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A family trade
John Knepper Sr started pulling low voltage fifty years ago. This is a trade with roots, not a startup guessing at its own future.
CAREERS · LICENSED FAMILY TRADE · MILWAUKIE, OR
A trade you can build a career on, not just a job.
Knepper Contracting is a family low voltage trade going on fifty years, run today by a licensed technician with twenty-two years in it himself. We're hiring to keep up with commercial and critical-infrastructure work — not to fill a seat.
SECTION 01 / WHY WORK HERE
Four reasons this isn't a stopgap job.
A family trade, licensed the right way, doing work that matters, and hiring because the work is growing.
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Licensed the right way
Oregon CCB #249201, electrical 4911LEA, CLE723, Washington KNEPPJK854KK, $2M insured, $50K bonded. You're not working under a shortcut.
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Work that matters
Commercial and critical-infrastructure jobs — the kind of buildings where the low voltage systems actually get used hard.
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Growing on purpose
We're moving toward higher-value, quality clients and hiring to support it — not backfilling a job someone just quit.
SECTION 02 / WHO YOU'D WORK FOR
John Knepper, owner — twenty-two years in the trade, still on the tools.
This is an owner-led shop. John runs it the way his father ran the family trade before him: licensed, bonded, insured, and dense with real work instead of talk. That's the standard the crew works to.
SECTION 03 / THE KIND OF JOBS YOU'D BE ON
Buildings with more than one closet.
- CommercialOffices, tenant improvement, multi-floor
- IndustrialWarehouse, plant, distribution
- RetailStorefront, multi-site rollouts
- EducationCampus, classroom, district
- HealthcareClinic, care facility, compliance-sensitive
SECTION 04 / OPEN ROLES
Two ways in.
Generic titles for now — specific requirements and pay depend on the role and what you bring. Ask on the application.
ROLE 01
Low voltage technician
Runs, terminates and tests structured cabling, cameras, access control and related systems on commercial jobsites.
ROLE 02
Apprentice / helper
Learns the trade on real jobsites — pulling cable, staging material, working alongside licensed technicians.
SECTION 05 / WHAT WE ACTUALLY LOOK FOR
Powered by integrity. Driven by safety. Every day, not just on the wrap.
Those aren't slogans we picked for the van — they're what we're actually hiring for. Show up, do the work right, look out for the person next to you on the ladder.
SECTION 06 / A DAY ON THE JOB
Real jobsites, real trade, learned by doing it.
Walk in with the crew, pull cable, dress a rack, terminate a drop, test it. Commercial and industrial buildings, not a classroom — the trade gets learned the way it's always been learned, on the ladder.
SECTION 06B / THE CREW YOU'D JOIN
One more set of hands on jobs like these.
No name badges — just the work. Overhead runs, ladders, buildings mid-renovation.
SECTION 07 / BEFORE YOU APPLY
A few things to have ready.
Makes the phone screen faster for both of us.
- Your work history.A resume link is easiest, but a plain-text summary of what you've done works too.
- Any certifications or licenses.Include anything relevant, even partial or in-progress.
- How you describe hands-on experience.Be ready to talk specifics — what you've actually pulled, terminated or installed.
- Your real availability.Full-time, part-time, start date — tell us straight so we can tell you straight back.
SECTION 08 / HOW HIRING WORKS
From application to your first day.
One process. Five stations.
- 01
Apply
The form below, straight to John.
- 02
Phone screen
A short call to talk fit, availability and the role.
- 03
Meet the crew
A walkthrough or field conversation, depending on the role.
- 04
Offer
Pay and start date, discussed directly.
- 05
Onboard
Gear, paperwork and your first jobsite.
SECTION 09 / GROWING, NOT JUST HIRING
We're hiring because the work is moving up, not because someone left.
Knepper is shifting toward higher-value, quality clients rather than high-volume, low-margin work. An integrated hiring effort is part of that plan — we're building the crew for where the business is going, not just patching a gap.
SECTION 10 / WHO THRIVES HERE
Three kinds of people do well on this crew.
Hands-on learners
People who'd rather learn a trade on a real jobsite than in a classroom, and don't mind starting at the bottom of a ladder, literally.
Licensed-track technicians
People already in the trade who want steadier, higher-value commercial work instead of chasing small residential jobs.
People who like variety
Cabling one week, cameras the next, access control after that — the work doesn't stay the same for long.
SECTION 11 / LICENSED, BONDED, INSURED
Why this matters to you, not just the customer.
A licensed, bonded and insured employer is a real business, not a handshake operation. Verify any of these before you take a job anywhere, including here.
On file, and checkable
Oregon CCB#249201
VERIFIEDOregon electrical4911LEA
VERIFIEDLiability insurance$2,000,000
VERIFIEDBond$50,000
VERIFIEDccblookup.comCCB checked 8 Sep 2026
SECTION 12 / APPLY
Send us your info.
Tell us who you are and what you've done. John reads every application himself.
Call, any hour(971) 419-8917
Emailjohn@kneppercontracting.com
Shop11209 SE Wood Ave, Milwaukie, OR 97222
SECTION 13 / BEFORE YOU CALL
Straight answers.
Do I need experience to apply?
Not for the apprentice / helper role. For the low voltage technician role, tell us about your hands-on experience and any certifications on the application.
Is this full-time?
Tell us your availability on the application and we'll talk specifics on the phone screen.
Where would I be working?
Commercial and industrial jobsites across the Portland metro, out of our Milwaukie, Oregon shop.
Do you provide training?
That depends on the role and what you already bring. Ask on the application or the phone screen.
What does the job pay?
That depends on the role and experience. We'll talk numbers once we've talked to you.
Do I need my own tools or a vehicle?
Ask on the application. Requirements vary by role.
SECTION 14 / NEXT STEP
A family trade. One more set of hands.
Licensed, bonded and insured · 22 years in the trade · Portland metro from Milwaukie, OR.
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