Thanks for your interest in working for the Green Tortoise. The following positions are currently available:

	Office Staff
	Drivers

Seasonal Office Work

Fun, Flexible Seasonal Office Work!

Green Tortoise Adventure Travel is hiring for the summer! We have been leading camping trips since the 1970's to places like Yosemite, the Grand Canyon, mainland Mexico, and Baja. This would be a great summer job for a student or someone who is passing through San Francisco for a short period of time. This would not be the best job if you have to commute long distances. But, if you love hiking/camping and the great outdoors, and meeting people from all over the world, then check out our website to get a feel for what we do. You can also fill out an online application:

http://www.greentortoise.com/job.application.html

Responsibilities include:

• Familiarizing yourself with the details of our itineraries in such a way that you are able to talk about, sell, and answer questions about our adventure trips.
• Answering calls, emails, and printed correspondence from potential passengers and travel agents.
• Data entry (experience with Macintosh and Filemaker is a plus).
• Processing cash and credit card transactions.
• General office upkeep (filing, mailing, etc.)

The ideal candidate will be an excellent communicator with a phone presence that is cheerful, clear, and engaging. Since you would be communicating with a number of non-English speakers, patience is important, too. Experience in sales would be beneficial, but an enthusiasm for helping people plan their travels is most important (as you will pick up on the sales aspect of the job when you become well versed in the specifics of our various trips). Self-direction and eye for detail are also preferred.

Though not required, it would be great if you have already taken a Green Tortoise trip and have a feeling for what our adventures are all about! Applicants with a driver's license and clean DMV record will carry some weight. Lastly, you should be easy to talk with, personable and able to laugh at yourself. This is not your standard, straight-laced office job! Ours is a fun, funky office, and while we expect you to do your job well, we are planning vacations here, not trading stocks.

The seasonal term of employment is April 24 through September 15. Starting pay is $9.36 per hour. Please fill out an online application to apply for this job. No calls, please.

http://www.greentortoise.com/job.application.html

Application deadline February 29, 2008

Green Tortoise Driver Application Information

The following will outline the application process and help to introduce most aspects of the driver's job. Please read this carefully before filling out the Driver Application available on the next page.

Important!

The application should be read over thoroughly and filled out completely. Much of the information is required by federal law. Some questions which may not seem pertinent to driving actually assist us in understanding you better and evaluating non-driving skills which are essential to the job. If you are not 100% drug free and able to stay that way, please do not apply.

Your application must be accompanied by a current (less than three month old) copy of your driving record, a clear photocopy of your drivers license and your medical card (if you already have one). You must be 25 years or older to be considered and have a virtually spotless driving record. Interviews, hiring, and training are done from San Francisco. This process often inlcudes a creative and fun trip including some night driving, cooking, and trip orientation.

Green Tortoise History

The Green Tortoise was founded in 1974 with one old school bus. In 1981 Green Tortoise bought out its only remaining competitor, the Grey Rabbit, and now offers the only alternative adventure bus service in the country. That same year, public transportation was de-regulated and the Tortoise crawled out from underground and began operating with an ICC permit and full liability insurance. The company has a very good safety record. The essential theme of the trip really hasn't changed, but the equipment certainly has! We now operate six 1995 MCI "D" model highway coaches and two 1982 Prevosts. There are four automatic and four stick-shift buses. Trips vary from as long as 30 days (Alaska, Guatemala), to as short as two days to Yosemite. Custom convertible "sleeper" interiors allow passengers to travel more comfortably at night, saving time and money.

Driver Training

The ideal applicant already has two years of commercial bus driving experience or has a certificate of training from qualified school or previous company. Applicants who require additional training will be scheduled on a training run. We do training runs as often as we need drivers, usually on about three month's notice. We always have a training run(s) in mid-spring in preparation for the summer season. You might share the experience with four to eight people, and see all kinds of driving conditions, as well as helping with the preparation of Green Tortoise cookouts, another big part of the job. You may still need to attend a commercial driving school, but we offer tuition aid and tuition reimbursement programs. Please feel free to call us for details.

Very few applicants are plugged immediately into the driver's seat after the interview and road test. Even experienced drivers will be expected to "cushion", observing such a Green Tortoise trip without driving or getting paid.

Green Tortoise feeds you during the training run, but will not pay any stipend, per diems, or other expenses. Being invited on a training run is not the same as being hired. If hired, your first driving runs will likely be as a "Second" driver on the shorter trips.

Work Availability

Chances of long term employment are good. Although much of our business is seasonal (we do about three quarters of our trips from May through October), opportunities for year round employment after working even one summer season are pretty reasonable. Everyone generally has to work in the summer. Some of our drivers only work summers. In the winter we continue to do special charters, and winter adventure trips that go to Baja, mainland Mexico and Central America, as well as Death Valley.

Driver Scheduling

The Green Tortoise is very flexible about scheduling drivers. This has its pros and cons. You can usually specify when you want to work, and if you keep your commitments and things go well the dispatcher can work people on and off trips smoothly.

It works out ok for some people to live in the Northwest and drive the Green Tortoise, even though most of our trips originate in San Francisco. You may need to commute to the Bay Area but when asked to, we make it worth your time and expense.

Driver Pay & Duties

Potential earnings vary dramatically based on your skill and experience. With a few exceptions (Alaska, Central America, mainland Mexico and Costa Rica), Green Tortoise drivers are classed in one of four ways: Second (co-driver), New Lead, Lead, and Ultra-Lead.

In addition to driving the coach you will have numerous other duties, including pre-trip inspection at the terminal, handling of luggage, instructing passengers on Green Tortoise policy, and provisioning and helping with the cookouts.

For example: A three-day Yosemite run, with Eastern Sierra campouts and time to soak in a hot spring pays $290 for a Second, $340 for a Lead, and $380 for an Ultra-Lead. In the high season we also run two-day Yosemite trips.

Our brochure describes the longer trips. Second driver pay is lower about $80 per day, but the trips often appeal to drivers more because the experience gained on them tends to result in $100 to $190 per day Lead Driver positions. Tips are also a factor and they can vary greatly based on the trip, the customers and your performance. It is not at all uncommon for driver to earn an extra $30 each per day.

Driver Qualifications

Being a Green Tortoise driver requires a surprising amount of skill and ingenuity. With few exceptions, everyone starts out as a Second driver until they have acquired enough experience to lead a trip. To receive Lead Driver pay, a driver must have or borrow a tool inventory which would cost about $1000 at Sears. Lead Drivers usually do the accounting, check log books of co-drivers, and are responsible for the overall continuity of the trip. Ultra-Leads have a more detailed tool inventory and have demonstrated a degree of mechanical expertise.

Sometimes non-mechanic drivers achieve Lead positions simply because they are familiar with a run, have good leadership qualities, and carry the required tools for the job. Most mechanical duties are now quite limited with the upgraded fleet providing a more reliable driving experience.

Other Considerations

Before contemplating a job with the Green Tortoise, you should ponder some of the impact it may have on life-as-you-know-it. Depending on the trips you drive, you will be away from home between three and thirty days.

The never-ending challenge of the job and the demands of leadership, and constant social interactions should certainly be considered before applying.

Although generally fewer than 1 in 10 of our drivers are women, they are welcomed, and several legendary Tortoise drivers have been women.

A certain social awareness is central to being a Green Tortoise driver. You have to care about people and know how to please them. Someone whose idea of a good time is an evening in front of the TV with a six-pack, a man who thinks every woman is available, a woman who hates men, or a person who does not have an open heart and mind will have a difficult time relating to a majority of the passengers. On the other hand if you have lots of energy, and a clear spirit you might surprise yourself with how well you do at the job!

Thank you again for your interest

Lyle Kent

P.S. Don't even bother sending in an application without a recent print-out from the Motor Vehicle people, and a legible photocopy of your drivers license! In order to be considered for a training run, you must have either a valid Class A or B Commercial Drivers License, or a CDL learners permit. This will entail getting a DOT physical examination, usually available from an occupational health center for $50 or so. Some walk-in clinics will do it for less if you go to the DMV and get the proper blank form. You then have to take your ID to the DMV, give them about $75, and pass the Class B, Air Brake endorsement, and Passenger endorsement written tests. That will get you a learner's permit that is good for one year. Before you are hired, we are required by law to send you for a urine drug screen, and you will be tested on a random basis after that for as long as you are employed driving. Since January 1st, 1996, the same has been true for alcohol.

Still interesting in applying? Right this way...

	Driver Application PDF that you can print, then complete and mail to us along with the required documents.
	Driver Application Online you can fill out and send to us over the web (approximate time to complete: one to two hours). You must follow it up by mailing the required documents to us!