City of Jacksonville looking for more lifeguards this summer
If you are interested in becoming a lifeguard in Jacksonville this summer, you are encouraged to apply as soon as possible.
City parks and recreation leaders said they have had a hard time finding lifeguards and pool managers the past few summers. If the pools are short-staffed when this summer rolls around, some pools will have to be closed during the season.
Jacksonville City Council member Raul Arias, a member of Jacksonville Mayor Donna Deegan's council on fitness and well-being, said the city met the required number of lifeguards last summer, which allowed all city pools to remain open. It was the year prior that they had to close some pools and limit hours.
'Our focus was to hire as many lifeguards as possible. The team has been actively recruiting on social media, on the website and going to different town halls,' Arias said.
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He said the city raised the minimum wage to $15 an hour, and that helped bring on around 350 lifeguards in 2024. They are hoping for at least the same number of lifeguards this year.
'What's happening is a lot of students that leave for college come back in summer and those are the students we're trying to attract to become lifeguards,' Arias said.
Two more city pools should be opening up by 2027 and the City of Jacksonville is on track to meet the demand for pool personnel.
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'Lifeguards are public safety and we always want to make sure that everybody's protected and safe in Jacksonville. Even when it means going outside and just having fun, we want to make sure that everybody's protected,' Arias said.
City officials said all applicants must be at least 15 years old, so they are looking for high school staff members as well.
Training will be free. For more information, call 904-255-6777 or 904-255-4271 or email bealifeguard@coj.net.
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