Recycling Associate - West Portland

Recycling Associate (West Portland)

You are responsible for working with store team members and volunteers to coordinate all aspects of day-to-day recycling operations at assigned store location(s), as needed and directed. You'll work under the general supervision of the Salvage & Recycling Manager and follow day-to-day operational direction from designated store leadership. A typical shift involves inspecting and sorting various recyclable items, emptying and transferring containers, guiding volunteers, and providing customer service. You will perform all tasks safely, efficiently, and effectively while communicating politely and respectfully with co-workers, volunteers, donors, and customers. This position requires initiative, a readiness to anticipate needs and take action, and motivation to understand how the work connects to Habitat for Humanity's mission. This position will be shared by two store locations in Portland and Gresham and will require your ability to commute to either location.

At Habitat for Humanity Portland Region, we believe that everyone deserves a stable and affordable place to call home. Founded in 1981, we have built and repaired homes in partnership with over 3,000 people across the Portland region. Habitat for Humanity Portland Region is an independent affiliate of Habitat for Humanity International and operates out of three offices, four brick-and-mortar stores, one warehouse, and numerous construction sites in Portland, Beaverton, Hillsboro, King City, Gresham, and Lake Oswego. Habitat Portland Region is intentional about building a healthy and thriving organizational culture and envisions a community of team members, partners, volunteers, and donors who are deeply committed to equitable and anti-racist practices in every facet of our organization. All of our team members engage in continual learning and seek ways to operationalize equitable practices. Our Equity Statement and Cultural Compact are living, breathing documents that we continually work toward. Please visit our website and social media pages to learn more.

You'll be responsible for:

• Demonstrating knowledge and proficiency in recycling and sustainability initiatives at the ReStore, particularly including the RecycleOn Center
• Greeting the public, accepting and inspecting recycling materials that meet RecycleOn program criteria, and declining those that do not
• Partnering with the Store Volunteer Coordinator in guiding volunteers to support daily recycling tasks
• Processing, inspecting, and reducing contamination in recycling streams
• Contributing to shared team efforts to keep facilities clean and organized, including receiving areas, break rooms, and outdoor common areas
• Supporting team members with donation processing by guiding correct sorting of waste versus recyclable materials and maintaining collection bins
• Assisting with loading, unloading, and sorting recycling materials received at the store or prepared for transport away from the store
• Engaging customers, donors, and community members in Habitat's mission by sharing events, details of Habitat builds, volunteer opportunities, and recycling initiatives
• Supporting recycling program tasks at other ReStore locations as needed or assigned

To be successful in this role, you possess:

• One year of customer service experience
• Attention to detail and a passion for reuse and recycling
• Skilled at working in a team of staff and volunteers while following the direction of leadership
• Attentiveness, ability, and desire to maintain a clean and organized work environment
• Time management skills, including managing material flow urgency, timely arrival for shifts, and pickup deadlines
• Knowledge of, or ability to learn, the correct and safe use of tools and equipment, such as a forklift, pallet jack, and dolly
• A safety-first mindset and willingness to model safe practices and encourage peers to follow all safety policies and procedures
• Proficiency with, or ability to learn to use, communication tools such as telephone, email, and two-way radio
• Ability to adapt to a changing work environment and learn new operations skills as the program develops

Any combination of formal education, paid work experience, unpaid/volunteer experience, and life experience will be considered. The following are not required and will not disqualify you from consideration. However, they may help distinguish you as an above-average candidate for this role:

• Volunteer experience
• Master Recycler certification
• Bilingual in Spanish
• Any qualifying combination of education, certification, and experience that demonstrates the ability to perform the duties of the position.

Your work environment and physical demands:

• You will spend your workday in an open warehouse and retail environment.
• Assisting customers and team members and handling recyclables is very active and requires consistent standing, walking, bending, kneeling, stooping, crouching, crawling, and climbing.
• This means you will frequently lift, move, and/or load items over 50 pounds with mechanical or co-worker assistance.

Your work schedule:

• 40 hours a week, with the potential to include Saturday and Sunday, as required by your People Leader
• Current store hours: Wednesday Monday 10am-6pm, Tuesday 10am2pm.
• Your assigned store locations are the Portland and Gresham ReStores. You will typically divide your time evenly between both locations, though business needs may occasionally require a greater presence at one store.
• On occasion, you may be asked to support a west side location (Tigard or Beaverton ReStores) temporarily for training or support purposes; however, these changes are infrequent and will remain within the Portland metro area.

Your compensation:

• We aim to offer equitable pay and benefits and are committed to transparency in compensation. Basing compensation on a candidate's willingness and/or ability to negotiate leads to inequities and bias in how employees are compensated. We determine the best possible compensation offer based on base qualifications, relevant experience, internal equity, and the candidate's competencies for the role demonstrated during the hiring process. Successful candidates are typically hired within the first half of the Pay Range and receive scheduled incremental increases. When starting in this position, your compensation will generally be between $17.34 per hour and $20.61 per hour. The full range for this position is $17.34 per hour to $24.28 per hour.
• Your benefits package includes:
• 100% employer-paid health insurance premium (medical, vision, alternative care, prescriptions) for employees; 50% paid for dependents
• 100% employer-funded Health Reimbursement Account (HRA)
• 100% employer-paid dental insurance for employees; 50% paid for dependents
• 100% employer-paid disability insurance
• Generous paid time off: starting at three weeks of Vacation time; two weeks of Sick time; 11 paid holidays; paid birthday off
• 3% matching 403(b) retirement savings plan
• Flexible Spending Accounts (FSA)
• Life insurance
• Employee Assistance Program (EAP)

What to expect when you apply:

• We strive to ensure our hiring process is accessible to all applicants. We know your time is valuable and want to acknowledge the time it can take to apply for a position. We ask you to submit your resume, cover letter, and three professional references using our online application. If you need assistance or accommodations in submitting your application or throughout the hiring process, please contact View email address on click.appcast.io.
• We will begin reviewing applications as submitted and hope to begin the screening and interview process within 1 week of submission. Candidates are reviewed by the hiring manager and the hiring team. Selected candidates will be invited to participate in a screening phone call or virtual meeting. The final round of candidates will be invited to interview in person with the hiring team. Occasionally, we may request that finalists complete a second round of in-person interviews.
• We appreciate the time and effort that you put into this process.