Correctional Trades Leader

Posting number: 27-00270

Department: 252 Corrections - Fort Dodge Correctional Facility

Job classification: Correctional Trades Leader

Posting type: Open & Promotional

Categories: Corrections, Building & Grounds Cleaning and Maintenance

Summary

Teaches, mentors, and supervises a crew of up to 10 incarcerated individuals to execute physical facility repairs, custom fabrication, and specialized equipment maintenance while maintaining strict institutional custody, safety, and tool containment. Conducts face-to-face safety briefings and project orientations each morning before deploying the crew.

Physically demonstrates the correct operation of specialized machinery and tools, including commercial drain jetters, augers and sewer line cameras, metal shears, MIG/TIG welders, oxy-acetylene torches, table saws, CNC plasma cutting tables, and CNC wood carving routers, and digital multi-meters.

Personally monitors inmate hand placement, the use of personal protective equipment (PPE), and body mechanics during high-risk operations such as working from extreme heights on ladders/lifts, working in confined utility spaces, and handling sharp or hot cutting equipment like industrial bread slicer blades and torch heads. 

Enforces strict tool control policies by inventorying every single wrench, socket, blades, drill bit, and driver against a shadow board log at the beginning, and conclusion of every shift and after each job at each location.   

Conducts random and mandatory physical pat-searches of all crew members to prevent the introduction of contraband or the fabrication of weapons from maintenance materials. 

Maintains precise, accountability and state timecards for all assigned inmate workers.

Example: Teaches an inmate crew how to safely operate a commercial drain jetter and pipe camera to locate, clear, and inspect a severely blocked main sewer line.
Example: Demonstrates the proper setup and safety rigging required for an inmate crew to install drop ceilings, frame new walls, and hang commercial doors securely in a high-traffic area.
Example: Personally demonstrates how to safely set up raw materials, secure workpieces, load toolpaths, and operate CNC machinery, while closely monitoring inmate hand placement and machine clearance to prevent catastrophic equipment damage or injury.

Executes advanced troubleshooting, custom fabrication, diagnostic testing, and complex repairs on critical, interconnected facility infrastructure, high-end commercial kitchen culinary systems, and perimeter security-related hardware.
  
Reviews physical work orders generated by the facility's maintenance management system. Inspects malfunctioning machinery, isolates the root cause of failures, and reviews architectural blueprints and electrical schematics to map out custom repair or construction strategies

Utilizes welding and metal fabrication equipment to design and build unique, non-existent brackets, gates, or structural fixes to solve facility-specific security and operational challenges. 

Utilizes computer-aided design software to build custom prints and digital toolpath designs for CNC devices.

 Coordinates and carries out advanced preventative maintenance and installation routines, including rebuilding specialized institutional combi-toilets, troubleshooting automated metering devices, repairing fire sprinkler heads, servicing high-end kitchen equipment (such as combi-ovens, commercial bakery ovens, and steam kettles involving Natural Gas, high-voltage electricity, and steam lines), and maintaining electronic/mechanical gates with complex sliding mechanisms.

Example: Measures, designs, and builds custom parts, signage, and furniture by building digital prints and toolpath designs for the CNC wood carving and plasma cutting table.
Example: Diagnoses a heating failure on a commercial steam kettle by troubleshooting the natural gas control valve and electrical ignition system, replacing the faulty components, and verifying safe operational pressures.
Example: Designs, Measures, cuts, and fabricates custom desks, cabinets, and shelving units to maximize space and fit the unique, secure layout requirements of an institutional office space.

Manages the operational security, hazard containment, and material verification of active job sites and fabrication zones scattered throughout the secure perimeter of the institution. 
Audits active construction, plumbing, or electrical work zones to ensure all hazardous chemicals (such as industrial solvents, welding gases, primers, and paints) are meticulously logged, stored in OSHA-approved flame cabinets, and never left unattended. 
Physically inspects secure access panels, pipe chases, security ceilings, and locked gates before sealing them to verify that no tools or contraband have been hidden behind walls. 
Researches technical parts catalogs and checks local inventory to locate exact replacement components for failing equipment, ensuring all materials meet strict institutional safety and state building code requirements.

Example: Inspects a freshly repaired plumbing chase within a housing unit, verifying that all security head fasteners on the access panel are properly torqued and that no materials were left behind before clearing the area for inmate re-entry.

Provides emergency technical support, reviews facility capital project plans, and maintains accurate compliance records. 
Remains on active standby via two-way institutional radio to respond immediately to facility emergencies, such as ruptured water mains, power outages, or perimeter security failures.

Evaluates proposed architectural blueprints and engineering diagrams for upcoming facility renovations to identify potential security risks or layout conflicts.
Completes tasks in the maintenance management system to document completed preventative maintenance tasks, and updating equipment service histories.

• Example: Responds to an urgent radio call regarding a jammed main gate sliding mechanism, secures the immediate area, identifies a failed mechanical bearing, and fabricates a temporary replacement using shop machinery to restore perimeter security.

E-Verify and Right to Work
The State of Iowa participates in E-Verify, a federal program that helps employers confirm the employment eligibility of all newly hired employees. Within the required timeframe, new hires will be verified through the E-Verify system to ensure authorization to work in the United States. The State of Iowa also complies with the federal Right to Work laws, which protect employees’ rights to work without being required to join a labor organization. For more information, please visit www.e-verify.gov.

Qualifications

Applicants must meet at least one of the following minimum requirements to qualify for positions in this job classification:

1. Four years of full-time work experience in one or more of the recognized building (e.g., carpentry, painting, plumbing/pipefitting, electrical and masonry) and mechanical/repair (e.g., air conditioning/ heating, auto mechanics, upholstery and welding) trades.
2. A total of four years of education and/or full-time experience (as described in number one), where thirty semester hours of accredited college or university coursework in a recognized building and mechanical trade for each year of the required experience.
3. Current, continuous experience in the state executive branch that includes one year of full-time work as a Furniture Upholsterer, Mason, Maintenance Repairer, Carpenter 1 or 2, Painter 1 or 2, Plumber 1 or 2, or Welder.

For additional information, please click on this link to view the job description.

Supplemental information

Within a period of time, as determined by the appointing authority, persons in this class may be required to obtain a license to perform electrical work in accordance with Chapter 103, Iowa Code

Designated positions in this job class require applicants to obtain the required commercial driver's license and endorsements within a period of time as determined by the appointing authority at the time of hire.