Temporary jobs paying between $10 and $17.50 an hour will be available to Windham residents through the U.S. Census Bureau for the 2010 population count, according to a press release from the local census office in Portland.

The overall concept is to hire local residents who know the most about their own communities. They know the roads, their neighbors, and they can locate the houses.

The duration of the jobs will depend on the positions, but most will last between six and 10 weeks with opportunities for extensions based upon individual performance. Jobs in the field will involve dealing directly with the public, locating addresses and possibly interviewing households.

Census jobs could be ideal for retirees, teachers, college students, and people who are between jobs, or just about anyone who wants to earn extra money while performing an important service for their community. The Census Bureau expects to create hundreds of thousands of temporary jobs across the United States in collecting data for the census, which is the largest peacetime operation conducted by the federal government.

Conducted every 10 years, the constitutionally mandated census helps determine the share of federal aid going to our local communities and the number of representatives each state has in Congress.

To apply for a census job, call toll-free at 1-866-861-2010.