Maintenance Laborer

POSITION TITLE:    MAINTENANCE LABORER    GRADE:     DEPARTMENT:       Operations REPORTS TO:        HOUSING MANAGER/AREA MAINTENANCE SUPERVISOR FLSA STATUS:       Non-Exempt  UNION: LIUNA ABOUT Cambridge Housing Authority The Cambridge Housing Authority ("CHA"), a leader in developing and maintaining affordable housing communities, is seeking a qualified and highly motivated candidate. By focusing on policy innovation and family economic opportunities, the CHA is committed to developing and managing safe, high quality, affordable housing for low-income individuals and families. CHA provides long-term rental housing and rental assistance to more than 5,500+ individuals and families through its Public Housing and Housing Choice Voucher (HCV) Programs. CHA offers competitive compensation commensurate with experience. Our generous benefits package includes health and dental insurance, paid time off, paid holidays, life and disability insurance options, tuition reimbursement, commuter benefits, retirement pension and deferred compensation 457b plans, and more!   SUMMARY The primary purpose of this position is to perform unskilled and semi-skilled maintenance and repair tasks on buildings, apartments, grounds and equipment. These task include, but are not limited to, cleaning apartments, cleaning common areas, mowing lawns, pruning shrubs and trees, snow removal, lifting heavy objects, the use of hand and basic power tools, such as, but not limited to lawnmowers, snow blowers, variable speed drills, electric drill snakes (1/4 inch cables),toilet augers, plungers, two wheeled hand trucks, etc. Will assist mechanic aides, mechanics, lead mechanics, and skilled trades personnel in a wide variety of tasks. All activities must support the Cambridge Housing Authority’s (“CHA” or “Authority”) strategic goals and objectives and produce results that accomplish the goals of the Operations department. QUALIFICATIONS To perform this job successfully, an individual must be able to perform each essential duty satisfactorily. The requirements listed below are representative of the knowledge, skills, and/or ability required. Reasonable accommodations may be made to enable individuals with disabilities to perform the essential functions. Education and/or Experience High school diploma, GED, or possession of a vocational technical certification beyond high school and experience in a related area. Working knowledge of the Massachusetts Building Code is preferred. Must have valid Massachusetts driver’s license and be insurable under CHA policies. An equivalent combination of education and experience may be considered. Technical Skills To perform this job successfully, the employee should general knowledge of carpentry, plumbing, heating, painting, and masonry, and be able to successfully operate a variety of applicable hand-held tools and devices. Must have the ability to learn other devices as required by assigned tasks. ESSENTIAL DUTIES AND RESPONSIBILITIES The below statements describe the general nature and scope of work being performed by this position. This is not a complete listing of all responsibilities, duties and/or skills required. Other duties may be assigned. Apartment and Common Areas: Performs a wide variety of task associated with the care and upkeep of apartments, common areas, and offices using a wide variety of hand and power tools and devices; such as, the cleaning of apartments, offices and common areas using powered floor machines, brooms, shovels, cleaning agents, vacuum cleaners, polishers, mops and buckets, scrapers, squeegies, etc. •    Performs minor hardware repairs and/or replacement on such as drawers and door pulls, hinges, door knobs, shades and screens, and windows components, including sash balances. •    Resets circuit breakers. Replaces light bulbs and lenses on exterior and interior lighting fixtures. •    Performs stove cleaning and minor refrigerator and stove repairs, such as replacement of knobs, drip pans, and oven racks, shelving brackets, etc. •    Performs recycling and trash removal, cleaning windows, preparation and painting of up to 144 square feet of surface per day, repairs and installs screens, repairs and installs window sash balances, repairs and installs windows, minor hardware repairs to locks, hinges, towel racks, toothbrush holders, etc., •    Clears drain blockages in sinks, drains, and toilets, using hand tools and electric drill snakes, •    Uses power drills to perform minor hardware repairs on cabinets, doors, window, etc. •    Assists mechanical and skilled trades personnel to perform a wide variety of tasks. •    Performs clean up from floods using shop vacuums, squeegies, buckets, pumps, etc. •    Cleans all aspects of apartment for vacancy turnover using Laborers Vacant Apartment Checklist. •    Exterminates insects and rodents in conformance with proper safety standards in apartments, common areas, and grounds. The use of federally licensed pesticide is restricted to personnel with a valid Commonwealth of Massachusetts pesticide applicators license. ( The expense of training, licensing and supplies for this purpose shall be borne by the CHA) •    Cleans common area restrooms, management offices, hallways, stairways, and basements. •    Services fan coil units by vacuuming out fan coil enclosure and coil, replacing of filters, and adding disinfecting tablet if fan coil is for cooling. •    Removes, cleans, and replaces electrical switch and receptacles plates, lighting lenses, and face plates of various equipment. •    Keeps development offices, community spaces, laundry rooms, interior and exterior public spaces and grounds in an orderly condition by cleaning ,washing, shoveling, sweeping, raking and mopping, and removal of litter on a daily basis. •    Gathers and disposes of trash and rubbish by compactor or other means, performs recycling as defined by the authority and City of Cambridge, cleans and washes trash chute rooms and compactor rooms, sanitizes trash barrels and containers using power washers and cleaning agents. Monitors rodent and insect management in trash areas. Maintains trash compacting equipment. Landscaping: Perform landscape work including using a variety of hand and power tools associated with this type of work: rakes, shovels, pruners, brooms, pole saws, edgers, pitchforks, pick axes, hand saws, hand tools associated with landscape irrigation repairs, wheelbarrows, trowels, sprayers, spreaders, snow blowers, lawnmowers, power edgers, leaf blowers, tractors, bobcats, pickup trucks with plows and sand spreaders, dump trucks. etc. This list is not all inclusive, but a sampling of the variety of tools intended for this type of work. •    Cuts grass, edges flower and shrub beds, mulches flower and shrub beds, trims, cuts and prunes or shrubs and trees, weeds flower and shrub beds. •    Prepares flower and shrub beds for planting, plant flowers and shrubs, and performs other landscape work with hand and power tools and equipment following safety procedures. •    Repairs and modifies landscape irrigation systems including understanding irrigation controllers for manual testing, replacement of sprinkler heads and adjusting of same with training, repairing and investigation of minor leaks after the backflow preventer device •    Cleans landscape equipment after use, manages gasoline and other flammables to insure that they are stored in flammable containers and used appropriately in equipment •    Rehabilitates landscaping by seeding and sodding lawn areas, watering and applying fertilizers to lawns and plants (excluding the use of restricted materials without a state pesticide applicators license), dethatching, and aerating lawns using appropriate equipment. •    Rakes and removes leaves using a variety of hand and gas powered equipment, Grounds: Performs a wide variety of tasks associated with the care and upkeep of the site grounds; including, but not limited to sidewalks, curbing, asphalt parking and sidewalk areas; including aligning parking stops, repainting parking lines and markers, repair, installation and replacement of signs and sign posts, replacement of light bulbs in exterior light fixtures using ladders and other devices associated with this task, litter management, trash management including handling and removal of trash. •    Mixes concrete and mortar, forms and trowels materials necessary for the repair of concrete curbs and sidewalks. •    Repairs asphalt using jack hammers, chisels and hammers, and hand and powered tampers to repair asphalt and concrete, the application of hot asphalt and cold patch •    Repairs fencing. •    Rakes and points concrete masonry units and brick. •    Uses caulking materials and caulking guns for various applications. •    Shall be available, with reason as defined by policy, to assist in emergency snow and ice removal as defined in the Authority Snow Removal Procedures) using shovels, ice choppers, spreaders, snow blowers, tractors, Bobcats with appropriate license, driving trucks equipped with snow plows and sand spreaders, •    Digs holes and trenches, •    Performs preventative maintenance functions such as reading gauges and recording said reading, area drain cleaning and flushing, (Basic servicing and lubricating of motors, pumps and fans; •    Inspects building systems and records findings using the CHA preventative maintenance charts and reports all deficiencies in writing to manager and/or maintenance supervisors or Director of Maintenance. •    Assists in performance of general liability safety inspections. •    Performs minor plumbing repairs such as plunging, flushing or snaking sinks, tubs, toilets and drains to the stack using plungers, hand snakes, toilet augers, pneumatic drain cleaning tools (with training), electric drill snakes with ¼” cables. •    Performs graffiti removal using cleaning agents and power washing devices on interior and exterior surfaces, performs painting on exterior and interior surfaces as defined in contract. This includes walls, ceilings, fencing, railings, curbs, parking lines, benches and bollards, and other items as deemed necessary. •    Performs such other related duties and tasks as may be assigned by Housing Managers, Area Maintenance Supervisors, the Director of Maintenance, and the Assistant Director of Maintenance. COMPETENCIES To perform the job successfully, an individual should demonstrate the following competencies: Behavioral Competencies Commitment: Sets high standards of performance; pursues aggressive goals and works hard/smart to achieve them; strives for results and success; conveys a sense of urgency and brings issues to closure; persists despite obstacles and opposition. Customer Service: Meets/exceeds the expectations and requirements of internal and external customers; identifies, understands, monitors and measures the needs of both internal and external customers; talks and acts with customers in mind; recognizes working colleagues as customers. Effective Communication: Ensures important information is passed to those who need to know; conveys necessary information clearly and effectively orally or in writing; demonstrates attention to, and conveys understanding of, the comments and questions of others; listens effectively. Responsiveness and Accountability: Demonstrates a high level of conscientiousness; holds oneself personally responsible for one's own work; does fair share of work. Teamwork: Balances team and individual responsibilities; exhibits objectivity and openness to others' views; gives and welcomes feedback; contributes to building a positive team spirit; puts success of team above own interests; able to build morale and group commitments to goals and objectives; supports everyone's efforts to succeed. Job Competencies •    Knowledge of policies, procedures, goals, objectives, operational entities, requirements and activities as they apply to the assigned area of responsibility in the CHA •    Thorough knowledge of occupational hazards and corresponding OSHA safety precautions necessary for safe performance of assigned duties. Understands the necessity for personal safety, and uses personal safety equipment appropriately for his/her protection as well as those in the surrounding area. •    Ability to work independently without direct supervision. •    Ability to understand written and verbal directives such as assignments/work orders and describe in writing results of tasks and directives for permanent record of work accomplished. •    Ability to respond to emergencies of all types to restore buildings, apartment units, and grounds to a safe condition. •    Is available for snow removal and other emergencies on an overtime basis as a required prerequisite of employment. •    Ability to perform minor repairs to power and none power equipment such as, snow blower shear pins, changing flat tires, install snow plows on trucks and tractors, change attachments to equipment, repairing of spreader components, etc. •    Knowledge of material and equipment used in building and grounds maintenance •    Basic knowledge of heating, plumbing, electricity, carpentry, and painting •    General knowledge of material and equipment used in building and grounds maintenance •    Skilled in the use of hand tools and equipment used in building and grounds maintenance •    Ability to perform basic maintenance and repairs of building, grounds, and equipment •    Ability to operate a snowplow •    Ability to operate pest control equipment •    Ability to operate motor vehicles (pickup truck) •    Ability to follow oral and written instructions •    Ability to lift heavy objects 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 individuals with disabilities to perform the essential functions. The employee is frequently required to stand; walk; use hands for gripping, handling or feeling; reach with hands and arms; stoop, kneel or crouch; and talk and hear. Specific vision abilities include close and distance vision, color vision, peripheral vision, depth perception and ability to adjust focus. The employee must frequently lift and/or move up to 60 pounds. WORK ENVIRONMENT The work environment characteristics described here are representative of those an employee encounters while performing the essential functions of this job. Reasonable accommodations may be made to enable individuals with disabilities to perform the essential functions. The employee frequently works near moving mechanical parts or in adverse weather conditions, such as such as: sleet, snow, heat, cold, flood, dust and dirt, as well as cramped quarters and high places. The employee is occasionally exposed to wet and/or humid conditions, fumes, toxic or caustic chemicals. The noise level in the work environment is moderately loud. 8:00 a.m. to 4:30 p.m., Monday through Friday. Overtime and weekend hours may be required due to weather conditions, emergencies, or operational requirements. 40 hours per week