Associate Engineer – Environmental Services Department, Water Resources Division

The City of San José’s Environmental Services Department (ESD) is an award-winning department with a mission to deliver world-class utility services and programs to improve our health, environment, and economy. The Department is a national leader in managing garbage and recycling services; watershed protection and pollution prevention; municipal drinking water and recycled water; sustainability initiatives; and the operation and infrastructure improvements of the San José-Santa Clara Regional Wastewater Facility. Together, ESD employees positively impact every resident and business in San José.

Our department is an exceptional place to start or grow your career. We have a supportive leadership team, numerous professional growth opportunities, and an inclusive workplace culture that is welcoming of your talents!

To learn more about ESD, follow @sjenvironment on X, Facebook, and Instagram, and San José Environmental Services on LinkedIn.

About the Water Resources Division:

The Water Resources Division is comprised of three sections: 

• Municipal Water System,
• South Bay Water Recycling, and
• Operations and Maintenance.

The Water Resources Division provides potable water service through the Municipal Water System to the communities of Evergreen, North San José/Alviso, Edenvale, and Coyote. The Water Resources Division also provides recycled water service through the South Bay Water Recycling system to the cities of San José, Santa Clara, and Milpitas. South Bay Water Recycling includes 165 miles of pipeline and facilities, including five pump stations, three reservoirs with a total storage capacity of 9.5 MG, and Retail Agency Operations and Maintenance activities for over 1,100 individual customer connections. In addition, the Water Resources Division also leads water conservation efforts for the City of San José.

position Duties

The Environmental Services Department is currently seeking to fill one (1) full-time Associate Engineer position in the Water Resources Division, South Bay Water Recycling section.

The total salary range for this classification is $135,975.84 – $172,099.20 annually. This amount includes an approximate five percent (5%) ongoing non-pensionable pay. The actual salary shall be determined by the final candidate’s qualifications and experience.

Duties of the position will include, but are not limited to: 

The South Bay Water Recycling (SBWR) section is responsible for system operations and maintenance engineering support, as well as the planning, design, construction, maintenance, rehabilitation, and improvement of the SBWR system’s pipelines and facilities. This includes supporting the conservation program and providing development- related support services, ensuring the availability and reliability of recycled water supply, overseeing and implementing capital improvement and infrastructure maintenance projects, conducting construction inspections, and providing engineering support to operations and maintenance activities. Typical duties for the position include:

• Prepares engineering plans and details, project schedules, engineer’s cost estimates, and specifications for construction contract documents.
• Supervises staff including prioritizing and assigning work; conducting performance evaluations; ensuring staff training; and making hiring, termination, and disciplinary recommendations.
• Prepares, coordinates, and implements agreements for consultants, contractors, and laboratory analysis.
• Responds to questions and inquiries from the general public, developers, contractors, engineering professionals and senior management regarding engineering projects.
• Provides design support during construction including reviewing shop-drawing submittals, answering RFIs, preparing design clarifications, and performing special inspections.
• Coordinates the work with internal work groups and with external agencies and organizations.
• As technical lead on projects, meet SBWR’s needs and deliver quality results that are within budget and on schedule.
• Perform plan review for proposed developments to ensure all proposed projects adhere to state and local regulations, City standards and policies, and acceptable construction techniques and materials.
• Oversees and prepares plan documents, including but not limited to, assembling and reviewing plans and specifications for conformance.
• Directs the inspection of major engineering projects, prepares bid documents, solicits bids, facilitates award of contracts, administers the contract, interprets plans and specifications, resolves field problems, gives final inspection, and follows through with acceptance of the project.
• Manages complex projects from planning through construction, including overseeing project design, ensuring compliance with technical and regulatory requirements, negotiating contracts, negotiating change orders, and processing progress payments.
• Perform other related duties as assigned by the Senior Engineer.

Minimum Qualifications

education: A Bachelor’s degree from an accredited college or university in Civil Engineering or Mechanical Engineering or possession of a California Engineer-in-Training (EIT) certificate.

Experience: Three (3) years of increasingly responsible professional engineering experience.

Acceptable Substitution: A Master’s degree from an accredited college or university in the required professional engineering discipline may be substituted for one (1) year of professional engineering experience.

Required Licensing: Possession of a valid State of California driver’s license is required.

If selected, the Conditional Offer of Employment may be contingent upon you providing proof of a valid State of California driver’s license, and an assessment of your California DMV Employer Pull Notice (EPN) as per the DMV Release of Driver Record Information form. Failure to pass the DMV Pull Notice assessment will deem you ineligible for employment.

Other Qualifications

Desirable Licensing or Certifications:

• Possession of a Certificate of Registration as a Civil Engineer (PE) issued by the California Board for Professional Engineers, Land Surveyors, and Geologists.
• State of California Water Resources Control Board Water Distribution (D) and/or Water Treatment (T) certification(s).

Competencies:

The ideal candidate will possess the following competencies, as demonstrated in past and current employment history. Desirable competencies for this position include:

• Job Expertise – Demonstrates knowledge of and experience with applicable professional/technical principles and practices, Citywide and departmental procedures/policies and federal and state rules and regulations.
  • Knowledge and experience with managing complex engineering projects and provide supports to Operation and Maintenances, including the management and analysis of engineering data, compliance reports, and providing technical assistance to internal staff and external customers.
  • Knowledge and experience with water supply, and/or utility design, developing plans, specifications, tracking project budget, computer-aid design (CAD), consultant contracts, and project development implementation/construction.
  • Proven experience in project management within the realm of capital improvement or related fields.
  • Proficiency in design review, contract document preparation, bidding, and construction of capital improvement projects.
  • Knowledge of principles of design for water and hydraulic principles.
  • Experience working with multiple stakeholders during the design of capital improvement projects, including operations and maintenance staff, consultant staff, and regulatory agencies.
• Computer Skills – Experienced with common business computer applications including but not limited to: MS Outlook, MS Word, MS PowerPoint, MS Access, MS Excel and AutoCAD.
• Initiative – Exhibits resourceful behaviors toward meeting job objectives; anticipates problems, is proactive, and avoids difficulties by planning ahead; displays willingness to assume extra responsibility and challenges; pursues continuing education opportunities that promotes job performance.
• Problem Solving – Approaches a situation or problem by defining the problem or issue; determines the significance of problem; collects information; uses logic and intuition to arrive at decisions or solutions to problems that achieve the desired outcome.
• Project Management – Ensures support for projects and implements agency goals and strategic objectives.
• Teamwork & Interpersonal Skills – Develops effective relationships with co-workers and supervisors by helping others accomplish tasks and using collaboration and conflict resolution skills.
• Communication Skills – Effectively conveys information and expresses thoughts and facts clearly, orally and in writing; demonstrates effective use of listening skills; displays openness to other people’s ideas and thoughts.

Selection Process:

The selection process will consist of an evaluation of the applicant’s training and experience based on the Application and responses to all the job specific questions. Only those candidates whose backgrounds best match the position will be invited to proceed in the selection process. Additional phases of the selection process will consist of one or more interviews.

If you have questions about the duties of these positions, the selection or hiring processes, please contact Vaishali Vashistha at vaishali.vashistha@sanjoseca.gov.

BenefitsThe City of San Jose offers a wide range of core health benefits including Medical, Dental, Vision, Employee Assistance Program, Life Insurance, Disability, and Savings Plans. Please visit the City’s benefits page for detailed information on coverage, cost, and dependent coverage.
For information on the City’s Retirement Plan(pension for full-time employees), please visit the Office of Retirement Services website. You will be able to view information based on different Sworn/Federated job classification. 

In additional to the benefits above, there is an additional perks site to explore further benefits of working for the City of San Jose like paid leave, educational reimbursements, and holiday pay are specific to the job classification and union membership.

Additional Information:

Employment Eligibility:  Federal law requires all employees to provide verification of their eligibility to work in this country. Please be informed that the City of San Jose will NOT sponsor, represent or sign any documents related to visa applications/transfers for H1-B or any other type of visa which requires an employer application.  

You must answer all job-specific questions to be considered for this vacancy or your application will be deemed incomplete and withheld from further consideration. Applicants are expected to write their own essays/responses.  

Please note that applications are currently not accepted through CalOpps or any other third party job board application system.

This recruitment may be used to fill multiple positions in this, or other divisions or departments. If you are interested in employment in this classification, you should apply to ensure you are considered for additional opportunities that may utilize the applicants from this recruitment.

Please allow adequate time to complete the application and submit before the deadline or the system may not save your application.  If your online application was successfully submitted, you will receive an automatic confirmation email to the email address you provided.  IF YOU DO NOT RECEIVE THE CONFIRMATION, please email CityCareers@sanjoseca.gov and we will research the status of your application. 

AI and the Hiring Process

We recognize that Artificial Intelligence (AI) is becoming part of daily life and can be a valuable tool for learning, research, and professional growth. We encourage candidates to use AI responsibly as a support in preparing application materials, live assessments, and interviews. However, we value authenticity, accuracy and truthfulness. Application responses and interview answers must reflect your own knowledge, skills, and experiences. While AI can supplement preparation, it cannot replace the originality and judgment we look for in our employees. This ensures fairness, transparency, and equity for all applicants in the hiring process.