Residence Requirements:

CANDIDATES MUST HAVE BEEN LEGAL RESIDENTS OF ERIE COUNTY OR AN ERIE COUNTY SCHOOL DISTRICT* FOR AT LEAST ONE MONTH IMMEDIATELY PRECEDING THE DATE OF THE WRITTEN TEST AND MUST BE LEGAL RESIDENTS OF ERIE COUNTY OR AN ERIE COUNTY SCHOOL DISTRICT* AT THE TIME OF APPOINTMENT. Preference may be given to successful candidates who have been residents of the municipality in which the appointment is to be made for one month preceding the date of the certification of the eligible list and who are residents of the municipality at the time of appointment. Non-residents may be required to become a resident of the appointing municipality if local law so states. * Candidates who reside in a school district which, for civil service purposes is administered by the Erie County Personnel Commissioner, but who are not legal residents of Erie County may apply
for examination. However they will be certified for appointment only in the school district in which they are legal residents.

There is one anticipated vacancy at Hamburg Central School District. (starting rates B/$16.84 per hour or A/$17.08 per hour.) The eligible list resulting from this examination will be used to fill this vacancy and other appropriate vacancies which may occur in municipalities or districts under the jurisdiction of Erie County Civil Service while this list is active.

A promotion examination will be held at the same time as this examination. The list resulting from the promotion examination will be used first but appointments from this open competitive examination are anticipated. Use of the list may be suspended after it is one year old for any position which it is practical to fill through a new promotion examination.

Under current New York State Law, candidates seeking employment with school districts in New York State will be required to undergo fingerprinting and a criminal history background check prior to appointment. A processing fee may be required.

Examples of Duties:

A Head Custodian –Schools is responsible for scheduling,  supervising, evaluating employees and participating in the cleaning and maintenance activities of a large school building or buildings in a suburban school district;

Supervises the cleaning of classrooms and other areas in a school building, makes frequent inspections of areas to determine if work is properly done;

Assigns custodial, cleaning and maintenance personnel as required;

Makes periodic inspections of maintenance activities to see they are being performed according to regulations;

Supervises the operation and maintenance and may operate or perform minor maintenance work in low and high pressure steam boilers and oil burners;

Maintains necessary records, papers and required reports relating to personnel, supplies, equipment and work performed;

May inspect work performed by private contractors;

Assists with custodial maintenance work when required;

Opens work areas and secures areas upon completion of work;

Evaluates work performance of subordinate employees.

Qualifications:

MINIMUM QUALIFICATIONS:  Candidates must meet one of the following requirements on or before the date of the written test:

A. Graduation from high school or vocational school or possession of a high school equivalency diploma and three years of experience in either: 1.) commercial cleaning practices which included one year of experience which was in a supervisory** capacity (see Note 1); or 2.) general building maintenance which included experience in one of the following trades; Carpentry, Electrical, H.V.A.C. or Plumbing; including one year of experience which was in a supervisory** capacity (see Note 1) OR

B. Seven years of experience in either: 1.) commercial cleaning practices which included one year of experience which was in a supervisory** capacity(see Note 1); or  2.) general building maintenance which included experience in one of the following trades; Carpentry, Electrical, H.V.A.C. or Plumbing; including one year of experience which was in a supervisory** capacity (see Note 1) OR

C. An equivalent combination of training and experience as defined by the limits of (A) or (B) above.

SPECIAL REQUIREMENTS: 

1.  Under current New York State Law, candidates seeking employment with school districts in New York State will be required to undergo fingerprinting and a criminal history background check prior to appointment.  A processing fee may be required.   

2.  Candidates must possess a valid Class 5 New York State driver's license at the time of appointment.

Notes:

1. **Supervision – Responsible direction and control of subordinate employees. This involves the assignment of work, approval of work, training, evaluation and discipline of employees. The supervisory aspects must be an integral part of the job, not incidental or occasional. 

2. Verifiable part-time and/or volunteer experience will be pro-rated toward meeting the experience requirements.

A Guide for the Written Test for High-level Custodians/Janitors is available at the New York State website:https://www.cs.ny.gov/testing/testguides.cfm. Candidates not having access to a computer or the internet may request copy of the test guide from the municipal civil service office conducting this examination using the contact information found elsewhere on this announcement.

Subjects of Examination:

Scopes / Subjects of examination: A test designed to evaluate knowledge, skills and /or abilities in the following areas.

Ability to read and follow written instructions
These questions test for the ability to read, understand and apply written instructions for performing tasks similar to those encountered on the job. All the information needed to answer these questions will be provided in the test booklet.

Building cleaning
These questions test for knowledge of basic principles and practices of building cleaning. They cover such areas as equipment, tools, supplies, methods and procedures for cleaning different types of surfaces and materials under various, commonly occurring circumstances.

Building operation and maintenance I
These questions test for knowledge of the basic principles, practices and techniques essential to the correct operation and maintenance of public buildings. They cover such areas as building maintenance; preventive maintenance, and minor repair of electrical and plumbing systems; methods and equipment for snow removal; building safety and equipment storage.

Operation and routine maintenance of heating, ventilating and air conditioning systems
These questions test for knowledge of basic principles, practices and techniques essential to the correct operation and maintenance of heating, ventilating and air conditioning systems, including such areas as minor cleaning; room temperature and building ventilation control; steam, hot water and hot air heating systems; boiler operation; troubleshooting air conditioning system problems, and proper maintenance of air conditioning systems.

Supervision and training
These questions test for the knowledge required by a supervisor to set goals, plan and organize work, train workers in how to do their jobs, and direct workers towards meeting established goals. The supervisory questions cover such areas as assigning and reviewing work, evaluating performance, maintaining work quality, motivating employees, increasing efficiency, and dealing with problems that may arise on the job. The training questions cover such areas as determining the necessity for training, selecting appropriate training methods, and evaluating the effectiveness of training.

NOTICE TO CANDIDATES: Unless otherwise noted, candidates are permitted to use quiet, hand held, solar or battery powered calculators. Devices with typewriter keyboards, "Spell Checkers", “Personal Digital Assistants", "Address Books", "Language Translators", "Dictionaries", or any similar devices are prohibited. You may not bring books or other reference materials.

**IMPORTANT APPLICATION FEE - READ CAREFULLY**

A $20.00 filing fee is required for this exam. The required fee must accompany your application. Send or bring check or money order made payable to Erie County Personnel Department and write the examination number(s) on your check or money order. Do not send or bring cash, as the County cannot be responsible for cash payment. As no refund will be made, you are urged to compare your qualifications carefully with the requirements for admission and file only for those examinations for which you are clearly qualified.