I spent three summers as a forestry technician for the Forest Service, and I experienced some challenges employees may face when job descriptions are left untouched and vague. While the job description covered the project work, wildland fire suppression tasks, there is always a duty listed as “positions may perform other duties as assigned.” There is a need to have flexibility to be able to ensure employees can perform the tasks they need to protect national forests, and other important infrastructure, from wildfires. However, having a duty that calls for employees to perform other duties assigned creates a lot of ambiguity and leaves employees vulnerable to not being able to defend their decision to reject a task assignment or make a case for wage increases. For example, a forestry technician might have been required to perform a technical task with a chainsaw or communicate with a helicopter but may not be able to make a case for a wage increase because they were only performing a duty assigned.
The article, “Job Worth Doing: Update Descriptions,” talks about how job descriptions are important markers to help a company address if they are having issues with fulfilling the jobs or if they have an employee that is ready to move up (Tyler). I acknowledge that making changes in a government agency or bureaucracy poses its own challenges, but it leaves employees in a vulnerable position. The Forest Service does perform performance evaluations, but it is hard to adhere to a job description for performance markers when they are all very similar and cover so many duties. While supervisors should have support from the organization, I would recommend that supervisors are making sure they are going over job duties with their employees during performance appraisals. I would also recommend that supervisors maintain communication and make employees feel aware that they are able to turn down certain assignments that they feel are hazardous or outside of their skillset. It may not be practical for the Forest Service to alter the job descriptions associated with forestry technician jobs, but it is reasonable for supervisors to commit to providing their employees with an open line of communication and talking about duties expected.
Tyler, Kathryn. “Job Worth Doing: Update Descriptions.” Welcome to SHRM, 21 Dec. 2023, www.shrm.org/topics-tools/news/hr-magazine/job-worth-update-descriptions. Accessed 28 Apr. 2024.
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