Job Details

Lead Wastewater Plant Operator

Salary: $124,051.20 - $155,064.00 Annually
Location: 1010 Chadbourne Road, Fairfield, CA
Job Type: Full-Time
Job Number: 202600008
Department: Operations
Opening Date: 07/20/2026
Closing Date: 8/3/2026 5:00 PM Pacific

Description

Fairfield-Suisun Sewer District (FSSD) is currently seeking a candidate to fill a full-time position as a Wastewater Plant Operator Lead.

If you are an experienced operator looking to work in a great team environment with opportunities to learn and grow, this is a great opportunity for you. We are looking for someone with wastewater plant operations experience that can take on more advanced level work and responsibility.

The Ideal Candidate will have excellent interpersonal skills in order to work in an effective manner with all levels of employees. The desirable knowledge, skills and competencies include, but not limited to:

• Knowledge of water or wastewater utilities systems.
• Work independently as well as part of a team depending on assignments.
• Willingness to work outside of normal work hours to support various projects or assignments.
• Willingness to work off-shift, weekend, and shift coverage schedules.

OPPORTUNITY AWAITS!

Over several decades, the District has evolved from a technical engineering entity to a valuable resource manager, partner in local economic development, and active member of the watershed community. The District has taken numerous actions to shift conventional thinking about the way wastewater utilities are run.

• We are an award-winning facility, including winner of the 2024 Water Environment Federation Utility of the Future Award, 2022 California Water Environmental Association (CWEA) California Plant of the Year Award and the 2022 National Association of Clean Water Agencies (NACWA) Platinum Peak Performance Award.
• Over the years many of our employees have been recognized as operator of the year, laboratory person of the year, and mechanical technician of the year (to name a few).
• We are always looking for innovative solutions and often participate in various research pilots, which offers unique opportunities for our staff. 
• We strive to obtain as much energy as possible from waste product and renewable energy through solar power, wind turbines, and cogeneration engines.
• We have a history of creative partnerships to address the issues we face, such as our partnership with Lystek International, who constructed a biosolids-to-fertilizer processing plant at our wastewater treatment facility.

At the Fairfield-Suisun Sewer District, we work together and break down barriers to accomplish major projects and facilitate successful daily operations of the facility. The District is a highly collaborative organization. By fostering a relatively flat organizational structure, minimizing bureaucracy, and promoting employee empowerment, the District achieves a high degree of cooperation and partnership between departments to seek out the best overall solutions to shared challenges. At the heart of the District's progress is an organizational culture that continues to embrace positive change. We have a leadership team that supports the growth and needs of the employees and encourages ongoing feedback to make the District an employer of choice.

Here at the District, we are dedicated to providing what we believe to be an excellent work environment. We strive to maintain good wages and benefits, open communications and opportunities for creativity, ownership and fun. Apply today!

Examples of Duties

EXAMPLES OF DUTIES
The Wastewater Plant Operator Lead is a journey technical position that operates, inspects, and maintains the District's wastewater collection system and treatment plant including biological nutrient removal (BNR), anaerobic digestion, and ultraviolet (UV) disinfection processes. This position leads the shift operations in ensuring completion of daily duties and proper operation and maintenance of treatment processes, implements optimization efforts, maintains discharge compliancy, provides management with potential improvements and/or solutions to issues and provides field training to less experienced staff.
 
This is the journey level position in the Wastewater Plant Operator series that has a higher level of competency in performing the full range of duties. Incumbents work under direction and can operate the plant independently. Incumbents in this class have advanced knowledge of plant operations and can troubleshoot complex failures. Incumbents may advance to the higher-level class after gaining the knowledge, skills, experience and certifications that meet the qualifications for, and demonstrate the ability to perform the work of, the higher-level class.  

To review the complete job description click HERE.

Typical Qualifications

MINIMUM QUALIFICATIONS

The following are minimal qualifications necessary for entry into the classification. 

Education: 
A high school diploma or equivalent; Associates degree or higher is desirable.

AND 

Experience:
Four (4) years of experience in a Class 1, 2, or 3 wastewater treatment plant including two (2) years in a journey equivalent position, or two (2) years of experience in a Class 4 or 5 wastewater treatment plant. Knowledge of BNR, UV, and anaerobic digestion is preferred.

OR 

An equivalent combination of training, education and experience which has provided the employee with the required knowledge, skills/abilities, and attributes to be able to perform the work (with reasonable accommodation, if needed).

License/Certificate: 

• Possession of a Grade III California Wastewater Treatment Plant Operator certificate is required. 
• Possession of a CWEA Mechanical Technologist, Electrical & Instrumentation Technologist, Lab Analyst, Collection System Maintenance, or other relevant certificate is desirable. 
• Possession of a valid California Class C driver's license and safe driving record is required. 

Failure to possess and maintain the required license(s) and/or certificate(s) may be cause for discipline up to and including termination.

PHYSICAL, MENTAL AND ENVIRONMENTAL WORKING CONDITIONS 

• Mobility and Dexterity: Positions in this class typically require frequent stooping, kneeling, reaching, standing, walking, fingering, grasping, feeling (i.e., sense of touch), and repetitive motion. 
• Lifting, Carrying, Pushing and Pulling: Employees in this class will be exerting up to 75 pounds of force occasionally and/or up to 10 pounds of force frequently, and/or a negligible amount of force constantly to move objects. 
• Vision: Positions in this class require the employee to have close visual acuity, with or without correction, to prepare and analyze data and figures, transcribe, view a computer terminal, read, etc. Positions in this class also requires employees to have depth perception to operate a motor vehicle. 
• Hearing/Talking: Positions in this class require the employee to perceive the nature of sounds at normal speaking levels with or without correction and have the ability to receive detailed information through oral communication. Positions in this class require the employee to express or exchange ideas by means of the spoken word. 
• Working Conditions: While some work will be in an office setting, visits to outdoor worksites will require an employee in this class to work outside and be subject to a variety of weather conditions, walking on uneven terrain, and working around vehicles in operation and around machinery with moving parts. Employees in this class may be required to operate a vehicle and thus will be subject to traffic hazards while driving. 
• Work in a Wastewater Treatment Facility: Employees in this class will be working in a wastewater treatment facility and thus will be subject to exposure to chemicals, toxic agents, blood and other bodily fluids, and communicable diseases. There may also be occasional exposure to extreme temperatures, inadequate lighting, and workspace that restricts movement. Employees in this class may be required to work in an industrial area and outdoors and thus will be subject to exposure to moving mechanical parts, electrical currents, fuel, oil, gases, smoke, fumes, odors, pollens, dust, vibrations, and intense noises as well as field conditions including rainy, windy, cold, or hot weather. 
• Working at Heights: Employees in this class may be required to work at heights 15 feet and more above the ground on equipment and structures.
  

Some of these requirements may be accommodated for otherwise qualified individuals requiring and requesting such accommodations, absent undue hardship.

OTHER REQUIREMENTS

• Background Checks: The District may conduct a background check and a reference check on candidates prior to appointment to a position within this class. 
• Independent Travel: Incumbents are required to travel independently, for example, to perform work at other work sites, to attend meetings with other District employees, to attend meetings with community organizations, etc. 
• Hours of Work: Incumbents may be required to work weekends, holidays, irregular hours, and after normal business hours.

Supplemental Information

SELECTION PROCESS

08/18/2026 Tentative dates for hiring interviews.

Responses to supplemental questions may be used as screening and testing mechanisms and will be used to assess an applicant's ability to advance in the process; as such, responses to supplemental questions should be treated as test examination responses. 

All applicants meeting the minimum qualifications are not guaranteed advancement through any subsequent phase of the recruitment process.

HOW TO APPLY

Go to https://www.governmentjobs.com/careers/fairfieldsuisunsew/jobs/5409461/lead-wastewater-plant-operator 

This recruitment will close at 5:00pm, on Monday, August 3, 2026.

IMPORTANT: Contact with candidates will primarily be via email.  Make sure you list a current email that you check regularly with your application.

Resumes will not be accepted in lieu of a completed application packet.

ADDITIONAL INFORMATION

Applicants receiving a conditional offer of employment must successfully complete the pre-employment process for this position before a final offer will be extended.    Pre-employment assessments for this position include a background, pre-employment physical, and pre-employment drug screen.

EQUAL EMPLOYMENT OPPORTUNITY 

It is the policy of Fairfield-Suisun Sewer District to consider all applicants for employment without regard to race, color, religion, sex, national origin, ethnicity, age, disability, sexual orientation, gender, gender identity, gender expression, marital status, ancestry, medical condition, genetic information, military or veteran status, or other protected category under the law.

ABOUT FAIRFIELD-SUISUN SEWER DISTRICT
The Fairfield-Suisun Sewer District is a wastewater special district serving approximately 149,000 customers in Central Solano County, California, about 40 miles northeast of San Francisco. The District safeguards public health and helps protect the Suisun Marsh, the nation's largest brackish water marsh and the largest remaining contiguous wetland on the Pacific Coast of North America.

The District has a vision, mission, and core values that we strive towards every day our employees show up for work.

Vision: Our vision is to be a recognized leader in our industry and community.

Mission: Fairfield-Suisun Sewer District protects public health and the environment for the communities we serve in an effective, responsible and sustainable manner.

Core Values: As we strive to realize our vision of the future, all our actions and efforts will be guided by a certain set of values. These core values are our pledge to each other and to the community as to how we will conduct business.

• Sustainability: We commit to environmental, social, and fiscal responsibility, managing our resources with a focus on long-term sustainability and balancing costs with outcomes.
• Transparency: We uphold the highest standards of integrity and ethical behavior in all our actions, fostering a culture of honesty and trust within our workplace and our community.
• Excellence: We strive for the highest quality in our work, embracing creativity and global thinking to achieve outstanding results and set standards in our industry, while ensuring a safe workplace and infrastructure.
• Positive Working Relationships: We foster strong, respectful relationships while emphasizing responsibility, proactivity, and ownership in our collaborations both within our team and with our external partners, promoting a cooperative and supportive work environment.
• Solution Driven: We are driven by innovation and dedicated to solving problems, by finding and implementing effective solutions.

Visit our website at www.FSSD.com