M.L. Chartier Excavating - Fair Haven - Technician Jobs in Fair Haven, MI

About Us

Founded in 1954 by Malcolm Lavern Chartier. We are a 68 year old company that is thriving in this volatile market. We are STILL family owned and operated, now on our 3rd generation of Chartier Family. We have 3 locations, serving the entire state of Michigan: Fair Haven, Webberville & Harrison.

Photos

  • Alex taking care of this truck while its in the shop for service.
  • Back view of our shop.
  • Jeff working on one of our trucks.
  • We strive on a clean engine.
  • Some of our Trucks that you would be working on.
  • One of our HydroVac Trucks and a Gravel Train.
  • Our lunch room.
  • Lifting Ramp
  • Dump Truck Engine
  • Our State of the Art Paint Shop
  • Our collections of tires.
  • Before and after polished tire.

Under The Hood

Is the shop heated? Air conditioned?

Our shop is heated in the winter and we have very excellent air ventilated units with "Big Ass Fans" that circulate around on the ceiling.

What is the size of the team I’d be working with?

We have about 8 guys in our shop. Our shop is very diverse, we have a full-time detailer, Lube Tech, Automotive Painter, Fabricator, and a few Mechanics.

What are the shop hours and what are the shift timeframes?

Our shop guys are working from 6:30AM - 6:00PM. As a mechanic, we do rely on you to ensure our trucks/equipment that are needed for the next day are fixed and ready to go the next morning so sometimes we might ask you to work late to do that.

What tools does the shop provide that are available for all technicians to use?

Our shops provide all specialized heavy tools that are needed for our heavy duty equipment. We also have permanent tools that are accessable for our entire team, like a

What type of break room facility is provided?

Our break room is a quiet place for you to take your breaks or lunches at. The break room includes a spacious table with chairs, Keurig, refrigerator, microwave, and sink. It is air conditioned with a TV for your enjoyment. Additionally, we have an outside patio equipped with a grill if you want to grill fresh for lunch!

How many bays does your shop have?

We have 2 shops total; the first has a total of 5 bays and 1 wash bay, the second has 4 bays and an outdoor wash bay.

How many repair orders do you average per month?

Our repair orders fluctuate depending on the season. These are handled by our shop manager and then dispersed to the team depending on priority and repair type.

What is your parts ordering process?

Our parts ordering process is mostly managed by our Assistant Shop Manager, John but there are times that the Techs may have to get involved and that is when they need a specific or specialized part and that is just to make sure everything is correct. Parts are ordered online daily from local companies who deliver same day.

What is your policy on side work?

Our policy regarding side work is allowed as long as its not in direct competition with the services we are providing as an excavation company. We also do not allow any of our equipment or tools to be used for side work jobs due to liability.

Are there any other unique features of the work environment worth noting?

We have recently built a brand new state of the art paint booth,18ft x 70ft.

Do you offer any skills training or continuing education opportunities?

We do have a Earn and Learn Program. This program allows our employees to work in our facility while taking classes to better themselves within the shop to receive certifications or degrees as technicians. We also have a team that you will be working with daily that has a vast knowledge and open to teaching other members of the team.

Can you describe opportunities for career growth at your business?

Our company is always evolving as we keep up with the demands of our industry. With this comes with a lot of opportunity for each team member to learn and grow more. We promote constantly in our company and always want our team members to have a goal to work towards, both big and small. Additionally, we encourage our team to speak up if there is an open opportunity that they might be interested in so we can consider them for more positions as our company continues to grow.

Can you describe your performance review process?

We like to conduct annual performance reviews with each team member, preferably in the winter months. This is a 2-lane review, where we express strengths and weaknesses of your performance, but also ask to hear what you feel your strengths and weaknesses are. We review special projects and award those areas and come up with a plan to help overcome those weak areas. We encourage all team members to let us know if there are any questions or concerns that they might have and if there are any areas that we may need to work on as well - one main question during a performance review is "what can we provide or do better in order to support you in your position?"

What type of safety training is required?

During orientation our safety manager, Mike, will go over a PowerPoint that highlights all the important safety steps to take when your out in the yard and shop. Mike will also give you a tour around the yard and shop showing you where all the fire extinguishers, first aid kits, and eye wash stations are located.

Can you describe how Techs work with and mentor younger techs?

Our Techs and management team are always willing to teach and help grow younger or less experienced techs to help strengthen their skills and abilities.

How does your shop get involved with the local community?

Our shop gets involved in the community by sponsoring local youth sports teams, fundraisers, and upcoming school events. We love to partake in "touch a truck" events for children, as well as music in the parks all summer long!

Do you do anything with local high schools or tech schools to encourage more students to enter the profession?

As a company that wants to see more younger generations involved in trades we highly promote our company and job opportunities to our local high schools and tech schools during job fairs. We attend quarterly meetings with the tech programs in our communities and always extend an open invite to our local high schools to come tour our shops.

Where do you see the shop in five years?

In 5 years, we see our shop continuing to expand and become even more in demand as our company continues to grow in all our other departments. The work and need for technicians will always be necessary, as we own our entire fleet.

Do you have an application form and how long does it typically take to complete?

Our applications are available online on our website; www.mlchartier.com/careers. It takes about 5 minutes to complete.

Do you phone screen applicants before doing in-person interviews?

As a family owned company we believe that doing a phone screen doesn't always show us their full potential so we prefer to only do an in-person interview. We are hand shake kind of people.

What do your in-person interviews entail?

When you come in for an interview you will be meeting with HR and the Shop Manager, Tim. Our goal is to learn all about your experience and what your eager to learn more about. Being able to understand your strengths and weaknesses in the shop helps us best place you in an area that would allow you to succeed.

Do you perform background checks, drug screening, or personality tests before hiring an applicant?

Before hiring an applicant we do perform a background check as well as a drug screening. We do not perform personality tests.

Do you perform a skill assessment before hiring an applicant? If yes, what does it entail?

We do not perform a skill assessment before hiring an application.

After an in-person interview, approximately how long should I expect to wait for a rejection or an offer?

After an in-person interview, you should hear back within a few days.

Approximately how long does the full hiring process take from submitting the application to the time of the hiring decision?

Our hiring process is typically pretty quick. Usually the one thing that takes the longest is trying to work out a time/day that works best with you as well as our Shop Manager. Total time would be a week or less.

Is there anything else you’d like to mention about your hiring process?

Our goal as a company is to make the interview go as casual and smooth as possible in order to make you feel comfortable.

Lube Technician
Lube Technicians are entry level technicians that focus on routine maintenance such as oil changes, changing tires, and inspections.
Pay Range: $51,480 - $67,600/year ($24.75 - $32.50/hr)

This is an hourly position.

Service Advisor
Service Advisors are primarily customer focused and, as one of the faces of the shop, they are critical in keeping customers happy. Service Advisors are frequently focused on taking customer calls, relaying information to technicians, and selling repair jobs. Both technical and sales experience are helpful for this position.
Pay Range: $62,920 - $74,360/year ($30.25 - $35.75/hr)

This is an hourly position.

Student Tech / Apprentice
Student technicians work on entry level tasks while completing their school programs.
Pay Range: $48,620 - $54,340/hour

This is an hourly position.

Automotive Paint Assistant Pay Range: $51,480 - $74,360/year ($24.75 - $35.75/hr)

This is an hourly position.

Heavy Duty Diesel Mechanic Pay Range: $71,500 - $100,100/year ($34.38 - $48.13/hr)

This is an hourly position.

Health Insurance Offered
We offer the BCBS PPO plan to our full-time (2,080 hours) employees after 90 days of continuous employment. You are able to chose the package that best fits yourself and/or your families needs. You can chose to have an individual, employee +1, or family plan. We will cover 75% of the cost, your responsible for 25%.
Dental Insurance Offered
We offer Delta Dental to our full-time (2,080 hours) employees after 90 days of continuous employment. You are able to chose the package that best fits yourself and/or your families needs. You can chose to have an individual, employee +1, or family plan. We will cover 75% of the cost, your responsible for 25%.
Vision Insurance Offered
We offer Eye Med to our full-time (2,080 hours) employees after 90 days of continuous employment. You are able to chose the package that best fits yourself and/or your families needs. You can chose to have an individual, employee +1, or family plan. We will cover 75% of the cost, your responsible for 25%.
Retirement Plan Offered
We offer 401K Retirement plan through John Hancock to all full-time (2,080 hours) employees after (1) year of continuous service. We will match 100%, up to 3.5% contribution per week.
Sick Leave Offered
With our current vacation/sick plan we offer the following paid time off (PTO) after 1 full year of employment: (we know this is outdated and will be switching to an accrual program January 2023) After 1 year of full-time employment - 1 week After 3 years of full-time employment - 2 weeks After 5 years of full-time employment - 3 weeks
Vacation Offered
With our current vacation/sick plan we offer the following paid time off (PTO) after 1 full year of employment: (we know this is outdated and will be switching to an accrual program January 2023) After 1 year of full-time employment - 1 week After 3 years of full-time employment - 2 weeks After 5 years of full-time employment - 3 weeks
Paid Holidays Offered
We offer paid holidays to all full-time (2,080 hours) employees after (1) year of continuous employment. There are six (6) paid holidays; Christmas, New Year's Day, Thanksgiving, July 4th, Memorial Day, and Labor Day.
ST / LT Disability Offered
We over a short-term disability plan for all full-time (2,080 hours) employees after (1) year of continuous employment.
Life Insurance Offered
We offer $15,000 Life and Accidental Death life insurance to our full-time (2,080 hours) employees after 90 days of continuous employment. At this time you are eligible to add additional life insurance onto yourself, at your own expense. You may add life insurance onto your spouse or child at this time, if you chose.
Uniforms Offered
All our employees are provided with M.L. Chartier swag at the start of your employment. If you would like to purchase additional work clothes you can order clothing from Cintas where we will cover 50% of the cost.
Other Not Offered

Shop Talk

Here is a quick recap of July!