Need a job? U.S. Census Bureau will be hiring

The United States Census Bureau is gearing up for next year's gathering of information on American households, and parttime census takers are now being hired.

According to Carolyn Wallace, a recruiting assistant for the Santa Monica/Malibu Census area, the bureau needs to hire hundreds of local people to help in obtaining about the U.S. population.

Wallace said the temporary, part-time census takers are paid between $12.75 and $18.50 per hour. The hours are flexible and the work is generally conducted close to home, she said.

The Census Bureau will be hiring people from now until 2010, said Wayne Whitehead, manager of a local census office.

"The first operation is address canvassing," Whitehead said. Address canvassers physically verify all addresses in their assignment area, adding new households to the list and deleting those that no longer exist.

Over the next two years, the Los Angeles region, which includes Hawaii, will hire up to 58,000 people to work in their local communities, he said. In the Conejo Valley, Whitehead expects to hire up to 1,100 workers by the peak of operations.

According to the Census Bureau website, the jobs being offered are suitable for retirees, college students, people who are between jobs or anyone who would like to earn a little extra money "while performing an important service to their community."

"The Constitution mandates the taking of the census every 10 years since 1790," Wallace said. "We have to count dorms, gated communities, group housing units," she said.

"We have to find where everybody is," Wallace said. "We want to make sure that everybody counts as a human being."

The data gathered is used to determine government representation and how federal funds are spent on roads, parks, housing, schools and public safety in individual communities, Wallace said.

Census jobs include clerks, "enumerators"—who count people with handheld computers—administrative assistants and crew leaders.

Clerks earn $12.75 per hour, while recruiting assistants and crew leaders are paid $18.50 per hour. Enumerators earn $17 per hour. According to the website, hours range from 20 to 40 hours per week. All jobs are considered part time and temporary.

"What we aim to do is have people work in their own areas," Wallace said.

To work with the Census Bureau, a person must be a U.S. citizen and at least 18 years old. Workers must also have a valid Social Security number and driver's license (for field jobs only) and be able to read, write and speak English.

Applicants will be required to pass a written eligibility test and a background check.

Four days of training are required and may be conducted during the day, evening or on weekends. Men born after Dec. 31, 1959, must be registered with the Selective Service according to federal law, though Whitehead said individual circumstances will be considered.

The employment test consists of 28 multiple-choice questions designed to measure basic reading, math and clerical skills needed to perform a variety of census jobs. Workers will also be tested on how well they are able to interpret information and evaluate alternatives.

Applicants will be allowed to retake the 30minute test to improve their score. Practice tests are available on the Census Bureau website.

Locally, tests will be administered at the Westlake Village Community Room on Feb. 24.

Call (866) 8612010 to reserve a test date.

For further information, visit www.2010censusjobs.gov.