By Amber McIver-Traywick

The Surveyor

The 2020 Census will not officially begin until this time next year, but there are job opportunities already available to help make it happen. The U.S. Census Bureau is currently recruiting thousands of workers for temporary jobs available nationwide in advance of the 2020 Census. The jobs are a great way for those who have some flexibility to earn extra income. Collecting the vast amount of information taken in by the census is a job that requires thousands of extra hands to ensure it is as accurate as possible. The decennial census data is used to determine representation in Congress and, among many other things, influences funding for roads, schools, hospitals, and other important elements of our community.

The 2020 Census Jobs website allows applicants to apply for a range of positions, including recruiting assistants, office operations supervisors, clerks, census field supervisors, and census takers. The positions will be located across 248 Area Census Offices nationwide and offer flexible work hours, including daytime, evenings and weekends. Some of the positions will begin much sooner than others as there are a wide variety of skills needed.

Most people are probably familiar with census takers who work in the field. Some field positions require employees to work during the day to see addresses on buildings. Other field positions require interviewing the public, so employees must be available to work when people are usually at home, such as in the evening and on weekends. According to the 2020 Census Jobs website, people working in field positions in Berthoud and surrounding communities will make $16 an hour as well as having mileage and other authorized expenses reimbursed.

Recruiting assistants travel throughout geographic areas to visit with community-based organizations, attend promotional events, and conduct other recruiting activities. Office operations supervisors assist in the management of office functions and day-to-day activities in one or more functional areas, including payroll, personnel, recruiting, field operations, and support. Clerks perform administrative and clerical tasks to support various functional areas; including payroll, personnel, recruiting, field operations, and support. Finally, census field supervisors conduct fieldwork to support and conduct on-the-job training for census takers and/or to follow-up in situations where census takers have confronted issues, such as not gaining entry to restricted areas.

The online application process takes around 30 minutes to complete. Once a complete application has been submitted, applicants will be placed in a talent pool for 2020 Census field positions for jobs for which they qualify and will be contacted as work becomes available in their area. The Denver Regional Office Recruiting handles position in our area and can be reached by calling 1-877-474-5226. Applicants may also contact the Federal Relay Service at 1-800-877-8339.

For more information, please visit the 2020 Census Jobs page at 2020census.gov and for other Census Bureau employment opportunities visit usajobs.gov.