74205 Public works maintenance equipment operators and related workers

What this occupation covers

Public works maintenance equipment operators and related workers operate vehicles and equipment to maintain streets, highways and sewer systems and operate trucks to collect garbage and recyclable materials. This unit group also includes workers who clear vegetation close to power lines. They are employed by municipal, provincial and federal public works departments, private contractors under contract with government public works departments and private companies involved in the collection of refuse and recyclable materials.

Official main duties

The NOC profile lists 7 main duties for this code.

• Operate garbage trucks to remove garbage and other refuse and dump loads at designated sites
• Operate street cleaning equipment such as street sweepers or other vehicles equipped with rotating brushes to remove sand, litter and trash
• Operate snowplows or trucks fitted with plow blades to remove snow from streets, highways, parking lots and similar areas
• Operate sewer maintenance equipment such as rodders and sewer jet cleaners to maintain and repair sewer systems
• Operate trucks equipped with apparatuses for spreading sand, salt or abrasives on roadways
• Operate chainsaws and other clearing equipment to fell trees and cut back vegetation close to power lines
• Check, lubricate, refuel and clean equipment and report any malfunctions to supervisor.

Do not copy these lines into your reference letter. The letter has to describe what you actually did, in your employer’s words. DUTYPROOF flags wording lifted from the NOC as something to review, and an officer reading a letter that mirrors the NOC reads it the same way.

What DUTYPROOF screens for

This is DUTYPROOF’s screening threshold, not IRCC’s decision. For this NOC, screening requires at least 2 of its 7 official duties to be evidenced in your own words, plus the required letter elements. IRCC asks that you performed the actions in the occupation’s lead statement and a substantial number of its main duties — so treat the duty coverage as the number that matters, not the badge.

Codes this one is confused with

The NOC profile names these itself. Choosing the wrong code of a look-alike pair is the most common way genuine work experience fails to establish eligibility.

• 73400 Heavy equipment operators
• 85121 Landscaping and grounds maintenance labourers
• 75212 Public works and maintenance labourers
• 72021 Contractors and supervisors, heavy equipment operator crews
• 73300 Transport truck drivers

Excluded from this code

• Heavy equipment operators (See 73400 Heavy equipment operators)
• Landscaping and grounds maintenance labourers (See 85121 Landscaping and grounds maintenance labourers)
• Public works and maintenance labourers (See 75212 Public works and maintenance labourers)
• Public works maintenance equipment operators supervisor (See 72021 Contractors and supervisors, heavy equipment operator crews)
• Transport truck drivers (See 73300 Transport truck drivers)

Job titles filed under this code

A title on this list does not by itself put your experience in this code — the duties in your letter decide that.

collection truck driver - public works · drain roto servicer - public works · electrical forester · equipment operator - municipal public work · garbage collector - driver · garbage truck driver · garbage truck driver - public works · highway snow removal equipment operator · highway snowplow operator · maintenance equipment operator - public works · mechanical sweeper operator - public works · municipal maintenance equipment operator · municipal servicer drain roto · power sweeper operator - public works · public works maintenance equipment operator · recycling truck driver · recycling truck driver - public works · refuse truck driver - public works · road snowplow operator - public works · salt truck operator · salt truck operator - public works · sand spreader operator · sand spreader operator - public works · sanding truck operator - public works

Employment requirements

• Some secondary school may be required.
• Experience as a public works labourer is usually required.
• On-the-job training is provided.
• A driver's licence appropriate to a specific type of equipment may be required.
• Trade certification for utility arborists is available, but voluntary, in Ontario and British Columbia.