Westlands Water District

Fresno, CA

Senior Electrician

Bargaining Unit: Miscellaneous Non-Supervisory
Salary Code: 25
Fair Labor Standards Act Designation: Non-Exempt
Revision Date: April 24, 2025

GENERAL DESCRIPTION:

Under general supervision of the Supervisor of Electrical Maintenance, plans, organizes, directs, and reviews the work of assigned staff performing troubleshooting, overhauling, testing, repairing, and installing electrical circuits, motors, controls, and equipment with low and high voltage.

The Senior Electrician serves in a lead capacity and is considered an advanced journey-level classification in the Electrical Department. The Senior Electrician will perform complex and challenging electrical installations, maintenance of electrical equipment, repair and modification work, and is also responsible for the training of assigned staff.

EXAMPLES OF WORK PERFORMED:

The information below is meant to serve as examples of the job duties and responsibilities for this classification. This list is neither inclusive nor exclusive, but indicative of several types of duties performed.

  1. Plans, organizes, directs, and reviews the work of assigned staff performing electrical duties and resolves work problems.
  2. Installs, performs, and directs installation, maintenance, repair, troubleshooting, modification, and testing of electrical equipment and components, including up to 7,000 HP synchronous motors, generators, motor control centers, potential, and current transformers up p 4,160 volts, large battery banks, high voltage switching and switchgear up to 115KV, manual and combination starters, and control circuits.
  3. Inspects, installs, troubleshoots, repairs, calibrates, and tests complex and straightforward protective relaying, revenue power metering equipment and chartless recorders, automatic telemetry control equipment, canal elevation and flow control equipment, automatic cathodic protection systems, SCADA systems, high voltage circuit breakers and disconnects, and buried communication cables, PLCs equipment, radio equipment, HMI panels and status of neighboring facilities.
  4. Installs, designs, programs, troubleshoots, repairs programmable logic controllers, and develops programs and support documentation for programmed logic control systems.
  5. Installs and maintains lighting fixtures, outlets and heating, ventilation and air conditioning equipment.
  6. Performs live man-on-live work applying hotstick techniques in accordance with Western Area Power Administration regulations.
  7. Designs, develops, and maintains replacement circuitry, revamps electrical facilities and electrical drawings.
  8. Inspects field contract work. Makes decisions affecting District and landowner facilities.
  9. Operates personal computers and spreadsheet, and word processing and computer-aided drafting software to develop and maintain electrical schematics.
  10. Responds to emergency situations.
  11. Performs rigging for the transportation, removal, and installation of motors and motor control equipment.
  12. Installs and maintains corrosion control equipment with impressed current protection.
  13. Assists in formulation and implementation of long-range planning goals.
  14. Assists in preparing the Departments annual budget.
  15. Performs other duties as assigned.

CLASSIFICATION REQUIREMENTS:

Education and Experience

Any combination of equivalent education and experience that has led to the acquisition of the knowledge required by the position. A typical way of acquiring the knowledge would be:

Completion of a two-year program (52-semester units) in electrical and electronics at an accredited academic, trade, or technical school, and seven (7) years journey-level electrician/electronic experience, two years of which must have included lead or supervisory responsibilities; or equivalent.

Note: Two (2) years of experience as an Electrician with Westlands Water District will substitute for the lead or supervisory responsibilities.

Substitution: Completion of an electrical apprenticeship program at Westlands Water District with three (3) years’ experience in the Electrical Maintenance Department and completion of a two-year (52-semester units) in electrical and electronics at an accredited academic, trade, or technical school may be considered in lieu of required experience.

Knowledge of:

  • Operating and maintaining a variety of hand, power, and shop tools and equipment used in electrical installations, maintenance, and repair work.
  • Western Area Power Administration and District high voltage switching orders.
  • The National Electrical Code and relevant Electrical Safety Orders of the California Division of Industrial Safety.
  • Standard operating procedures of the Pleasant Valley Pumping Plan and the Coalinga Canal.
  • The applicable safety and accident prevention procedures of the California Occupational Safety and Health Act.
  • The National Electrical Manufactures Association standards.
  • The operation of an overhead crane, truck crane, and other moveable and permanently mounted cranes up to 20-ton capacity.
  • The operation of a boom truck with man basket and ability to follow proper safety procedure.
  • The operations of a wireless network and a point-to-point wireless telemetry control system.
  • Principles and practices of technical and functional supervision and training.

Skills/Abilities to:

  • Understand, interpret, and apply department policies, rules, regulations, and procedures.
  • Supervise, train, and evaluate assigned staff.
  • Troubleshoot and evaluate electrical systems and take appropriate actions.
  • Understand and design new PLC logic and HMIs.
  • Prepare oral and written instructions, including health and safety protocol.
  • Perform skilled electrical work.
  • Maintain accurate records.
  • Distinguish colors.
  • Establish and maintain effective interpersonal relationships at all organizational levels as well as with the public.
  • Operate District vehicle and/or equipment, observe legal and defensive driving practices.

SPECIAL REQUIREMENTS

Must qualify to be authorized by Westlands Water District and Western Area Power Administration to issue and receive clearances and perform switching at high voltage installations up to 115 KV within twelve (12) months of appointment.

WORKING CONDITIONS

  • Heavy lifting of supplies and materials up to 100 pounds.
  • Use of hazardous materials.
  • Possess physical strength and agility to work outdoors in adverse climates and weather conditions.
  • Works in an environment with exposure to dust, dirt, and/or weed abatement chemicals.
  • May stoop, kneel, crouch, crawl, climb, reach, sit, stand, and walk for an extended period.
  • Respond to emergency calls on a 24 hour-a-day basis on a rotating on-call schedule.
  • Possess the physical characteristics to perform the critical and important duties of the job, including the ability to cling stationary ladders up to 100 feet in height, work suspended above ground level (approximately 45 feet) in a bosun chair or aerial lift, and work in confined spaces, such as in excavations (approximately 20 feet below ground level), buried in dewatered pipelines and manifolds (ranging in size from 3 feet to 13 feet in diameter), and dewatered sumps and turnout facilities (approximately 30 feet below ground level).

STANDARD REQUIREMENTS

  • Possess a valid California Class C Driver’s license with a driving record acceptable to the District’s automobile insurance provider is required.