Agricultural Equipment Operator

Job description

Workers will perform assign duties as instructed by their supervisor. Workers must have the correct type of 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. Must be able to reach, bend and lift items weighing 100 pounds.

The Specialized Farm Labor position includes the planting, growing, maintenance, and packing of plant material. All workers are required to adhere to important safety, quality and production standards alongside fellow workers with a positive, professional, team-based attitude and a consideration for the safety and health of fellow workers.
Primary Responsibilities include:
• Accurately and quickly planting young plant material (plugs or liners) while on potting line conveyor
• Accurately and quickly pruning plant material to designated specifications
• Applying cares tags and bar codes
• Assembling, disassembling and/or repairing shipping racks for use or storage
• Assembling and/or moving plant material on shipping trays
• Applying fertilizer
• Unloading trucks and rearranging racks with or without plant material
• Pulling, loading, offloading and/or consolidating plant material (plants, plugs or liners) to/from field or production barn as needed and according to job orders and instructions
• Repairing and maintaining production and non-production areas such as ground cover repair, grass trimming and weeding at times using mower or gas-powered trimmers
• Re-spacing, spreading, consolidating or dumping plant material according to task/job orders
• Executing task work orders and documenting quantities and the status of completion
• Performing general housekeeping duties such as sweeping, mopping, and picking up trash or debris around the farm
• Weeding plant material
• Identifying and reporting plant quality issues including removing debris, dirt or poor-quality foliage prior to shipping
• Operating or working on production line using soil mixers, flat fillers, conveyors, and potting machines
• Replacing plant containers as needed prior to shipping
• Placing lot tags in production lots
• Pruning or trimming plants as instructed by a grower using pruning shears, scissors, or mechanical trimming equipment
• Operating a forklift, farm tractor, golf cart and/or electric tug
• Employees are expected to show up to work on all scheduled work days.
• Employee must let Supervisor know 7 days in advance if they will need to be absent on a given day.
In case of emergency or illness, employee must notify supervisor by 8 am that they will not be able to show up for work.
• Employees are expected to show up to work on time at the start of each work day and be at work until the end of the work day. Also, breaks and lunches will be taken at the appropriate times (10-10:15am break and 12:00 -12:45pm lunch)
• Any absence outside of the established parameters will be considered Unexcused.
• Excessive Unexcused absences will be addressed as follows:

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.