Farm Worker

Job description

Crops/Commodities:
apples, apricots, cherries, wheat, hay, grapes, vegetables, including but not limited to, potatoes, garlic.
General Duties

Workers will perform any of the following duties: Orchard/farm clean-up, including picking up garbage, removal of grass, dirt, string, rocks, wire or any other debris from within or around fields, orchards, buildings, either by hand or using tools or equipment; remove weeds by hand or using hand or power tools; spread compost/fertilizer; place pest control devices including traps, pheromones and paints, and remove diseased plant parts, either by hand or using various machines and tools. Workers will install, deploy, repair and remove shade cloth and trellis by placing posts, wires and cloth for support and shade of orchards using hand and mechanical tools; install, maintain and operate irrigation system, to inlcude placement of irrigation pipes and sprinklers and checking of lines to ensure proper operation using hand and mechanical tools. Clean and distribute buckets, totes, lugs or bins into fields/orchards prior to picking either by hand or with the aid of equipment. Sort and remove defective fruit, plant debris, leaves, etc. from plants or harvest containers. Place liners and tags in or on harvest containers by hand or using various tools. Ability to pick up, use and safely handle and work from a 12 foot ladder weighing 40 lbs. or from a mechanized platform up to 8 feet high, is necessary for performance of general orchard duties.

Tree Training
Workers will perform tree training duties including but not limited to the following activities: hoeing, tree painting, weed mat application, tree tying/positioning, – includes tying limbs to trellises and tying limbs together, using string, tape, wire or other fasteners and supports. Other tying activities will be determined by orchard management and communicated to all employees.

Propagation/Planting
Workers will propagate plants by placing buds/scions in plants using knives, tape, wax or paint. Workers will prepare fields for planting by clearing cull stock, brush and debris; dig holes, plant seedlings or ‘liners' by hand (including riding on the planting machine, reaching and grabbing a tree and dropping it in the hole and inserting liners in a mechanical planter); shovel dirt around newly-planted trees.

Thinning
Thinning is a manual process used to control the size and fruit quality of grown fruit. Employees will be instructed by supervisors in the correct procedures for each thinning task. Ability to pick up, use and safely handle a 12 foot ladder weighing 40 lbs. or work from a mechanized platform up to 8 feet high, is necessary for performance of thinning tasks. This process requires the employee to be able to appropriately remove the smallest fruit blossom, bud and/or identifiable fruit from within a cluster of other fruits. Workers will be expected to be able to identify and remove fruit that is misshapen, damaged and/or have other quality problems as directed by supervisors.

Pruning
Pruning numerous varieties of fruit trees according to established company procedures based on the difference in the treatment of different varieties. Work will be performed on trees for long periods of time using a variety of pruning equipment including hand shears, hand loppers, hand saws and 12-foot ladders. Pruning and thinning may be done from the ground or ladder up to 12 feet in height or from a motorized platform. Workers may be required to selectively prune only trees of a certain size as instructed by the supervisor.

Workers are expected to have requisite pruning skills to be able to identify and remove stubs or broken branches, downward-growing branches, branches which rub against each other, shaded interior branches, dead wood and shoots/suckers with hand pruning saws and clippers, mechanized clippers and pole pruners.

Special Requirements

This job requires a minimum of three months of prior experience working in commercial production agriculture, handling manual and machine tasks associated with commodity production and harvest activities. Workers must be able to perform all work activities with accuracy and efficiency. Applicants must be able to furnish verbal or written statement establishing relevant prior work experience. Must be able to lift/carry 60 lbs.