
• Determines and recommends to the Trade Specialist Lead II or the Manager the needs of projects in regard to crew size, types of crafts, material availability, equipment, paperwork, safety checks to maintain proper work and material flow in order to maintain schedule.
• Provides daily reports on actual progress versus projected progress to supervisor. Informs supervisor of needed discipline and performance problems. Ensures that work group processes all work requests, material requisitions, weekly reports, and invoices necessary to complete assignments according to Physical Plant operation.
• May fill in for Trade Specialist Lead II or the Manager. Inventory individual assigned work tools of crews.
• Maintains and cares for institutional grounds by mowing, seeding, and aerating lawns and turf; trimming and edging around trees, flower beds, buildings, and walkways; watering lawns, shrubs, and ornamental gardens during dry periods; removing and disposing of debris throughout grounds area.
• Under guidance of the Landscape Operations Manager, shall perform general tree maintenance as required. Shall stake and remove trees as needed. Uses pruning saws, loppers, and chain saws in performing these duties
• Removes snow from sidewalks, steps, roads, and parking lots by means of hand tools, power brooms, tractors, and trucks. Spreads deicers and abrasives on all public passageways as needed. Must be able to respond to emergency situations on all occasions and must be available for telephone contact during all emergency and environmentally unsafe conditions.
• Identifies pest problems on turf, ground covers, flowers, trees, and shrubs and then applies pesticide as needed. Assists in the care of plants, shrubs, and then applies pesticide as needed. Assists in the care of plants, shrubs, and flowers located throughout campus by collecting soil samples from grounds and beds to be tested by others to determine deficiencies based on the specific use for the area; prepares grounds and ornamental beds for planting and seeding, hauls and spreads topsoil and mixes in fertilizer, peat moss, compost, vermiculite, and other additives to condition the soil. Plants ornamentals, flowers, shrubs, and trees as required regarding depth, distance, and cultural requirements for each to enhance survival rates; trims and prunes shrubs and trees, weeds, and thins ornamental flowers to shape and improve growth. Seeds, sods, slices as needed. Acts as an on-the-job trainer as a source of experience and provides guidance to Campus Services Workers in completing these tasks. Interprets blueprints or follows verbal and written instructions in performing skilled landscape maintenance and construction.
• Operates and maintains all grounds maintenance equipment such as trucks, tractors, larger seeders, riding mowers, snow removal equipment, skid loaders, end loaders, and tiltbed trucks.

The Division of Facilities and Services encompasses two units that are integral to the University\xe2\x80\x99s success. Our units employ talented and skilled workers whose jobs range from maintaining, protecting and improving the University\xe2\x80\x99s buildings and grounds. Facilities and Services takes care of every aspect of WVU so that its employees, students and guests are safe and satisfied on campus.


Qualifications

• High School diploma plus 12-18 months of training in commercial landscaping.
• Must become a West Virginia Certified Registered Technician for turf and ornamental chemical use within 6 months of start date.
• Valid Driver\'s License
• A minimum of 2 years directly related work experience in landscaping within a commercial or industrial setting.
• A minimum of 2 years of leadership or supervisor experience.
• A minimum of 2 years landscape equipment operations.

Requirements

• Demonstrated knowledge of complex ground keeping procedures and safety principles.
• Knowledge of the cultural requirements for ground covers, shrubs, ornamental flowers, trees, turf, and bulbs.
• Demonstrated ability to perform skilled landscape tasks.
• Demonstrated ability to lead work groups.
• Demonstrated ability to operate all types of grounds equipment.
• Ability to read blue prints.
• Ability to perform mathematical computations.
• Ability to operate a personal computer.
• Knowledge of warehousing functions.
• Ability to climb heights over ten feet.
• Ability to work in inclement weather conditions.
• Ability to work with people in a stressful environment.
• Ability to have excellent eye to hand coordination.
• Ability to hear and interpret sounds in work area and verbal instructions.
• Ability to lift materials over 50 pounds.
• Ability to work in extreme hot or cold weather conditions.
• Ability to use logical problem solving techniques.
• Ability to communicate well utilizing both written and oral instructions.
• Ability to work in uncomfortable positions as may be required by job assignments.
• Ability to work with multi-craft personnel.
• Ability to carry heavy (50-75 pounds) or awkward objects.
• Ability to stoop, bend, walk, crawl, etc. over rough or slippery surfaces.
• Demonstrated ability to maintain proper attendance and punctuality standards.
• Demonstrated ability to maintain average or above work standards.
• Ability to operate a standard transmission

About WVU

At West Virginia University, we leverage our talents and resources to create a better future for our state and the world. As West Virginia\'s land-grant university, WVU has three campuses that touch each corner of the state. The WVU System includes 518 buildings on 15,880 acres, Extension Service offices in all 55 counties, ten experimental farms and four forests.

From the groundbreaking R1 research of our flagship campus in Morgantown to the career-oriented programs of WVU Potomac State in Keyser to the technology-intensive programs at WVU Tech in Beckley \xe2\x80\x94 the contributions of WVU employees directly impact the 1.8 million people of West Virginia every day, no matter their role or position. Service, curiosity, respect, accountability, and appreciation are the core values that unite Mountaineers, inspiring one another to work tirelessly and support others as they seek to reach new heights. After all, when you\'re a Mountaineer, impossible is just another mountain to climb.

Creating an inclusive, engaged, and dynamic learning environment is core to WVU\xe2\x80\x99s academic mission. We welcome candidates who can contribute a range of ideas, approaches and experiences. To learn more about West Virginia University, visit go.wvu.edu. View current career opportunities at careers.wvu.edu. West Virginia University is proud to be an Equal Opportunity employer and is the recipient of an NSF ADVANCE award for gender equity. The University values diversity among its faculty, staff, and students, and invites applications from all qualified applicants regardless of race, ethnicity, color, religion, gender identity, sexual orientation, age, nationality, genetics, disability, or Veteran status.


Job Posting : Nov 13, 2023
Posting Classification : Classified
Exemption Status : Non-Exempt
Benefits Eligible : Yes
Schedule : Full-time