Job Details
Telephone Operator - Relief
2025-09-09 County of San Mateo (CA) San Mateo,CA
Description:
NOTE: This is a relief/extra help, at-will assignment, paid on an hourly basis. Extra-help hours are dependent on the business needs of the department and therefore work hours may vary from week to week. Extra help employees shall not exceed 1,040 hours of work per fiscal year. Some extra help positions are eligible for benefits under the Affordable Care Act. Extra help employees are not guaranteed permanent status at the end of the assignment.
Application/Examination
This is a relief recruitment. Anyone may apply. A supplemental application form must be submitted in addition to the standard County employment application form. Your responses to the supplemental questions will provide additional information about your qualifications for this position and will be used by the department in the evaluation process. A resume will not be accepted as a substitute for your responses. Neatness, clarity of expression, and the ability to follow instructions will be considered in the evaluation process.
The department will screen application materials, and they will contact qualified candidates directly for a departmental interview.
This is a continuous recruitment which may close at any time. The final filing date will be posted five days in advance on this job announcement.
Apply immediately. This recruitment is open on a continuous basis and selections may be made at any time within the process.
Applications for this position will only be accepted online. If you are currently on the County's website, you may click the "Apply" button. If you are not on the County's website, please go to to apply.
About the County
San Mateo County is centrally located between San Francisco, San Jose, and the East Bay. With over 750,000 residents, San Mateo is one of the largest and most diverse counties in California and serves a multitude of culturally, ethnically, and linguistically diverse communities.
The County of San Mateo, as an employer, is committed to advancing equity to ensure that all employees are welcomed in a safe and inclusive environment. The County seeks to hire, support, and retain employees who reflect our diverse community. We encourage applicants with diverse backgrounds and lived experiences to apply. Eighty percent of employees surveyed stated that they would recommend the County as a great place to work.
The County of San Mateo is an equal opportunity employer. We seek to hire, support, and retain employees who reflect our diverse community.
We invite you to explore our page for a snapshot of the comprehensive and competitive benefits available to eligible employees of the County of San Mateo. From health and wellness to financial security, our benefits are designed to support you at every stage of your career. (Please note that benefits are subject to change.)
In addition to core benefits, the County is proud to offer a variety of wellness and professional development programs to help you grow both personally and professionally. Most of these enriching opportunities are available during work hours and come at no cost to you.
As a County employee, you'll also be covered by the federal Social Security system, earning valuable retirement benefits based on your salary and years of service.
01
IMPORTANT: Applicants for this position are required to submit responses to the supplemental questions below. Your responses will provide detailed information about your background and experience related to this position. This information will weigh heavily in the application screening by the subject matter experts and will also be used in the selection process. Answer the questions completely, paying attention to the multi-parts of the questions. While being thorough and detailed, also be concise. Your strategic use of language as well as neatness, clarity of expression, attention to detail, proper use of grammar and the ability to follow instructions will be considered in the evaluation process. A resume will not be accepted as a substitute for your responses.
02
The positions require your availability to work evening, weekend, overnight, and holiday shifts. Do you meet this requirement?
03
The positions involve the use of a soft phone call routing application. Do you have experience using this type of complex computing applications?
04
Describe your office support experience involving considerable contact with the public primarily by extensive use of telephones. List your job duties, explain the nature of the telephone calls you answered, and indicate the number of calls you handled on a daily basis.
05
Describe your customer service philosophy and the techniques you use to respond to individuals who report complaints to you by telephone.
06
The positions require your ability to sit for long periods of time and possession of excellent hearing and manipulative skills to operate a soft phone application. Do you meet these requirements?
07
How did you learn about this position?
08
If you answered, "Professional Publication/Website" or "Other" to the above question, please indicate below how you learned about this position. Your response to this question will help us in better marketing County jobs. Type NA if not applicable.
Required Question
Salary : $4,998.93 - $6,250.40 Monthly
Location : San Mateo, CA
Job Type: Relief
Job Number: E480-R
Department: Information Services Department
Division: Client Services
Opening Date: 08/15/2025
Bargaining Unit: 11
Description
The Information Services Department of the County of San Mateo seeks Telephone Operators.
The department is in the San Mateo Medical Center located at 222 West 39th Avenue in the city of San Mateo, CA.
Telephone Operators,under general supervision, operate a centralized soft telephone with an online directory that connects a high volume of incoming calls to the appropriate individuals, County staff and departments. Relief Telephone Operators will be required to work all shifts, including evening, weekend, overnight, and holiday shifts, provide off-hours support to co-workers, and perform other related duties as assigned.
Relief will be expected to work to fill shifts for vacations and sick calls, which will include weekday evening shifts, and 8-hour shifts on Saturday and Sunday including overnight shifts. These positions should expect to work overnight 11p-7am shifts.
Training for these positions will consist of 2 months of training: initially, after hours training from Wednesday through Friday from 6 p.m. to 11 p.m., and Saturday through Sunday, from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. and additionally, 1 month of business hours training: Monday through Friday from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m.
Example of Duties
- Provide factual information to the public regarding County functions and activities
- Place authorized long-distance calls: maintain records of assisted and long-distance calls
- Take emergency telephone calls and locate appropriate staff
- Locate and notify appropriate individuals of fires, disasters, and similar emergencies
- Monitor County intrusion and fire alarms and notify the appropriate agencies
- Notify appropriate staff who are on-call and responsible for issues occurring after normal business hours involving the County Coroner, Sheriff's Office, Probation Department, and other County departments
- Maintain logs of specific types of calls
- Operate standard office equipment and perform minimal typing and clerical duties
- 1 year office support work experience involving considerable contact with the public, primarily by extensive use of telephones;
- Experience with a soft phone call routing application and basic computer skills desired;
- Ability to multitask and have flexibility in a busy work environment;
- Ability to maintain focus and calmness with emergency calls;
- Ability to work well as a team with co-workers;
- Availability to work evening, weekend, holiday, overnight, and other shifts;
- Ability to sit for long periods of time; and
- Possession of excellent hearing and manipulative skills to operate a soft phone application.
- Fluency in Spanish and English is preferred.
NOTE: This is a relief/extra help, at-will assignment, paid on an hourly basis. Extra-help hours are dependent on the business needs of the department and therefore work hours may vary from week to week. Extra help employees shall not exceed 1,040 hours of work per fiscal year. Some extra help positions are eligible for benefits under the Affordable Care Act. Extra help employees are not guaranteed permanent status at the end of the assignment.
Application/Examination
This is a relief recruitment. Anyone may apply. A supplemental application form must be submitted in addition to the standard County employment application form. Your responses to the supplemental questions will provide additional information about your qualifications for this position and will be used by the department in the evaluation process. A resume will not be accepted as a substitute for your responses. Neatness, clarity of expression, and the ability to follow instructions will be considered in the evaluation process.
The department will screen application materials, and they will contact qualified candidates directly for a departmental interview.
This is a continuous recruitment which may close at any time. The final filing date will be posted five days in advance on this job announcement.
Apply immediately. This recruitment is open on a continuous basis and selections may be made at any time within the process.
Applications for this position will only be accepted online. If you are currently on the County's website, you may click the "Apply" button. If you are not on the County's website, please go to to apply.
About the County
San Mateo County is centrally located between San Francisco, San Jose, and the East Bay. With over 750,000 residents, San Mateo is one of the largest and most diverse counties in California and serves a multitude of culturally, ethnically, and linguistically diverse communities.
The County of San Mateo, as an employer, is committed to advancing equity to ensure that all employees are welcomed in a safe and inclusive environment. The County seeks to hire, support, and retain employees who reflect our diverse community. We encourage applicants with diverse backgrounds and lived experiences to apply. Eighty percent of employees surveyed stated that they would recommend the County as a great place to work.
The County of San Mateo is an equal opportunity employer. We seek to hire, support, and retain employees who reflect our diverse community.
We invite you to explore our page for a snapshot of the comprehensive and competitive benefits available to eligible employees of the County of San Mateo. From health and wellness to financial security, our benefits are designed to support you at every stage of your career. (Please note that benefits are subject to change.)
In addition to core benefits, the County is proud to offer a variety of wellness and professional development programs to help you grow both personally and professionally. Most of these enriching opportunities are available during work hours and come at no cost to you.
As a County employee, you'll also be covered by the federal Social Security system, earning valuable retirement benefits based on your salary and years of service.
01
IMPORTANT: Applicants for this position are required to submit responses to the supplemental questions below. Your responses will provide detailed information about your background and experience related to this position. This information will weigh heavily in the application screening by the subject matter experts and will also be used in the selection process. Answer the questions completely, paying attention to the multi-parts of the questions. While being thorough and detailed, also be concise. Your strategic use of language as well as neatness, clarity of expression, attention to detail, proper use of grammar and the ability to follow instructions will be considered in the evaluation process. A resume will not be accepted as a substitute for your responses.
- I have read and understood the information.
02
The positions require your availability to work evening, weekend, overnight, and holiday shifts. Do you meet this requirement?
- Yes
- No
03
The positions involve the use of a soft phone call routing application. Do you have experience using this type of complex computing applications?
- Yes
- No
04
Describe your office support experience involving considerable contact with the public primarily by extensive use of telephones. List your job duties, explain the nature of the telephone calls you answered, and indicate the number of calls you handled on a daily basis.
05
Describe your customer service philosophy and the techniques you use to respond to individuals who report complaints to you by telephone.
06
The positions require your ability to sit for long periods of time and possession of excellent hearing and manipulative skills to operate a soft phone application. Do you meet these requirements?
- Yes
- No
07
How did you learn about this position?
- County of San Mateo Website
- County of San Mateo Job Interest Card Notification
- County Hosted Virtual Event
- County Hosted Job Fair
- CalOpps.org
- College/University Career Center
- Community-based Organization Posting
- Facebook/Instagram
- Friend or Relative
- GovernmentJobs.com
- Indeed
- Job Fair
- Professional Publication/Website (Please specify in next question)
- X (formerly called Twitter)
- Zip Recruiter
- Other (Please specify in next question)
08
If you answered, "Professional Publication/Website" or "Other" to the above question, please indicate below how you learned about this position. Your response to this question will help us in better marketing County jobs. Type NA if not applicable.
Required Question