Census Bureau is Hiring

Want to earn extra money while positively impacting your community?

The Census is now hiring for full-time and part-time temporary jobs that begin in 2019 and 2020, and a majority of the openings are for census takers. Now through June 2019, most of the recruitment will be for Address Canvassing, which entails working during the day and updating lists and maps to ensure an accurate count.

Why become a census taker? Census data affects the flow of around eight billion federal dollars into our state. The more accurate the count, the better chance that important programs like Medicaid, special education, and the Children’s Health Insurance Program will be sufficiently funded to meet the needs of our residents. Census data also determines our representation in Congress and informs decisions made by businesses, local governments, nonprofits, human services providers, and residents.

Connecticut is also home to many hard-to-count (HTC) communities. HTC is related to the self-response portion of the census; these populations have low self-response rates when compared to other groups in the country. Hard-to-count communities in Connecticut include areas of Hartford, New Haven, Bridgeport, and Waterbury. This means that the Census will have to send enumerators to interview those who haven’t responded in person, which is an expense for both the Census Bureau and taxpayers. Furthermore, if their voices are not heard, hard-to-count communities will be denied services and representation. Census takers reach out to these hard-to-count communities and other populations across the state to ensure that everyone is accounted for.

The application takes around 30 minutes, and to be eligible, you must be at least 18 years old, have a valid Social Security number, and be a U.S. citizen. Employees will be reimbursed for expenses acquired while on the job, like mileage. If your position includes interviewing members of the public, potential employees must be available to work flexible hours, like evenings and weekends, when folks are at home. You can view pay rates based on your county by using this interactive map. Most positions are expected to last several weeks, and, in some cases, you may be able to be employed elsewhere.

If you’d be interested in working for the Census and becoming an integral part of these critical efforts, follow the links for more information on job details and qualifications, how to apply, and available locations.