General Laborer - Port of San Francisco (7514) - TPV

General Laborer - Port of San Francisco

Job Code and Title: 7514-General Laborer

Fill Type: Permanent Civil Service

Compensation: $78,962 - 95,966 annually

Recruitment ID: TPV-7514-165774 / RTF0165773-01113710

Application Opening: 10/30/2026

Application Deadline: 11/20/2026

Job Description

General Laborer work requires the ability to lift objects weighing up to 90 pounds, carry them 50 feet and to balance 10-foot pieces of lumber; requires sustained physical effort, frequently under adverse weather conditions and/or disagreeable working conditions, such as working in streets or roads in traffic or in cold or rain or being exposed to feces and urine, raw sewage, used syringes, toxic and hazardous materials, poison oak, poisonous snakes, and insects; and confined space entry.

As a general laborer, your duties may include but are not limited to the following:

• Excavates trenches (using various pneumatic and hand tools, including 90-pound jackhammers) for water and sewer lines, underground utility repair, or electrical conduits; backfills and compacts excavations; and potholes transmission mains and service piping.
• Clears culverts, stakes fabric to prevent erosion of work sites, and cements and rip-raps upstream and downstream of culverts.
• Stabilizes embankments by building wet walls and drywalls alongside roadways and waterways.
• Clears obstacles prior to machine mowing.
• Serves as flag operator and sets up traffic barricades and lights or other barriers around work sites (on streets or in other locations).
• Clears and chips vegetation, brush, limbs; clears firebreaks, watershed roadways, ditches, jogging and foot paths, pipeline rights-of-way, around structures, buildings, risers, vaults, and valve lots; cuts access routes to watershed domestic utility lines and springs; removes small trees and grinds stumps.
• Installs and maintains chain link, barbed wire and hog wire fencing; cements watershed gate posts and chain link fence posts.
• Loads and unloads materials, supplies, furniture, and/or equipment by hand or with booms, power tailgate, forklift, and other moving equipment for moving to and from worksites (examples: jackhammers, sandbags, cement bags, debris bags, railroad ties, whackers, vibratory plates).
• Removes and cleans up debris resulting from construction, maintenance, wrecking, or repair work around grounds and building areas using hands, broom, shovel, wheelbarrow, etc.
• Works in confined spaces to assist in cleaning and flushing catch basins, septic tanks, or sewage treatment plants with shovels, hoses, and pumps to ensure proper drainage of the sewer system.
• Operates and maintains pneumatic, electrical, mechanical, and hand tools including air compressors, jack hammers, tie tampers, sand blasters, steam cleaners, hoists, drills, chain saws, cement mixers, chipping guns, weed whackers, spaders, stump grinders, fence stretchers, aerial lift buckets, and other hand tools to assist craft workers in getting their jobs done.
• Mixes and prepares concrete; assists in the application of concrete and asphalt to repair roads and sidewalks.
• Sweeps streets and sidewalks; applies disinfectants, de-greasers, and herbicides to streets and sidewalks; scrubs streets, sidewalks, and plazas with a broom or high-pressure water hose.
• Picks up litter and puts debris into bags; cleans up illegal dumping sites and encampments, spills on city streets, and sites of accidents; removes litter and signs from poles and benches.
• Manages a tool room, distributing tools and tracking inventory.
• Completes forms such as work orders, daily work, or field reports, and/or accident report forms.
• Drives a truck and/or car to work sites and follows route or other maps.
• Prepares surfaces for painting; remove graffiti from public/private property using a computerized color matching program, soda blaster, and/or steam cleaner.
• Uses radio communication system or other communication devices.
• Checks email and other forms of electronic communication to communicate, enters and submits time sheets online through the employee portal; reads and responds to emails and/or texts.
• Other duties as assigned.

Nature of the Work: Must be able to work from a boat, near water and at heights. Physical strength, endurance, and dexterity to perform tasks such as lifting and/or handling materials and objects weighing up to 90 pounds, carrying such materials at least 50 feet, balancing 10-foot long pieces of lumber; sustained physical effort, frequently under adverse weather conditions and/or disagreeable working conditions, such as working on roads or streets in traffic or in cold or rain or being exposed to feces and urine, raw sewage, used syringes, toxic and hazardous materials, poison oak, poisonous snakes, and insects; and confined space entry. Ability to wear a respirator.

This position is subject to shift bidding rules based on seniority which might require being assigned to a night, weekend schedule or alternative schedule.

Weekend overtime and emergency overtime may be required as needed.

Qualifications

Experience: Three (3) years (6000 hours) of journey-level experience as a general laborer in the construction field.

License and Certification: Possession of a valid Class C California driver license (must be maintained during employment; to be presented at time of appointment); AND insurability under the Port's automobile liability insurance (must be maintained during employment).

Substitution: Completion of a California Division of Apprenticeship Standards (DAS) or United States Department of Labor (DOL) approved apprentice construction laborer program may be substituted for the required experience.

Desirable Qualifications (Ideal Candidate):

• Extensive experience using construction equipment such as compressors, jackhammers, tampers, pressure washers, sidewalk sweepers, etc.
• Ability to work at heights of up to 200 feet.
• Ability to work from a boat and around or over water.
• Proficiency in handling power washing equipment and cleaning tasks, including the cleaning of challenging materials such as feces.
• A history of being reliable and punctual, capable of adhering to a set work schedule.
• Flexibility and adaptability in handling changing assignments, tasks, and schedules.

Verification: Please make sure it is clear on your application exactly how you meet the minimum qualifications. Every application is reviewed to ensure that you meet the minimum qualifications as listed in the job ad. Please review our articles on Employment Application and Minimum Qualifications and Verification of Experience and/or Education for considerations taken when reviewing applications.

Important Note(s):

• Applicants may be required to submit verification of qualifying education and experience at any point during the recruitment and selection process.
• One-year full-time employment is considered equivalent to 2000 hours (2000 hours of qualifying work experience is based on a 40-hour work week). Any overtime hours that you work above forty (40) hours per week are not included in the calculation to determine full-time employment.
• Applicants must meet minimum qualification requirements by the final filing date unless otherwise noted.
• Please be aware that any misrepresentation of this information may disqualify you from this recruitment or future job opportunities.

Additional Information

Selection Procedures: Applications will be screened for relevant qualifying experience. Additional mechanisms may be implemented in order to determine candidate's qualifications. Only those applicants who most closely meet the requirements for this position will be invited to participate in the selection process.

Note: Applicants meeting the minimum qualifications are not guaranteed advancement to the interview.

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

• Select the "Apply Now" button and follow instructions on the screen.

City and County of San Francisco