CDOT seeking Permanent Employees at Eisenhower Tunnel

DENVER – With the potential of heavy spring snowstorms on the horizon in the high country and elsewhere, the Colorado Department of Transportation continues to look for people to hire for maintenance positions at numerous locations across the state, including at the Eisenhower/Johnson Memorial Tunnels. 

Interested individuals living in the Denver area are encouraged to apply due to a new, added benefit for new tunnel employees.  CDOT will be utilizing a van to transport personnel between the Dinosaur Park-and-Ride lots in the Golden area (Interstate 70 and Morrison Road) and the EJMT.  In addition, employees will be “on the clock” while commuting to and from the tunnels.    

“We used to require employees to live within 30 minutes of the tunnel but no longer,” said EJMT Superintendent Jeff Tatkenhorst.  “Now, if you live in metro Denver, you can work at the EJMT.  You’ll also be part of a good team environment that’s maintaining safety for the traveling public at the highest vehicular tunnel in the U.S. and working at the highest point on Interstate Highway System.”

In addition to the EJMT, hiring now is underway to fill positions in other areas of the state.  Locations include:

• Bear Creek Canyon (Kittridge)
• Interstate 70 Mountain Corridor (Empire, Dillon/Summit County, Eagle County)
• West Central (Poncha Pass)
• Southwest (Telluride)

Some positions require a Colorado Class A or B Commercial Driver’s License (CDL) and experience operating heavy equipment, such as a forklift or bus, and/or physical labor experience.  The starting monthly pay for full-time permanent employees is $3266.  In addition to promotional opportunities, the positions include the following benefits:

• Annual leave (accrued based on years of service, starting at 8 hours a month)
• Sick leave accrued at 6.66 hours a month
• 10 paid holidays per year
• Medical and dental plans with no cost preventative services
• State paid Life Insurance with optional additional life insurance
• State paid Short Term Disability coverage, with optional long term disability plan
• Participation in PERA with 2 retirement plan options, and voluntary PERA 401K and 457 plans
• Credit union membership
• Work life programs
• State Employee Assistance programs at no cost
• Tuition and certification reimbursement program
• Access to a diverse array of technical, leadership, supervisory and specialty training across the state, in addition to personal development and productivity learning opportunities
• State employee discount programs

In addition, some temporary maintenance positions remain open.  CDOT continues to offer several incentives, including:

• A pay rate of $23 an hour
• A pay rate of $25 an hour (or hourly wage at retirement, whichever is higher) for experience, retired CDOT maintenance personnel

Temporary seasonal positions generally last up to nine months.  The seasonal employee then is encouraged to apply for a permanent maintenance position, based on experience gained while temporarily employed.

In addition, the state Department of Personnel and Administration has provided CDOT with a residency waiver, allowing beginning temporary and permanent highway maintenance employees to be hired from out-of-state. In previous years, most permanent positions required Colorado residency.

Interested individuals should apply now at: http://bit.ly/TeamCDOT.  

WHOLE SYSTEM. WHOLE SAFETY. 

To heighten safety awareness, CDOT’s Whole System — Whole Safety initiative takes a systematic statewide approach to safety, combining the benefits of CDOT’s programs that address driving behaviors, our built environment and the organization's operations. The goal is to improve the safety of Colorado’s transportation network by reducing the rate and severity of crashes and improving the safety of all transportation modes. The program has one simple mission—to get everyone home safely.

CDOT has approximately 3,000 employees throughout Colorado, and manages more than 23,000 lane miles of highway and 3,429 bridges. CDOT also manages grant partnerships with a range of other agencies, including metropolitan planning organizations, local governments, and airports, and administers Bustang, the state-owned and operated interregional express service. Gov. Jared Polis has charged CDOT to further build on the state’s intermodal mobility options.