Heavy Equipment Operator

General Purpose Of The Position

Performs skilled work in the safe and efficient operation of heavy trucks, tractors, and other medium‑sized equipment where driving and maneuvering the vehicle constitutes the majority of the work required to complete tasks for a variety of public works, landfill, parks or utility construction and maintenance projects to include grading, landscaping, excavating, landfill, roads, storm drainage systems, parks or similar projects.

Equipment in this classification includes vehicles with complex mechanisms that require the highest degree of skill, dexterity, and finesse, where work is performed to exacting tolerances. May have responsibility for leading a small crew of workers in maintenance, repair, and construction work.

• Serves primarily as an operator of assigned mechanized equipment utilized in the construction, alteration, repair, cleaning, and/or maintenance of public works projects, including medium‑duty flat bed, dump and tank trucks, tractors, mowers, loaders, backhoes, excavators, motor graders, and other similar equipment.
• Transports workers to the work site and participates in maintenance work as necessary.
• Hauls debris, concrete and asphalt, digs, pushes, piles, and/or loads materials.
• Performs preventative maintenance duties: cleans, greases, fuels equipment, and identifies and performs basic service and repair work.
• Supports and actively promotes the City’s safety programs; follows standard operating procedures, observes safety practices, and reports or corrects potential hazards.
• Performs other construction, repair, maintenance operations related work, and manual labor as required by work assignment.
• Sets up work zones to ensure crew safety.
• Performs duties as assigned through work orders.
• Keeps basic records and performs computer data entry.
• Provides exceptional customer assistance, problem‑solving, and addressing complaints by all forms of communication.

• Knowledge of traffic laws, ordinances, and rules governing transportation of equipment on public streets and highways.
• Knowledge of the functions, operating methods, and routine care/maintenance for standard automotive and construction equipment.
• Knowledge of hazards of operation and appropriate safety rules and regulations.
• Knowledge of the principles and procedures of excavation, drainage, surfacing, and similar construction work.
• Knowledge of street surfacing materials, including asphalt and aggregates and street paving processes.
• Skill in the operation of assigned equipment in accordance with traffic laws and regulations.
• Knowledge of safe work techniques and practices used in construction.
• Ability to make independent judgments and decisions.
• Knowledge of materials used in the construction and maintenance of utility systems and municipal infrastructure.
• Ability to establish and maintain effective working relationships with employees and the public.
• Ability to understand and follow oral and written instructions.
• Ability to read and interpret documents such as safety rules, operating and maintenance instructions, and procedure manuals.
• Ability to make recommendations and solve new problems using resourcefulness and tact.
• Ability to ascertain priorities and meet deadlines and objectives.
• Ability to perform basic arithmetic (adding, subtracting, multiplying, dividing) in all units of measure.
• Ability to solve practical problems and deal with variable situations where little standardization exists.
• Knowledge of job-related software required by the Department.
• Physical ability to work in close, confined spaces; to walk, stand, stoop, kneel, crouch, crawl, and reach overhead; to use hands with dexterity; to lift and carry weights up to 80 pounds with assistance.
• Specific vision abilities: close vision, distance vision, color vision, peripheral vision, and ability to adjust focus.
• Ability to perform manual labor, sometimes under unfavorable weather conditions.
• Ability to perform other related duties as assigned.

Work is primarily performed outside in varying and extreme weather conditions for extended periods, where employees are…