Groundskeeping workers: Salary, career path, job outlook, education and more
Groundskeeping workers, also called groundskeepers, maintain grounds. They care for plants and trees, rake and mulch leaves, and clear snow from walkways. They work on athletic fields, golf courses, cemeteries, university campuses, and parks, as well as in many of the same settings that landscaping workers work. They also see to the proper upkeep of sidewalks, parking lots, fountains, fences, planters, and benches, as well as groundskeeping equipment.
Groundskeeping workers who care for athletic fields keep natural and artificial turf in top condition, mark out boundaries, and paint turf with team logos and names before events. They mow, water, fertilize, and aerate the fields regularly. They must ensure that the underlying soil on fields with natural turf has the composition required to allow proper drainage and to support the grass used on the field. In sports venues, they vacuum and disinfect synthetic turf to prevent the growth of harmful bacteria and they remove the turf and replace the cushioning pad periodically.
Groundskeepers in parks and recreation facilities care for lawns, trees, and shrubs; maintain playgrounds; clean buildings; and keep parking lots, picnic areas, and other public spaces free of litter. They also may erect and dismantle snow fences and maintain swimming pools. These workers inspect buildings and equipment, make needed repairs, and keep everything freshly painted.
Some groundskeepers specialize in caring for cemeteries and memorial gardens. They dig graves to specified depths, generally using a backhoe. They mow grass regularly, apply fertilizers and other chemicals, prune shrubs and trees, plant flowers, and remove debris from graves.
- Education Required
- Although most grounds maintenance jobs have no education requirements, some employers may require formal education or certification in areas such as landscape design, horticulture, or arboriculture.
- Training Required
- A short period of on-the-job training is usually enough to teach new hires the skills they need, which often include how to plant and maintain areas and how to use mowers, trimmers, leaf blowers, small tractors, and other equipment. Large institutional employers such as golf courses, university campuses, or municipalities may supplement on-the-job training with coursework in horticulture, arboriculture, urban forestry, insect and disease diagnosis, tree climbing, or small-engine repair.
- Job Outlook
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The projected percent change in employment from 2016 to 2026: 10% (Faster than average)
(The average growth rate for all occupations is 7 percent.) - Advancement
- Grounds maintenance workers who have good communication skills may become crew leaders or advance into other supervisory positions. Becoming a manager or a landscape contractor may require some formal education and several years of related work experience. Some workers use their experience to start their own landscaping companies.
- Licenses/Certifications
- Most states require workers who apply pesticides and fertilizers to be licensed. Obtaining a license usually involves passing a test on the proper use and disposal of insecticides, herbicides, and fungicides.
- Median pay: How much do Grounds Maintenance Workers make?
- $26,830 Annual Salary
- $12.90 per hour
Careers for Grounds Maintenance Workers
- Arborists
- Certified pesticide applicators
- Fruit sprayers
- Golf course laborers
- Greenskeeper laborers
- Greenskeepers
- Grounds caretakers
- Groundskeepers
- Hedge trimmers
- Herbicide sprayers
- Landscape contractors
- Landscapers
- Landscaping workers
- Lawn care workers
- Lawn caretakers
- Lawn maintenance workers
- Lawn mowers
- Lawn service workers
- Orchard sprayers
- Pesticide handlers, sprayers, and applicators
- Pesticide handlers, sprayers, and applicators, vegetation
- Plant sprayers
- Pruners
- Shrub planters
- Sod layers
- Trail construction workers
- Trail maintenance workers
- Trailhead construction workers
- Trailhead maintenance workers
- Tree pruners
- Tree specialists
- Tree surgeons
- Tree trimmer helpers
- Tree trimmers
- Tree trimmers and pruners
- Weed sprayers