Farmworker

Job description

Crops/Commodities:
including but not limited to, sweet potatoes and watermelons..
Workers will transplant and harvest sweet potatoes and other vegetable crops, including but not limited to, watermelons. Workers will remove weeds manually either by hand or with a hoe. Workers will cut transplants at sweet potato bed & load plants that weigh 50 lbs. onto truck. Workers will ride transplanter during planting. Some workers will walk behind transplanter making sure all plants are planted correctly.

Workers may ride on mechanical diggers to harvest sweet potatoes. The mechanical digger will dig two rows at a time, the potatoes will be picked up by the digger and will travel up a conveyor belt to the workers riding on the trailer. Workers may stoop, bend and kneel to pick up sweet potatoes using hands and fingers to dig out unexposed potatoes. Workers may grade in the field separating #1's and #2's into separate 5/8 field hampers. Canners, when harvested, will be placed into a separate bin. Damaged or diseased potatoes will not be harvested. Full hampers weighing up to 35 lbs. will be carried to truck row to be loaded onto truck or trailer. Workers will be required to stay on their assigned row. Workers may also be required to wash the sweet potatoes and get them ready for sale.

In addition, workers may be required to perform variable tasks relating to crop production such as the following: irrigation, ditching, shoveling, hoeing, hauling, ground preparation, weeding, cleaning, farm maintenance, and repairing farm buildings and equipment, seed beds, racks, grounds and other tasks related to general farming.

Use power equipment including but not limited to: tractors and fork lifts. Must operate agricultural equipment safely, with or without direction.

Work is to be done for long periods of time. Workers will assist in loading trucks with product weighing up to and including 75 pounds and lifting to a height of 5 feet for long periods of time. Workers should be able to work on their feet in bent positions for long periods of time. Work requires repetitive movements and extensive walking. Allergies to ragweed, goldenrod, insect spray, related chemicals, etc. may affect workers' ability to perform the job. Workers are exposed to wet weather early in the morning through the heat of the day, working in fields. Temperatures may range from 10 to 100 F. Workers may be required to work during occasional showers not severe enough to stop field operations.

Workers with a clean driving record (no major moving violations such as but not limited to Driving While Intoxicated or Reckless Driving) and able to obtain an insurable driver's license may drive company vehicles. Employer may provide one or more vehicles to workers (van, bus, or pickup truck) for multi-purpose use on an as needed basis (e.g., driving workers from employer-provided housing directly to the farm, around the farm properties during the work day, and possibly carrying equipment/supplies with them) and this may involve the worker(s) operating the vehicles across public roads in order to reach the other farm properties to perform their work. These multi-purpose vehicles have a capacity of less than 13 tons, require a standard driver's license to operate, may be used on or off farm by the workers (e.g., drive to the grocery store, bank, etc. at their discretion), and workers are not required or expected to arrange for the routine pick-up of another worker or groups of workers on a regular schedule at other housing locations or centralized pick-up points.

Employer may request, but not require, workers to work more than the stated daily hours and/or on a worker's Sabbath or federal holidays. Worker must report to work at designated time and place each day.

Special Requirements

This job requires a minimum of three months of prior experience working on a vegetable crop farm handling both manual and machine tasks associated with commodity production, transplanting, and harvesting activities. Applicants must be able to furnish verbal or written statement establishing relevant prior work experience. Saturday work required. Must be able to lift/carry 75 lbs.