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Data Engineer Contract Jobs in California (NOW HIRING)

Data Engineer

Pasadena, CA · On-site

$124K - $150K/yr

Collaborate with AI Engineers to define data contracts and ensure pipeline outputs meet solution requirements for schema, latency, and freshness. * Instrument data pipelines for monitoring, alerting ...

Data Engineer.

Sunnyvale, CA · On-site

$136K - $163K/yr

Duration: Long Term Contract. Direct Client: Req. Key Qualifications * 6+ years of hands-on data modeling and data engineering experience. * Strong expertise in dimensional modeling and data ...

Data Engineer

Los Angeles, CA · On-site +1

$123K - $148K/yr

California - Remote Duration: 6+ Months Contract The Senior Data Engineer is responsible for designing, building, and managing the data platform and tools to allow for the efficient processing and ...

Role : Data Engineer

Fremont, CA · On-site

$125K - $151K/yr

Info Way Solutions is seeking a Data Engineer for a long-term contract with Pacific Gas and Electric. The role involves data modeling, data warehousing, and building ETL pipelines, requiring ...

New

AWS Data Engineer

Alameda, CA · On-site

$129K - $155K/yr

AWS Data Engineer Work Location: Alameda CA Duration ... Contract to hire or FTE Experience: 10 to max 20 Mandatory - need summary on pharma and commercial ...

Data Engineer 1

San Jose, CA · On-site

$55.21 - $69.01/hr

Data Engineer 1 Full-time San Jose, CA, US You'll be joining Adobe on a contract opportunity, employed through NextDeavor Benefits You'll Love NextDeavor offers health, vision and dental benefits for ...

Sr. AWS Data Engineer

San Francisco, CA · On-site

$134K - $162K/yr

Contract Role Summary We are seeking a highly skilled AWS Data Engineering Lead with strong hands-on experience in building scalable data platforms on AWS. The ideal candidate will lead data ...

Data Engineer II

Sunnyvale, CA · On-site

$55 - $60/hr

Contract Job ID: 175305 Job Overview: We are seeking a skilled and detail-oriented Data Engineer II to join our team. The ideal candidate will be responsible for designing, building, and maintaining ...

AI Data Engineer

Cupertino, CA · On-site

$141K - $169K/yr

Do you thrive on engineering clean data flows that connect enterprise systems to intelligent ... data contracts, and operational runbooks Minimum Qualifications Bachelor's degree in Computer ...

Data Engineer 3

San Jose, CA · Hybrid

$65.49/hr

Data Engineer 3 (Contract) * Location: San Jose, CA 95110 (Hybrid) * Duration: 12/08/2025 to 12/08/2026 * Team: DME Planning Strategy & Consolidation About the Role: * The Financial Data Engineer ...

Platform patterns for Medallion architecture, data contracts, schema evolution, governance, and ... The evolution of Data Engineering toward a more AI-first way of working What Makes This Role ...

Data Engineer (DataOps)

Cupertino, CA · On-site

$141K - $169K/yr

Contract - W2 Summary: We are seeking a capable, detail-minded Data Engineer with a DataOps focus to join our worldwide business development and strategy team. You will build and operate the data ...

Platform patterns for Medallion architecture, data contracts, schema evolution, governance, and ... The evolution of Data Engineering toward a more AI-first way of working What Makes This Role ...

Platform patterns for Medallion architecture, data contracts, schema evolution, governance, and ... The evolution of Data Engineering toward a more AI-first way of working What Makes This Role ...

Showing results 41-60

Data Engineer Contract information

See California salary details

$43.9K

$128K

$175.2K

How much do data engineer contract jobs pay per year?

As of Aug 10, 2026, the average yearly pay for data engineer contract in California is $128,018.00, according to ZipRecruiter salary data. Most workers in this role earn between $113,000.00 and $135,700.00 per year, depending on experience, location, and employer.

What are the typical daily responsibilities of a data engineer contract?

As a Data Engineer contractor, your day-to-day tasks often include designing, building, and maintaining data pipelines, implementing ETL processes, and preparing datasets for analytics or machine learning teams. You may be asked to collaborate with data scientists, analysts, and other engineers to understand data requirements and resolve technical issues. Contractors also frequently assess data quality, optimize performance, and document their work for seamless team integration. The role is fast-paced and may require you to quickly adapt to new projects or technologies, making it ideal for those who enjoy dynamic, project-based environments.

What are the key skills and qualifications needed to thrive in the data engineer contract position, and why are they important?

To thrive as a Data Engineer Contract, you need expertise in data modeling, ETL processes, and proficiency with programming languages such as Python or SQL, often supported by a degree in computer science or related field. Familiarity with big data platforms like Hadoop or Spark, experience with cloud services (AWS, GCP, or Azure), and certifications in relevant technologies are highly valued. Strong problem-solving skills, effective communication, and the ability to work independently are crucial soft skills. These abilities ensure data engineers can efficiently design scalable pipelines, troubleshoot issues, and collaborate across teams to support data-driven decision-making.

What is a data engineer contract?

A Data Engineer Contract job is a temporary or project-based role where a data engineer is hired for a specific duration to design, build, and maintain data pipelines and infrastructure. Contract data engineers often work with big data technologies, ETL processes, and cloud platforms to ensure data is efficiently processed and accessible. These roles can be short-term (a few months) or long-term (a year or more), depending on the project's needs. Contractors may work independently or as part of a larger data team, and they are typically paid hourly or per project rather than receiving a fixed salary and benefits like full-time employees.

What are the most commonly searched types of Data Engineer jobs in California? The most popular types of Data Engineer jobs in California are:
What cities in California are hiring for Data Engineer Contract jobs? Cities in California with the most Data Engineer Contract job openings:
Infographic showing various Data Engineer Contract job openings in California as of August 2026, with employment types broken down into 77% Full Time, and 23% Contract. Highlights an 80% In-person, and 20% Remote job distribution, with an average salary of $128,018 per year, or $61.5 per hour.

$124K - $150K/yr

Full-time

Medical, Dental, Vision, Life, Retirement, PTO

Re-posted 4 days ago


GEI Consultants rating

7.6

Company rating: 7.6 out of 10

Based on 7 frontline employees who took The Breakroom Quiz

275th of 446 rated engineering


Job description

Description
Your role at GEI.
The Data Engineer is responsible for designing, building, and maintaining the data pipelines and integrations that power GEI's AI solutions and digital initiatives. This role focuses on ensuring enterprise data is accessible, reliable, and governed so that AI capabilities can be deployed and scaled with confidence.
The Data Engineer plays a hands-on role by preparing and integrating the data foundations that AI solutions depend on. This includes building ingestion pipelines, managing data stores, implementing quality and governance controls, and supporting retrieval patterns such as RAG. This role works closely with AI Engineers, solution architects, and platform teams to ensure data infrastructure is production-ready, secure, and aligned with GEI standards.
Essential Responsibilities & Duties
  • Design, build, and maintain data pipelines that ingest, transform, and deliver enterprise data to AI solutions and business applications.
  • Develop and manage integrations across enterprise data sources using APIs, Graph connectors, event-driven architectures, and batch/streaming patterns.
  • Build and maintain data stores and indexing infrastructure that support retrieval-augmented generation (RAG) and other AI consumption patterns.
  • Implement data quality, validation, and lineage controls to ensure accuracy and trustworthiness of data feeding AI workflows.
  • Support and optimize data models underpinning Power BI dashboards and AI-enabled analytics.
  • Collaborate with AI Engineers to define data contracts and ensure pipeline outputs meet solution requirements for schema, latency, and freshness.
  • Instrument data pipelines for monitoring, alerting, cost control, and performance optimization.
  • Implement data governance and security controls including access management, encryption, and compliance with organizational data policies.
  • Identify data-related risks and support mitigation strategies in collaboration with architecture and platform teams.

Minimum Qualifications
  • 4+ years of data engineering experience, with demonstrated ability to build and operate production data pipelines.
  • Proficiency in Python and SQL; experience with PySpark or Spark is strongly preferred.
  • Experience with Azure data services, including Azure Data Factory, Azure Synapse Analytics, Azure Data Lake Storage, and Azure SQL.
  • Familiarity with Azure AI Search, Cosmos DB, or similar services used to support AI retrieval and storage patterns.
  • Experience building and managing ETL/ELT pipelines with structured, semi-structured, and unstructured data sources.
  • Knowledge of data modeling, schema design, and indexing strategies for both analytical and AI workloads.
  • Familiarity with infrastructure-as-code and CI/CD practices for data pipeline deployment (e.g., Terraform, Azure DevOps).
  • Knowledge of data governance principles, including data cataloging, lineage, access control, and privacy requirements.
  • Knowledge of security best practices for data solutions, including encryption at rest and in transit, role-based access control, and private networking.
  • Experience with Databricks, including Delta Lake and Unity Catalog, is a plus.
  • Prior experience in professional services, engineering, or construction environments is a plus.
  • Azure or Databricks certifications (e.g., Azure Data Engineer Associate, Azure Solutions Architect Expert, Databricks Data Engineer Professional) are a plus.

We are GEI.
Some of the world's most pressing problems - from climate change to sustainable development, to critical infrastructure and the future of our energy supply - need our brightest and diverse minds working together to create safer, more resilient communities for tomorrow.
We are technical experts, collaborators, and entrepreneurs who draw from diverse backgrounds to solve our clients' most complex challenges.
With several offices across North America, we offer a range of engineering, science, and technical consulting services. Our range of expertise, project types, and culture make us the choice for top talent in the AEC industry. See all our office locations here .
Employee-owned. Employee-focused.
As an employee-owned company, our employees support our flat leadership structure, have a say in how our business operates and benefit from our financial success. We are committed to employee growth with career development opportunities, competitive total rewards, a well-being program, flexible work arrangements and more. Our company culture is driven by our 4 Cs - we are Client-Centered, Curious, Collaborative, and Community Minded - which support our focus on sustainability, safety, diversity, equity and inclusion. Get to know us better by visiting GEI's career site here .
GEI's Total Rewards Package Includes
  • Market-Competitive Compensation, including Eligibility for an Annual Performance Bonus
  • Pay Range For This Position: $90,000.00 - $150,000.00/year
  • Comprehensive Benefits Program, including Medical, Dental, Vision, Life, Disability and More
  • Well-Being Program and Paid Parental Leave
  • Commuter Benefits
  • Hybrid Work Schedules and Cell Phone Stipends
  • GEI University (GEIU) with Continuing Education Assistance and Tuition Reimbursement
  • Connecting Conversation Program with a Focus on Professional Development and Opportunities for Advancement
  • Support and Financial Rewards for Publication Awards, Professional Dues, and Professional Licenses
  • Paid Holidays and Generous Paid Time Off Program
  • Rewards and Recognition
  • GEI-Funded Profit Sharing and 401(k)
  • Opportunity to be an Owner and Shareholder (Learn more here )
  • A Vibrant Culture that is Focused on Partnership, Sustainability, Giving Back to Our Communities and Diversity, Equity and Inclusion
  • And More...

PHYSICAL REQUIREMENTS
WORK ENVIRONMENT
Functional Demands:
Sedentary
x
Light
Medium
Other
Activity Level Throughout Workday (check one per row)
Physical Activity Requirements
Occasional
(0-35% of day)
Frequent
(33-66% of day)
Continuous
(67-100% of day)
Not Applicable
Sitting
x
Standing
x
Walking
x
Climbing
x
Lifting (floor to waist level) (in pounds)
x
Lifting (waist level and above) (in pounds)
x
Carrying objects
x
Push/pull
x
Twisting
x
Bending
x
Reaching forward
x
Reaching overhead
x
Squat/kneel/crawl
x
Wrist position deviation
x
Pinching/fine motor skills
x
Keyboard use/repetitive motion
x
Taste or smell (taste=never)
x
Talk or hear
x
Accurate 20/40
Very Accurate 20/20
Not Applicable
Near Vision
x
Far Vision
x
Yes
No
Not Applicable
Color Discrimination
Sensory Requirements
Minimal
Moderate
Accurate
Not Applicable
Depth perception
x
Hearing
x
Environment Requirements
Occupational Exposure Risk Potential
Reasonably Anticipated
Not Anticipated
Blood borne pathogens
x
Chemical
x
Airborne communicable diseases
x
Extreme temperatures
x
Radiation
x
Uneven surfaces or elevations
x
Extreme noise levels
x
Dust/particulate matter
x
Other (exposure risks):
Usual workday hours :
x
8
10
12
Other work hours
GEI is an AA/equal opportunity employer, including disabled and veterans.

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