CHARLOTTE – The U.S Census Bureau is seeking qualified applicants to fill more than 76,000 jobs in a five-state region, which includes North Carolina. Most of the temporary positions are for census takers, who will go door-to-door beginning in early May to visit households that have not returned the census questionnaire. Some hiring will begin in January, but most hiring is set for March and April 2010.
Job-seekers can call toll-free at 866-861-2010 for application instructions and information about jobs in any of the 52 local census offices within the five-state Charlotte Region. Information is also available at www.2010censusjobs.gov.
Nationwide, the federal government will hire about 1.4 million temporary census workers during peak 2010 Census operations.
“The census is a constitutional mandate that’s too big for the federal government to carry out alone,” said William W. Hatcher, regional director for the Charlotte Regional Census Center. “That’s why we must build an army of local people to ensure everyone is counted.”
Applicants must be a U.S. citizen or have a U.S. permanent residency card (green card), age 18 and older, have a valid Social Security number, and pass a basic skills test. Most jobs require a driver’s license and use of a car. The full-time and part-time census jobs allow flexible schedules and close-to-home employment. Competitive pay for census takers begins at $10.75 an hour and varies depending on job and location.
“These important jobs offer attractive pay, flexibility and on-the-job training,” Hatcher added. “People can work in their communities, for their communities. Census jobs count in many ways.”
Census results are used to determine the number of Congressional seats for each state, the shape of legislative districts and local government districts, and how more than $400 billion in federal funds is distributed annually to communities across the country.
April 1 is the official ‘Census Day.’ All census responses should represent the household as it exists on that day.