PG&E Careers: Guide and Tips 2024
Updated November 5, 2024
Pacific Gas and Electric Company (PG&E) offers many job opportunities for potential candidates and could be the perfect organization for many professionals to fulfill their career goals.
This guide will give an insight about working at PG&E, explain the recruitment process and provide some tips on your application.
What Is PG&E?
PG&E is an energy firm in the US. It’s one of the largest companies in the country and has a market value of more than $3 billion.
It serves more than 5.2 million households in northern and central California, which is equivalent to around 16 million individual customers.
PG&E currently employs about 25,000 people and for those looking for a high-tech and secure job it is considered one of the best employers.
It seeks out employees with good grades who demonstrate lots of potential to progress in the business. Its selection process is tough and involves challenging interviews and assessments.
Why Work for PG&E?
PG&E careers focus on areas including operation, trades, power plants, administrative support and customer service. It commits to its business ethics and consistently adheres to industry laws and regulations.
It has a solid reputation for treating its employees fairly and being dedicated to their well-being. It’s also praised for promoting diversity and inclusion within its workforce.
On top of these, there are several other reasons a candidate might want to work at PG&E. These include reasons such as:
- Pay and benefits – Employees rate the basic pay as reasonable-to-good for the industry. It also offers good benefits. Furthermore, anyone with a role at the company will also be part of the worker’s union.
- Work-life balance – Compared to other firms, the work-life balance is quite reasonable at PG&E. Of course, this differs throughout the business and will depend on the team. The higher ranked the employees are, the less of a balance there is, but employee opinion shows this has been improving.
- Job security and progression – Current employees rated this as excellent. Because this is such a large company, there are also plenty of opportunities for advancement or a lateral change of role.
Some of the most notable benefits PG&E offers its employees include:
- Healthcare, life insurance and disability coverage – PG&E employee healthcare covers both physical and mental health. Employees are also entitled to paid time off to spend with family and personal days.
- Incentives and recognition awards – Employees enjoy discounts, business travel insurance and service awards.
- 401(K) and retirement savings plan – PG&E also contributes to its employees’ retirement.
- Flex benefits programs – Employees also have access to a tax-advantaged Health Care or Dependent Care Flexible Spending Account (FSA).
- Additional education (Tuition Refund Program) – Employees can take advantage of PG&E’s training and education programs. It can also help employees repay student loans with its Tuition Refund Program.
How to Apply for a Position at PG&E for October 2024
Applying for any position, regardless of the hours worked, will take between one and three months, and it has been known to take longer. The process is rigorous, challenging and competitive.
The general timeline is set out as below:
Step 1 – Creating a Profile
The first thing a candidate does is create an electronic profile on the PG&E careers website. This is known as a Talent Profile.
The candidates can upload a resume, letter of intent, letter of recommendation and other required information as necessary.
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Step 2 – Application and Pre-employment Tests
Before applying for a specific role, candidates must submit and pass one or more pre-employment tests.
These are psychometric tests used to assess whether candidates possess the right skill set to take on the role applied for.
Candidates must pass these tests before they can look through the PG&E job openings and apply for their desired position.
Step 3 – Pre-employment
Depending on the position the candidate is applying for, PG&E may also require:
- Education level
- Previous work experience
- DMV record
- Drug screening
- Post-offer physical assessment
Step 4 – Application Review
Once all the pre-selection tests and submissions are complete, the HR team will review the application, which will be compared to the performance and resumes of other applicants.
HR and hiring managers will then select their shortlist for interviews.
Step 5 – Interview Process
The final stage is the interview process. This is where candidates can showcase how well they would fit into the company and the role.
PG&E Pre-employment Assessment Tests
For many non-management positions at PG&E, applicants are required to take pre-employment tests after applying for a role at PG&E before being called for an interview.
Depending on the position applied for, these could test general ability, job-specific abilities, job knowledge or how candidates handle various work-related problems.
The purpose of these tests is to assess how well-suited candidates are for the role they have applied for.
To get the most accurate understanding of employees’ abilities, PG&E has three different assessments applicants may be given.
These tests are:
- Physical Test Battery – For the positions of Materials Engineer or Utility Worker
- Industrial Skills Test – For the roles of Mapping Technician, Engineering Estimator or Scheduler
- Clerical/Meter Reader Test – For clerical jobs or a position as a Meter Reader
These test scores can greatly impact your future at PG&E, so it is vital to take these assessment seriously and prepare for them.
While PG&E doesn’t provide practice tests, it has lots of test guides on its website to help candidates prepare.
These guides give candidates helpful tips for the assessment, including example questions. You can find accurate practice tests for the PG&E pre-employment tests here.
To have the best chances of passing the PG&E pre-employment tests, candidates should make sure to study the guides thoroughly and do plenty of practice tests.
Once invited to complete a PG&E pre-employment test, candidates only have five days to complete it.
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This means there is less time to prepare for the specific test you’ll be invited to do.
For this reason, it’s a good idea to practice some general skills that are likely to come up on the test.
PG&E recommends the key areas applicants should focus on are:
- Logic and reasoning
- Reading comprehension
- Numerical problem solving and computation
- Mechanical and spatial skills
- Language skills
Any exercises that improves language, math or problem solving skills will be beneficial. While no one can predict the questions that will come up, candidates can be as prepared as possible by practicing psychometric tests online.
PG&E Typical Interview Questions
As with any interview, make sure to take plenty of time to prepare solid, well-rounded answers. There are several questions that are typically asked at an interview with PG&E.
You should make sure they’re familiar with common interview question types. PG&E will use a mix of competency-based and behavioral questions.
Make sure to communicate a broad range of skills while answering questions.
It’s tempting to try to memorize complete answers to common questions, but, while you should certainly prepare answers, try to avoid reciting them fully — it comes across as unnatural and unauthentic.
Moreover, you will likely be more nervous if the answers you memorized don’t come up.
Take notes before the interview, noting down your top skills that are relevant for the role, any notable achievements and some examples of obstacles overcome in past work experiences or during studies.
Here are some typical interview questions asked in a PG&E interview:
- Why are you looking to join PG&E?
- What are your future career aspirations within the company?
- Can you handle the fast-paced environment at PG&E?
- Provide an example of when you put in extra effort to please a customer.
- PG&E is a company that works 24/7. Are you willing to work overtime?
For behavioral questions, it’s always good practice to use the STAR method. This structure ensures your answers cover everything the interviewer wants to hear.
This method uses the following format:
- Situation – Describe a challenging situation you experienced at your previous roles or during your studies
- Task – Explain what you were trying to achieve in the situation and include your motivations to perform well on this task
- Actions – Lay out what you did in the situation, explain why you chose to take the course of actions you did and what alternative actions you considered
- Results – Elaborate on what you achieved through your chosen actions and tell the interviewers how you met your objectives. It’s also good to tell them what you learned from the challenging experience.
The STAR method is equally applicable for situations that you succeeded in and those that did not go as planned.
By using this method, you’ll answer the question fully and avoid going off tangent or rambling if you’re nervous.
How to Prepare for an Interview at PG&E in 2024
Here is a list of several ways to prepare for an interview with PG&E:
Step 1. Dress Smartly
PG&E appreciate smartly dressed applicants.
Applicants should make sure their clothes are ironed or pressed and their shoes polished.
Candidates who show that they take pride in their appearance show the hiring managers that they respect the company and have made an effort to present themselves well.
Step 2. Research the Company
While it’s a well-known company, candidates should research it to have up-to-date information, learning about its revenues, community endeavors, future business plans, branding and any other recent news.
Candidates are likely to be asked about these aspects or, if not, will impress if they bring them up on their own.
Hiring managers are looking for candidates who have prepared well for the interview.
Step 3. Prepare Interview Answers
Preparing what to say to answer common questions is vitally important. It reduces the time to think about the answer and will ensure everything is covered.
However, try not to recite full answers – it is better to come across as natural.
The more familiar candidates are with the style of questions that they are asked and the points they want to make in their answers, the easier it will be to behave authentically and impress the interviewers.
Step 4. Prepare Questions to Ask
The questions that candidates ask the hiring managers are just as important as the interview questions and answers.
Coming up with questions for the team in advance can help applicants succeed since it shows keenness to learn more and a real interest in the company and the work.
Here are some good questions:
- What do you like about working for PG&E?
- How do you see the career path going?
- What is the typical day like?
- What are my teammates like?
- What is the biggest challenge about working at PG&E?
Step 5. Ask About Any Concerns
Candidates should ask the hiring manager if they have any concerns them as a potential employee.
This is an important opportunity to discover concerns and then counter them before they become problems.
Step 6. Arrive Early for the Interview
Identify the location of the interview, plan the route and aim to arrive at least 15 minutes early.
Allow enough time for problems with public transport or traffic if traveling during busy times.
Step 7. Bring the Right Equipment
Make sure to have the right equipment and bring anything the recruitment team have asked for.
This may include identification or proof of qualifications. Send an email to or call the point of contact and check if there is anything you should bring to the interview.
Step 8. Take Notes
A notebook and pen can make a candidate look prepared. Try to take notes during the interview whenever the hiring managers say something important.
It’s also helpful to scribble down any questions as they come to mind to ask at the end as interrupting the interviewer to ask questions is rude.
It can be.
PG&E is well respected for its career opportunities and for treating its employees well.
For this reason, jobs at PG&E are highly competitive, so the application process is usually quite long and rigorous. Make sure you’re well prepared before you apply for a position.
For entry-level roles, the average pay per hour is around $25. Overall, the average hourly rate of a PG&E employee is around $36.
Yes, employees highly rate working at PG&E. It is known for having a friendly workplace environment, being dedicated to diversity and inclusion and offering good benefits.
Yes; for many jobs at PG&E, you’ll be required to do a drug test around 72 hours after accepting a position.
Yes, PG&E does background tests on applicants, including criminal background checks, DMV records or any other checks deemed necessary.
PG&E requires applicants to complete pre-employment tests to ensure applicants have the necessary skills to perform the desired role.
The score on these tests demonstrates your abilities and will be one of the deciding factors on your job application.
