Farmworkers And Laborers, Crop, Nursery, And Greenhouse

Job description

Workers will perform manual labor tasks associated with the commercial harvest of sweet corn under the direct supervision of a field manager. A minimum of one (1) month of prior experience in agricultural harvesting is required for these roles. Workers assigned as Pullers will be transported to fields ready for harvest and must line up in their assigned corn rows. These workers will bend at the waist to each corn stalk and manually snap off the ears of corn according to the daily harvest orders. After snapping the ears, Pullers will inspect the corn for quality and toss them onto the tables of a harvesting machine that moves at a walking pace behind them. Under normal conditions, Pullers must meet the minimum production standard of harvesting fifty (50) boxes of corn per hour by the end of their acclimatization period. All workers will receive a five (5)-day acclimatization period to adjust to the physical demands, work pace, and quality standards of the operation. During this training period, workers will not be terminated or disciplined solely for failing to meet productivity expectations.
Workers assigned as Packers will stand at the machine wing to receive corn thrown onto the tables by the Pullers. These workers must inspect each ear for defects and size before packing them into wooden crates or plastic containers, ensuring each container holds exactly 48 ears unless otherwise specified. Each Packer is responsible for marking their finished containers with a crew-colored crayon to track productivity and quality. Checkers will perform a final visual inspection of the packed crates to verify the ear count and ensure the corn meets the specific quality standards provided by the supervisor during the morning briefing.
The harvesting process is supported by several manual labor roles that maintain the pace of the machinery. Box Makers are responsible for the manual assembly of empty crates and must ensure a constant supply is available for the Packers. Once a container is filled, Tiemen will secure the lids or fasteners to prepare the crate for transport. Push Downs will then physically move the sealed containers from the packing area to the loading platform or conveyor. Loaders are responsible for lifting and stacking these finished boxes onto trailers or pallets using specific patterns to ensure the load remains stable.
The Machine Driver is responsible for operating the harvest-assist vehicle at a slow, consistent speed that matches the pace of the Pullers and Packers. The Driver must follow the directions of the supervisor and maintain a high level of awareness to ensure the safety of all crew members walking near the equipment. All workers in these roles must be able to adapt to changing daily specifications, such as shifts between primary and secondary ear quality, and must maintain the necessary speed to keep pace with the harvesting machinery.

Harvesting of vegetables: Once at the picking location, doing a row at a time, workers will move down the rows plucking the vegetables from the plants and putting them in a container. Once the container is full the worker will take the container to the truck and dump the content. The worker will go back to his picking area and fill his container up again, repeating the process through the work day. PLANTING : All crops. Worker will plant and/or replant as needed. These tasks will include repetitive and physically demanding shovel work. Worker may lift up to 50lbs. Worker may be required to ride a mechanical planter (training will be provided). Worker may be required to hand plant using tools such as a spade or hand trowel. Vegetable Packing: Trucks will take the harvested vegetables to the packing house which is located inside the farm, workers will pick out the vegetables that will be used for seed the rest of the vegetables will be separated by size, labeled and packed.

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.