Not sure what the future holds for you after high school graduation?
If you love to be outside, like to work with your hands and are a good team player, landscaping might be a perfect fit.
Level Green Landscaping branch manager James Kole tells how a landscaping job straight out of high school can be the start of something big.
Where To Start?
“Typically you would start as a laborer on a crew,” Kole says. “You’d run weed eaters, mow and do standard maintenance.”
Starting out in the field like this is a great way to gain valuable experience, he says — experience to help you move up.
“You get to know how everything runs,” Kole says.
“It gives you real knowledge about how long everything takes.”
You’ll find plenty of managers in the landscaping field who started out on a crew, he says.
“Not having a college degree doesn't keep you from moving up,” Kole says. “It just might take you a little longer.”
What Are The Perks?
Expect to earn $12 to $13 an hour as a starting crew member, says Lynn Garris, office manager at Level Green.
Add to that one hour of paid time off for every 30 hours you work, up to 40 hours per year, she says.
Level Green offers six paid holidays once you’ve worked at the company for one year.
The longer you stay at Level Green Landscaping, the more opportunity you have for pay raises.
We pay for uniforms, too, from day one, unlike many landscaping companies. And we provide a uniform allowance each year to use when uniforms need replacing.
The longer you stay and work at Level Green, the more benefits you’ll get, too.
Insurance options. Paid vacation time. Opportunity for advancement. A company vehicle to drive, once you work your way up to manager.
Fun company picnics and events, from cookouts to dinners recognizing employee achievement.
Education And Training
Our goal is to train everyone on every piece of equipment, once they demonstrate they’re capable. This internal training will boost your skills and knowledge as you master larger and more complicated equipment.
We encourage employees to continue their education outside the company, too. We reimburse 50 percent of tuition on any industry-related class or certification, if you earn a C or higher.
You’re Joining A Family
We’re like a family here. If you join us, we’ll take care of you.
We appreciate our employees, and we show them. We give awards for good work and have parties and events throughout the year to celebrate our employees and spend good time together.
Want To Work And Go To School?
“We’re flexible,” Kole says. “We try to work around people's education schedules. We start so early that crews are back by 3:30. If you wanted to go to night classes, you could.”
Climbing The Landscaping Ladder
If you want to move up from a crew laborer, the typical progression would be to driver to assistant supervisor to supervisor, then operations manager, Kole says.
Is a Landscaping Career Right For You?
“For people who like to be outside, working on a landscaping crew is a great trade job,” Kole says. “If you took vocational education classes in high school, this is a way to continue to work with your hands.
“You’re not tied to a desk, or have to stick to a retail schedule.”
When To Start?
Interested in high school landscaping jobs? Contact us any time, Kole says.
“We’re always hiring,” he says. “It's always a challenge to find good people. We always have a flood of people apply in the spring, then it always gets challenging after that.”
Be ready to work hard, he says.
“It’s harder work than people think,” Kole says. “But it’s really rewarding.”
Want To Join The Team?
If you’re looking for a job where you can work outside, be part of a team and see the results of your work at the end of every day, consider a job at Level Green Landscaping.
Our team members receive competitive pay and benefits, and they have the opportunity to move up within the company.
We love what we do, and we’re always looking for others who feel the same way.
Ready to graduate from high school and hit the ground running?
Start by filling out the form on this page.
We’d love to meet you.
