Fire Hire
A highly skilled, hardworking cast of thousands is needed to battle wildland fires. The USDA Forest Service, Pacific Southwest Region Fire and Aviation Management program requires talented people working safely together to be successful.
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We hire positions in wildland firefighting across California, including both permanent and permanent seasonal opportunities.
Wildland firefighters work in a variety of specialized positions, including air attack, fire engine crews, fuels management, hand crews, helirappel, helitack, interagency hotshot crews, patrol and prevention technicians, and smokejumping. These crews often travel throughout California and other regions of the country.
People Working in FireCareers in Wildland Fire
USA JOBS: A federal employment service provided absolutely free to the public. It’s the fastest and easiest way to find and apply for federal employment. USA JOBS offers completely private, safe, and secure access to thousands of federal jobs worldwide.
Employment Opportunities
Applying for the temporary workforce for the USFS takes some pre-planning. Job Announcements are open for 14 days. If applications are not submitted during the open and close dates in USAJobs your application will not be accepted.
There are several phases of preplanned hiring that takes place throughout the year. Below is a general overview of when temporary job announcements will open and close. If you would like to be notified on when positions open and close, fill out this form Region 5 Wildland Firefighter Interest Form and an email will be sent to you with a reminder to apply and what positions are open at that time.
Below are general opening and closing dates for temporary vacancy announcements for the 2025 field season. All dates are subject to change.
Phase 1: Job announcements open 6/27/24 - 7/10/24. Selections 8/13/24 - 9/11/24. Fire positions are generally not open for this hiring round. These positions generally start work winter and spring work in 2025.
Phase 2: Job announcements open 8/2/24 - 8/16/24. Selections 9/23/24 - 10/22/24. Few fire positions are open for this hiring round. These positions generally start work spring and early summer in 2025.
Phase 3: Job announcements open 10/24/24 - 11/6/24. Selections 12/18/24 – 1/29/25. This is our main hiring event for wildland firefighting positions for the field season of 2025. These positions generally start work in May and end in the fall.
Phase 4: Job announcements 3/3/25 and close 3/13/25. The below announcement numbers are linked to the positions in USAJobs and you can apply from there.
Position Description Announcement
GS-4 Forestry Technician (Fire Dispatch) 25-TEMPF4-R5-0935-4DH
GS-5 Forestry Technician (Fire Dispatch) 25-TEMPF4-R5-0936-5DH
GS-4 Forestry Technician (Lookout) 25-TEMP4-R5-2856-4DH
GS-5 Forestry Technician (Lookout) 25-TEMP4-R5-3451-5DH
Tips for Applying
It is highly recommended that you read and understand how to develop a resume and what is required on the resume when applying. Many applicants do not make it through due to not having the required information on their resume. There are several tutorials and webinars available on how to apply for a job within the main webpage. It is recommended that you view them if you are unsure what is needed.
How to Build a Federal Resume | US Forest Service
Visit How to apply for a Forest Service Job for information on how to set up a profile in USA Jobs to Helpful Tips for applying.
Visit the Forest Service Hiring & Recruitment Events for upcoming webinars. Also, checkout the Hiring Events Calendar to find upcoming and past webinars to view.
To receive information about upcoming hiring events and webinars, please sign up for our Job Seeker Email Database.
Email Brian Grabowski at brian.grabowski@usda.gov or call 530-927-9135 if you would like more information on wildland fire positions within California.
The Pacific Southwest Region is looking for a committed, hardworking, highly skilled workforce to suppress wildfires and work in fuels management on National Forests located throughout California. The fire and aviation management program is very rewarding and requires talented people working safely as part of a team in a variety of specialized positions.
Hiring for Permanent Wildland Firefighter positions occur year-round in a phased approach. Below are general opening and closing dates for Permanent Wildland Fire Vacancy Announcements. If you would like updated information when positions open and close, fill out this form. Region 5 Wildland Fire Interest Form
Copy and paste the announcement number below into the search bar in USAjobs and it will bring you to the position and you can apply from there.
Position Description/Announcement number
Supervisor Forestry Technician / Wildland Fire Ops Specialist 25-FIRE-P3VA-ADZFMOH-89DH
Forestry Technician (Dispatcher) / Asst Center Manager 25-FIRE-P3VA-SIAADCM-89DH
Forestry Technician (Dispatcher) / GACC Logistics Dispatcher 25-FIRE-P3VA-GACCLC-89DH
Aircraft Dispatcher 25-FIRE-P3VA-AVDISP-89DH
IA Dispatcher / Initial Attack 25-FIRE-P3VA-IADISP-567DH
Forestry Technician (Fuels) AFMO (Supervisory) 25-FIRE-P3VA-SFUELSP-89DH
Forestry Technician (Fire) 25-FIRE-P3VA-FFUELS-8DH
Forestry Technician (Fuels Operator) 25-FIRE-P3VA-PFFEO-6DH
Supervisor Forestry Technician (Fire Engine Operator) / SFEO 25-FIRE-P3VA-SFEOH-78DH
Fire Engine Operator (FEO) 25-FIRE-P3VA-FEOH-67DH
Lead Forestry Technician / (AFEO) 25-FIRE-P3VA-AFEO-56DH
Supervisor Forestry Technician (Handcrew) 25-FIRE-P3VA-SHDCRW-78DH
Forestry Technician (Handcrew) / Asst Supervisor 25-FIRE-P3VA-HCREWT2-67DH
Lead Forestry Technician (Hotshot / Handcrew) 25-FIRE-P3VA-LHSHCRW-56DH
Supervisor Forestry Technician / IHC Superintendent 25-FIRE-P3VA-IHCSUPT-10DH
Supervisor Forestry Technician (Fire) / Asst Superintendent 25-FIRE-P3VA-IHCASST-78DH
Forestry Technician (Squad Leader) 25-FIRE-P3VA-IHCSQLR-67DH
Lead Forestry Technician (Hotshot / Handcrew) 25-FIRE-P3VA-LHSHCRW-56DH
Forestry Tech Handcrew (Type 1 WFM) Supervisory 25-FIRE-P3VA-HCRWSUP-89DH
Forestry Tech Handcrew (Type 1 WFM) 25-FIRE-P3VA-HCREWT1-78DH
Supervisor Forestry Technician (Prevention) 25-FIRE-P3VA-FTPRVSUP-89DH
Forestry Technician (Prevention) / Non-supervisory 25-FIRE-P3VA-FPREVOF-89DH
Forestry Technician (Prevention) 25-FIRE-P3VA-PREV-67DH
Forestry Technician (ATGS) 25-FIRE-P3VA-ATGS-89DH
Supervisor Forestry Technician (Helitack) 25-FIRE-P3VA-HLTAKMGR-9DH
Supervisor Forestry Technician (Helitack) / Asst Supervisor 25-FIRE-P3VA-HLTAKMGR-78DH
Forestry Technician (Helitack) / Squad Leader 25-FIRE-P3VA-HTKSQLR-67DH
Forestry Technician (Airtanker Base) / Manager 25-FIRE-P3VA-AIRTNKB-89DH
Forestry Technician (Airtanker Base) 25-FIRE-P3VA-AIRTNKB-78DH
Forestry Technician (Airtanker Base) / Ramp Manager 25-FIRE-P3VA-AIRTNKB-67DH
Engineering Equipment Operator Leader / Fire Dozer 25-FIRE-P3VA-EQOPLDR-10DH
Engineering Equipment Operator / Fire Dozer 25-FIRE-P3VA-FDZEROP-10DH
Dozer Assistant/DZOP 25-FIRE-P3VA-FDZEROP-8DH
Dozer Assistant 25-FIRE-P3VA-FDZER-6DH
Supervisor Forestry Technician (Smokejumper) / Asst Manager 25-FIRE-P3VA-SSMKJMP-89DH
Forestry Technician (Smokejumper) / Spotter 25-FIRE-P3VA-SMKJMPSP-78DH
Smokejumper Squad Leader 25-FIRE-P3VA-SMKJMPL-7DH
Forestry Technician (Smokejumper) 25-FIRE-P3VA-SMKJMPR-56DH
Phase 1: GS-9 and below as well as WG/WL-10 and below: Job announcements open 8/23/24 - 9/24/24. Selections Nov/Dec 2024.
Entry Level Recruitment Event: Listed above 1/6 through 1/27/25. Selections February 2025.
Phase 2: GS-9 and above: Job announcements open 1/16/25 - 1/27/25. Selections Jan/Feb 2025.
Phase 3: GS-6 to GS-9, WG/WL-10 and GS-11 and above. Job announcements open 4/14/25 – 4/24/25. Selections May/June 2025.
Phase 4: GS-9 and above. Job announcements open 6/4/25 - 6/13/25. Selections July 2025.
All dates are subject to change, please review job announcements in USAJOBS for open and close dates.
For current Wildland Fire Position listings in Region 5 visit Current Wildland Fire positions in Region 5
Outreach Notices are available here Forest Service Outreach Database
Tips for Applying and Helpful Links
It is highly recommended that you read and understand how to develop a resume and what is required on the resume when applying. Many applicants do not make it through due to not having the required information on their resume. There are several tutorials and webinars available on how to apply for a job within the main webpage. It is recommended that you view this information if you are unsure what is needed.
How to Build a Federal Resume | US Forest Service
Forest Service Hiring & Recruitment Events
Email Brian Grabowski at brian.grabowski@usda.gov or call 530-927-9135 if you would like more information on wildland fire positions within California.
More Information
Student and Recent Grad Pathways Internships
Wildland Firefighter Apprenticeship Program: The intent of the Program is to take a career entry firefighter and provide education, training and paid work experience over a 12 to 48 month period, depending on experience. Upon successful completion of all the requirements of the Apprenticeship Program, the apprentice will reach journey-level status as a wildland firefighter.
Training: Includes links to National and Regional Fire and Aviation Training Sites.
USDA 1890 National Scholars Program: Scholarships are awarded annually and must be used at one of the 1890 Historically Black Land-Grant Universities. Each award provides full tuition, as well as room and board, for the term of the scholarship. The scholarship may be renewed each year, contingent upon satisfactory academic performance and normal progress toward the bachelor's degree.
For any questions regarding the USDA/1890 National Scholars Program, please contact:
Office of Partnerships and Public Engagement
USDA/1890 Programs
1400 Independence Ave., S.W., Stop 0170
Washington, DC 20250
Telephone Number: (202) 720-6350
Fax Number: (202) 720-7704
Email
Wildland Firefighter Foundation: Wildland Firefighter Foundation’s main focus is to help families of firefighters killed in the line of duty and to assist injured firefighters and their families.