Crew Leaders lead an Assistant Field Crew Leader and four Crew Members on remote, trailwork projects. 

Assistant Field Crew Leaders work under supervision of the Field Crew Leader to lead crew members on remote, trailwork projects.

Position Duration: April 7, 2024 to end of October, 2024 (dates are anticipated and may be subject to change)

Status: Temporary/Seasonal

Compensation: $19.00/hr for Crew Lead and $18.00/hr for Assistant Crew Lead, paid every two weeks; time-in-grade increases may be possible for returning crew leaders

Training Schedule: Training schedule is variable and will switch from 8 days on, 6 days off to 5 days on, 2 days off as training requires. Anticipated start and end dates for training will be early April to late May in 2025.

Hitch Schedule: 8 days working, 6 days off (8 10-hour days). Exact schedules will be finalized in the spring. Field staff working into the late fall may switch to 10 days on, 4 days off due to shortened daylight hours.

Location: Crew will be based out of Asheville, NC but will be camping and working within various National Forests across the Southeast.

Supervisor: Field Crew Coordinator

Crew Structure:One Crew Leader, one Assistant Crew Leader, 4 Crew Members

Hiring Timeline:

*Dates are ideal but positions will be filled on a rolling basis.*

• December 30, 2024: Applications close.
• January 5, 2025: All applicants contacted by this date.
• January 19, 2025: Reference checks completed.
• February 2, 2025: Positions hired by this date.

The Crew Leader, with help from the Assistant Crew Leader, will lead four Crew Members while camping and working on remote projects with limited to no cell service. Crews are expected to backpack and live in physically demanding, remote environments for at least 8 (and sometimes 10) days at a time. Conditions of this environment may vary significantly including freezing temperatures, high humidity, persistent rain, and high elevation. The remote nature of our work may mean delayed access to medical care. Leadership of the crew will require excellent communication skills and judgment, maturity, ability to train in the field, professionalism, initiative, emotional maturity and resilience, resourcefulness, patience, ability to delegate tasks, technical trailwork skills, and comfort in the outdoors with minimal contact with others while on hitch. Crew leaders are expected to make decisions in the field to keep their crew safe and provide a high quantity and quality of work for our partners. The Crew Leader is ultimately responsible for successes and shortcomings of the crew. The Assistant Crew Leader is expected to work under the leadership of the Crew Leader and help make decisions in the field to keep their crew safe and provide a high quantity and quality of work for our partners. If a Crew Leader must leave the field or cannot head into the field, the Assistant Crew Leader is expected to fulfill the Crew Leader responsibilities.

A typical work hitch includes meeting at the SAWS office, driving a SAWS vehicle several hours to a trailhead, backpacking into the project site, staying in the field for up to ten days at a time, hiking out, traveling back to the office, cleaning gear, tools, vehicles, completing reporting requirements, and preparing and prepping your crew for the next work hitch.