Sacramento County Hosting Hiring Event In Search Of Garbage Truck Drivers

RANCHO CORDOVA (CBS13) — Sacramento County is hosting a hiring event to look for people willing to do the dirty work that many don't want to do.

Hector Guijarro has ten years of experience driving a garbage truck. He's now applying for a job as a senior collection operator with Sacramento County.

"These are folks that have been on the list to be interviewed for a while," said Doug Sloan, the director of waste management and recycling for the county.

Sloan says early applicants had the chance to get behind the wheel for a road test on Wednesday.

"You'll see cones set up and you'll get points deducted if you touch one of the cones," he said. "More points are deducted if you knock over one of the cones."

Background checks will be performed and medical appointments will be set up if applicants get that far along in the process.

"At the end of the day, we're trying to find not just great people but people who are safe when they are driving," Sloan said.

Maneuvering the big truck and finessing a 12-foot arm in between cars on narrow city streets for 150,000 customers takes practice.

"But as soon as you're in the truck and you know how everything works, it's fun. It's a good experience," Guijarro said.

Guijarro has a good attitude for the green team.

"It's not really that hard, it's just [about] doing everything careful," he said.

Trash collection: it's a dirty job, but somebody has to do it.

"Always look for the others on the street and love what you're doing," Guijarro said.

People can apply at the SacGreenTeam hiring event this Friday and Saturday from 8 a.m. to noon in Rancho Cordova.