Waste management careers include customer Service Managers, waste management officers, recyclers, garbage truck drivers, financial auditors, etc. Having a flashback to some of the things learned in Natural Science or Basic Science about living things. Living things have various characteristics which include:
- MOVEMENT: this involves the shifting from a place to another in search of food, water, or security reasons.
- RESPIRATION: only living things respire or breathe. Respiration involves the exchange of gases.
- NUTRITION: inanimate objects do not feed, such as woods, plastics, etc. Living things feed to stay alive.
- GROWTH: Growth is an increase in size and height. Inanimate objects do not experience growth.
- REPRODUCTION: living things reproduce asexually or sexually.
Living things are made up of plants and animals. Human beings can be likened to a higher ‘animal.’ Human beings need to feed to stay alive. Consumption of certain food materials would result in waste being derived. This brings about the definition of waste. Waste is a material that can be derived from the consumption of goods in our habitats, work environment, religious institution, or Educational institution, which do not yield any form of benefit to our well-being. Waste can be in a solid or a liquid state. The solid form of waste includes plastic bottles, plate foils, plastic buckets, tin cans, cardboard, etc. In comparison, the liquid waste involves the excretory products from the body, oil spillage, etc. Liquid wastes have to be properly treated to avoid contamination of our environment. Oil companies have to effectively control spillage into our streams, wells, rivers, etc., to prevent loss of life and extinction of aquatic animals.
Most of the wastes found in our homes can be managed successfully and converted to other profitable items. The need to manage our wastes effectively helps to create job opportunities for the unemployed. A country with a large sect of unemployed youths could provide job opportunities in various waste management organizations.
Waste management careers involves the technical skills involved in collecting, selecting, sorting, recycling, and proper disposal methods or techniques of waste products. Some career opportunities that can be found in a waste management organization include:
- Customer Service Managers
They are trained personnel who serve as a ‘middle man” between the organization and the customers. He/ she listens to feedback, suggestions, complaints made by the customers and provides reports to the organization. Customer service manager ensures the relationship between the organization and the customers/ client does not get strained. He or she introduces new methods or ways the organization can improve services being rendered. A good communication skill is vital too. - Financial Auditors
They are skilled workers who ensure the customers’ services are adequately paid for by the customers. They ensure defaulting customers get to pay up outstanding balances for them to keep enjoying waste management services. They keep records of financial activities carried out in the organization. Also, keep a balance in the income and expenditure table to avoid the organization running at a loss. - Waste management officers
They are professionally and technically trained officers who collect, arrange and discharge waste products in a manner that is safe and healthy. They are equally responsible for treating and controlling waste in the environment. Liquid waste materials must be treated correctly to avoid a break out of diseases. - Recyclers
Recyclers are waste management workers who believe that nothing is a waste but can be recycled. They are equally in charge of recycling mostly solid waste products. A recycler doesn’t see waste as waste. There are thousand and one things to do with waste. Some of our wastes can be easily decomposed, whereas some take centuries or a lifetime in our environment.
- Up-cyclers
Recycling is similar to upcycling. Upcycling involves adding importance to waste/ waste materials. Up cyclers are creative workers who modify waste materials into valuables or fortunes. - Garbage Truck Drivers
They are legally permitted to drive in a city, state, or country. He/ she possesses a driver’s license, vehicle permit, etc. He or she is charged with picking up wastes from residential homes, companies, shopping stalls, etc. The wastes materials picked are thereby taken to where they are all sorted out and properly disposed of. - Automobile repairs
They are skillful employees in charge of the vehicles’ total well-being used in carrying out daily waste management tasks. There is a daily routine checking of the vehicles to ensure they are in good condition. Vehicles with issues are well serviced, and broken parts are replaced immediately to ensure the free flow of services.
Waste Management Jobs Salary:
There are various ranges of salary paid in waste management careers. It varies according to locations, countries, or organizations. Bargaining skills come into play during the interview process. It depends on how good an individual can bargain.
- Garbage Truck Drivers salary: $33,280 – $54,080
- Waste management officers salary: $85,000 – $150,000
- Waste management Customer Service Manager salary: $25,000 – $100,000
- Recyclers salary: $24,000 – $36000
Waste Management Career Requirements
Every waste management job comes with its requirements. Potential employees must meet the job requirements in order to be invited for an interview or gainfully employed. Most Job advertisements displayed by companies pinpoint the requirements for the job.
The requirements include the following:
- Degree/ Certificate: a university degree or college degree may be required for some job openings or organizations. To be considered a degree, such an applicant must have completed at least three years of intensive learning in that field. Some require a diploma certificate, which could be nine months and above, to be accepted as a diploma certificate. This helps to show proof that the individual has undergone certain training levels or acquired certain levels of knowledge needed on the job training or in the job training. The degree could be in Geology, Waste management control, environmental engineering or waste control, etc.
- Harnessing of skills: It is not just enough to possess certificates or degrees. Potential employees need to acquire certain skills set needed in carrying out daily tasks at work. Certain skills such as communication skills are required; good communication skills help pass ideas from one person to another. Ideas are passed verbally, written, and use body gestures. Communication is achieved when the other person understands the message being passed across. Communication is needed in the whole waste management phase from the waste selection, disposal, recycling, or upcycling. Communication is vital in achieving progress in an organization. Time management skill is equally important in handling customers. Potential applicants/ employees have to be time conscious in dealing with waste management clients to avoid losing clients or experiencing a break in trust. Waste products are not materials to be kept unattended for a long period of time to avoid the stench, spread of sickness, or land pollution. One needs to understand the effectiveness of time management skills. Decision- making skills can never be overemphasized. In life, every minute, we need to make decisions every second, every hour of the day. The decision to eat, sleep, study, walk, etc. Some of the requirements needed include the ability to make decisions effectively and especially in dire needs. The ability to make decisions under pressure is very vital.
- Driver’s license: one of the basic requirements needed in a waste management organization is driving. Potential employees need to be knowledgeable in driving, especially in emergencies where roles get switched up to ensure the organization’s continuous flow of work.
- Some personal qualities are required, such as patience, less irritability, accommodating, friendly, and keen attention to details.
Waste Management Hiring Minimum Age
Due to the high level of risk involved in the job, children below the ages of 1-17years of age are not advised to take up such job roles as it exposes them to major health challenges and other on the job challenges. The legal age for in Waste Management careers is fixed at 18 years and above, and such an individual is regarded as an adult. He or she is responsible for the actions taken and the consequences bequeathed. He or she is seen to know the difference between a right act and a wrong act.
Waste Management Careers – Application process
The application process varies from one organization or the country to another. The first step is for the organization to display the job vacancies, either through mass media or social media platforms. The vacancy must include the name of the organization, location, job description, job requirements, salary structure (optional), or Age needed(optional). The mode of submission of entries should equally be stated to be either the online or walk-in methods. Applicants apply on the company’s website or walk in to submit their credentials. Some organizations display a short quiz to assess the level of knowledge or emotional intelligence of the applicants. Within two weeks, a response is received by the applicants in the form of an invite. It may be to inform them of their performance level. It may be in the mode of a text message or electronic mail. The invite gives certain details about the interview that’s to take place.
Adequate time is given to applicants to do deep research about key aspects of the organization and would be assessed on those areas and much more. The invite may contain the name of the organization, venue, time, names of panelists, and job position, for companies that choose to make their application processes online. Job applicants may need to create profiles on the job portal of the website and upload their credentials. A proper check should be made on every credential before submission to ensure accuracy. Applicants invited for physical interviews need to display a high level of confidence, politeness, and knowledge about the organization.
Waste Management Benefits
There are various benefits accrued to waste management careers. Some of the benefits include:
- Reduction in land pollution: waste materials that are properly controlled reduce the environment being filled with foreign materials and made habitable. Landfilling dumpsites shouldn’t be encouraged, dropping off litters in parks or subways should be avoided. These litters end up blocking the free flow of water in the drainages, which could cause flooding of homes.
- It helps to keep our surroundings clean and neat: waste products well disposed of help to keep the environment free from debris, nylons, scraps, etc.
- Reduces pests’ incidence: certain pests such as termites or maggots tend to dwell in areas with moist or wet waste products. Effective waste management methods help to curb these issues.
- Protection of soil nutrients: it is keen to avoid the burning of waste materials. Instead, the wastes products should be well curtailed and disposed of adequately. The burning practice is a major cause of soil nutrient loss.
- Recycling: Waste materials are picked up by the garbage trucks and taken to be sorted out. Fiber wastes and non-fiber wastes are sorted. The materials are taken to garbage storehouses, where they can be converted into various products through the recycling process.
- Aesthetic purposes: certain materials such as plastic bottles, tin cans. Cardboards etc., are picked up and converted into beautiful commodities and sold at valuable prices or kept in museums. For instance, a center round chair could be made from plastic bottles, cardboards, scraps of foams, etc., to produce wonderful artwork.
- Employment: there is a large sector of jobs created under the waste management system. It helps to provide jobs for people who need jobs; when there is a decrease in unemployment in a city, town, or state, the level of truancy decreases.
- A source of income: waste management could provide an extra income or serve as a means of income. Some companies request the public to use plastic bottles to be recycled and get to pay Individuals who meet their requests. Individuals can generate income by providing the companies the used plastics.
- Helps to increase our life span: a life span can be cut short abruptly when exposed to major health challenges.
