13+ Parks and Recreation Jobs in Los Angeles County, CA (Hiring Now in Aug 2026)

Parks and recreation work in the Los Angeles area is one of the most approachable doors into public service: the entry jobs ask for energy and reliability more than credentials, and the ladder above them runs all the way to department leadership. As of Aug 2026, this page tracks 13+ open parks and recreation jobs in Los Angeles County, CA, and to show the full market it is deliberately broadened beyond a single agency: it includes the County of Los Angeles alongside city departments and independent recreation and park districts in the surrounding region.

That breadth matters because parks hiring is scattered by design. Counties, cities, and special districts each run their own postings, calendars, and application systems, and none of them advertise in the same place. This page pulls the live openings into one list and checks each against the hiring agency's own career page, so every role you see here is genuinely open and accepting applications.

There is no single salary that describes this field, because parks agencies hire across several very different job structures. Entry-level recreation leader positions are typically part-time and hourly. Rangers, coordinators, and full-time recreation staff are hourly or salaried with benefits. Supervisors, assistant directors, and operations managers are salaried classifications with published ranges. In practice, every posting on this list states its own hourly rate or salary range, and that posted figure, not a metro average, is the number you should evaluate.

Public payroll records still give you a useful window into county pay, with one major caveat. Bandana's Ocean Lifeguard salary data for Los Angeles County shows a median of $10,190 for the county's Ocean Lifeguard classification, and that number is seasonal, part-year pay, not a full-time salary. Most ocean lifeguards work summer seasons on limited schedules, so their annual totals reflect a few months of work rather than a low rate of pay. Full-time recurrent roles pay hourly rates posted per listing, so read the seasonal median as a description of part-year schedules, never as what a year-round parks career pays.

For the salaried leadership roles, the county and the districts publish salary ranges directly on each job announcement, and public agency pay scales are a matter of record. The practical move is simple: open the listing, find the posted range or rate, and know that public employers actually pay within the ranges they publish.

The County of Los Angeles anchors the list with career-track postings, recently including an Assistant Director of Parks and Recreation, a Parks and Recreation Supervisor, and a Regional Operations Manager for Parks and Recreation serving as Chief of Development. Those are the roles that shape how an entire park system runs. The City of Temple City hires at the program level, with Recreation Leader and Senior Recreation Leader postings, including part-time lines.

Independent special districts carry the rest of the current feed. Conejo Recreation Park and District and Pleasant Valley Recreation and Park District post recreation and park roles northwest of Los Angeles, and Jurupa Area Recreation And Park District hires to the east, with a recent Park Ranger posting. Santa Clarita Community College District, home of College of the Canyons, appears in the feed as well. Districts like these run lean teams, so their openings often combine program leadership with hands-on park operations, which makes them excellent places to build a broad resume fast.

Recreation leader roles are the classic entry point: running after-school programs, day camps, sports leagues, classes, and special events at parks and community centers. They are usually part-time and hourly with afternoon, evening, and weekend hours, and senior recreation leader positions add program planning and responsibility for junior staff. Park ranger roles blend visitor services, rule enforcement, and grounds oversight, and they suit people who want to be outside rather than behind a front desk.

Above those sit the career classifications in the current feed: supervisors who run facilities, staffing, and seasonal programming, an assistant director role helping steer an entire county department, and a regional operations manager position overseeing development. Aquatics is the seasonal engine of the field, with lifeguard and pool staffing concentrated in spring and summer, which is exactly the part-year rhythm behind the seasonal payroll figure above.

Requirements scale with the role. Recreation leader postings typically ask for a minimum age, availability on afternoons and weekends, and a background check with fingerprinting, with First Aid and CPR certification either required at hire or provided in training. Aquatics roles require current lifeguard certification and a passed swim test, and county ocean lifeguard positions run through competitive tryouts. Ranger roles add agency-specific training on top of the basics.

Supervisory and management classifications expect years of progressively responsible parks or recreation experience, often paired with a degree in recreation administration, public administration, or a related field. County positions follow civil service rules: meet the minimum qualifications exactly as written, apply during the filing window, and complete any exam or supplemental questionnaire on time. District and city hiring is usually simpler but still document-driven, so keep certifications current and references ready before you start applying.

As a first job or a second income, recreation work is one of the friendliest doors in local government: flexible part-time hours, work you can watch mattering in your own neighborhood, and hiring that values dependability over pedigree. As a career, the ladder is real. Part-time leaders become full-time coordinators, then supervisors, then managers, and permanent public agency roles carry pension credit, health benefits, and civil service stability that private hourly work rarely matches.

Be clear-eyed about the structure. Entry hours are part-time and often seasonal by design, evenings and weekends are when parks are busiest, and moving up sometimes means moving between agencies, which is exactly why this list spans the county, cities, and districts rather than one employer. If you want to weigh the wider public-sector market while you apply, browse Government Jobs in Los Angeles County alongside this page.

Open the live listings below, check the posted hourly rate or salary range and the schedule, and apply through the agency's own portal. Public agencies are strict about deadlines and completeness: answer every supplemental question, attach every required certificate, and submit before the filing window closes. Seasonal and aquatics hiring peaks ahead of summer, so if you want summer work, apply in winter and spring rather than waiting for the season to start.

Applying to several agencies at once is normal in this field, since each one hires on its own calendar and eligibility lists move at different speeds. Every listing on this page is verified and sourced directly from employer career pages, so each one is current and actively hiring.

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Ocean Lifeguard Salaries in Los Angeles County (real payroll data), Government Jobs in Los Angeles County, Jobs Hiring in Los Angeles, Entry Level Jobs.