Agricultural Equipment Operators

Job description

Workers will perform assign duties as instructed by their supervisor. Agriculture Equipment Operator to operate
equipment used to plant and harvest Tobacco and Sweet Potato crops. Must have driver’s license required by State and Federals laws, and drivers responsible for transporting workers will be required to have a valid and unexpired Federal Farm Labor Contractor or Federal Farm Labor Contractor Employee Registration with driving authorization. Will be responsible for operating the vehicles used to move crops on the farm.
Must be able to safely operate the buses that are used to transport workers to and from work sites, operate forklifts and equipment used to move supplies and harvesting equipment in the field, maintain harvest equipment, use a bucket loader, tractors, irrigation equipment, machinery to haul crops, supplies, tools, till soil and store crops and must be able to reach, bend and lift items weighing 70-100 pounds.
The alternative work if needed will be to assist with the manual harvesting operations of tobacco and sweet potato and general field maintenance, such as weeding, debris removal, irrigation repair, etc.

The worker in order to perform this kind of work must be able to work outside for at least 6 hours a day in all kinds of weather and be in possession of the requisite physical strength and endurance, working quickly and skillfully with their hands.
The employer will provide the tools necessary to perform the described job duties, without charge to the worker. The employer will charge the worker for reasonable costs related to the worker’s refusal or negligent failure to return the tools or due to such worker’s willful damage or destruction of the tools.

Employees may volunteer to work additional hours when work is available, the worker is not required to work more than the stated daily hours in the contract and/or on a worker's Sabbath or federal holidays Workers should expect occasional periods of little or no work because of weather, crop or other conditions beyond the employer’s control. These periods can occur any time throughout the season. If workers request a leave of absence during the contract period, if the worker has been offered an opportunity to work, the hours will be deducted from the hours offered under the ETA-790 for the purposes of the three-quarter guarantee.

A copy of the work contract or a copy of the ETA 790 in lieu of a work contract, and any modifications, will be provided to the H-2A worker no later than the time at which the worker applies for the Visa, or to a worker in corresponding employment, no later than on the day work commences. For an H-2A worker going from an H-2A employer to a subsequent H-2A employer, a copy of the contract will be provided no later than the time an offer of employment is made by the subsequent H-2A employer.

Special Requirements

This type of work, involves working conditions that require tremendous stamina, a high level of physical activity in cold or extremely hot conditions in direct sunlight and in adverse weather such as rain. The work requires a high level of physical conditioning.