Agricultural Equipment Operator

Job description

Load and unload crops or containers of materials, manually or using conveyors, hand trucks, forklifts, or transfer augers. The worker will observe and listen to machinery operation to detect equipment malfunctions, and manipulate controls to set, activate, and adjust mechanisms on machinery. Duties include operating or tending equipment used in agricultural production, such as tractors, combines, and irrigation equipment, and adjusting, repairing, and servicing farm machinery, notifying supervisors when machinery malfunctions. The worker will attach farm implements such as plows, discs, sprayers, or harvesters to tractors, using bolts and hand tools, and load hoppers, containers, or conveyors to feed machines with products, using forklifts, transfer augers, suction gates, shovels, or pitchforks. The worker will operate towed machines such as seed drills or manure spreaders to plant, fertilize, dust, and spray crops, and drive trucks to haul crops, supplies, tools, or farm workers. Additional duties include performing basic vehicle maintenance tasks, such as adding oil, fuel, or radiator fluid, performing minor repairs, or washing trucks, and irrigating soil, using portable pipes or ditch systems, and maintaining ditches or pipes and pumps. The worker must be able to read and speak the English language sufficiently to converse with the general public, understand highway traffic signs and signals in English, respond to official enquiries, and make entries on reports and records.

Employees will be provided with adequate breaks, including meal and rest periods, consistent with applicable Federal, State, and local law, during the course of each workday. Drivers in the U.S. must read and speak English well enough to understand traffic signs, talk with the public, respond to official questions, and fill out work records under 49 CFR 391.11(b)(2).

Special Requirements

Minimum of 3 months experience is required. Lift and carry items weighing up to 50 pounds. The worker will be exposed to extreme temperatures. Wage rate may increase with verifiable experience. Employer may reward exceptional work with monetary or other benefits in addition to those listed here in his sole discretion. Operator License Class D Candidate will have 60 days to obtain. Skill Level II Experienced Level Pursuant to the Interim Final Rule (IFR) implementing the new four-level wage system for H-2A occupations, the employer designates this position as Skill Level II Experienced Level, indicating that the job requires prior related experience, independent judgment in performing recurring tasks, and the ability to work with limited supervision. The employer reserves the right to withhold the applicable housing deduction as permitted under program regulations, when approved and disclosed in the job order.