Commercial Solar Technician

Veteran Hiring Solutions•Wood Dale, IL

13d•$35 - $45•Remote

About The Position

Rethink Electric maintains commercial, distributed-generation, and light-utility solar across Illinois and Wisconsin. The portfolio runs from warehouses, churches, and high schools to industrial sites like the Harley-Davidson plant in Milwaukee and ground-mount utility fields. The O&M line is in a deliberate rebuild. The hiring manager is looking for technicians who can restore downed sites and grow with the operation. Every day a site sits down is a day it does not make money, so the person in this seat directly protects revenue and customer trust. This role is crucial for growing the O&M line into an independent business. The mission in the first year is to become a trusted technician who can diagnose and restore broken sites safely and efficiently, with a focus on reliable problem-solving rather than just grand-slam solutions. The role involves working with a mixed inverter fleet, diagnosing faults, and progressing from Level 1 to Level 2 technician within 12 months. Technicians will deploy from home as self-directed operators and will eventually participate in a weekend on-call rotation.

Requirements

Hands-on electrical or electronic troubleshooting experience.
Comfort with standard electrical test equipment, specifically a multimeter and a clamp or amp meter.
Self-directed work habits and personal reliability.
Maturity and sound judgment.
Valid driver's license and a genuine willingness to accept significant windshield time, with occasional overnight travel to Wisconsin.
Willingness to learn on the job. Training is largely OJT with limited formal instruction.
Military equivalent: EM (Electrician's Mate), ET (Electronics Technician), AE (Aviation Electrician's Mate), FC (Fire Controlman), IC (Interior Communications Electrician), STG (Sonar Technician), GS and GSE (Gas Turbine Systems electrical).
Military equivalent: any advanced-electronics rating uses these tools daily on energized and de-energized systems.
Military equivalent: any NCO or senior technician who ran their own maintenance actions without daily supervision.
Military equivalent: Kyle would generally pass on a four-year, first-term junior unless the maturity is unmistakable. Most advanced-electronics veterans signed six-year contracts and carry that maturity out with them.
Military equivalent: comfort operating independently in the field away from a home station.

Nice To Haves

Heavy solar experience is not required and is not the primary filter.
Insulation-resistance (megger) testing is learnable on the job.
Not a fit: rooftop residential installation experience alone, with no troubleshooting or maintenance background.

Responsibilities

Restore downed C&I, distributed-generation, and light-utility sites to production safely and efficiently, minimizing revenue lost to downtime.
Diagnose faults across a mixed inverter fleet spanning multiple OEM platforms, using HMI diagnostics, insulation-resistance testing, DC string isolation, and voltage and current analysis.
Deploy from home as a self-directed operator, running your own day with minimal oversight.
Reduce unnecessary truck rolls by restoring sites remotely where the site allows, before driving out.
Progress from Level 1 to Level 2 technician within 12 months, taking more sites solo and helping dig the O&M line out of its backlog as the team scales.
Carry a share of the weekend on-call rotation once the team reaches roughly five technicians, restoring remotely wherever possible.

Benefits

Base pay is hourly, with a floor of $35 per hour for a standard Level 1 hire, moving to $39 or $40 for a strong candidate, and potentially $45 per hour or more for a standout veteran with relevant experience.
Annualized salary range runs roughly $72,800 to $93,600 and above.
Drive time is paid at the regular wage.
Company vehicle is provided.
On-call is a planned weekend rotation, roughly one weekend in five at full staffing, with a one-hour minimum payout for remote restores.
Schedule is Monday through Friday, targeting out the door between 7:00 and 7:30 and home by 5:00.
401(k)
Medical
Dental
Vision
Paid time off