Farm Laborer

Job description

Job Description
The farm worker position includes duties associated with the harvesting and packing of watermelons, cabbage, squash, and peppers. This work can require standing, walking, stooping, bending, and lifting up to 75 pounds for long periods of time outdoors in all weather conditions. It also includes making important decisions based on size, coloring, and ripeness according to prescribed standards. This work requires adherence to important food safety and quality standard operating procedures and the ability to work quickly and consistently alongside fellow workers with a positive, professional, team-based attitude and a consideration for the safety and health of fellow workers and of the consumers who will purchase and consume the fresh produce grown, harvested, packed, and shipped from the farm.

Cabbage: Workers will be assigned a row or series of rows and required to select and cut/pick produce according to criteria outlined and demonstrated by managers such as size, coloring, and ripeness.
They will be responsible for in-field grading and discarding of poor quality, rotting, and/or over-ripened produce. Workers will gently load the good quality produce into containers, taking care to avoid damage or bruising. Workers may drive tractors once cabbage is loaded as Cabbage will be transported from field to be packed in packing house with containers weighing 50lbs 54lbs.

Squash/Peppers: Pre-harvest duties for vegetables may include laying plastic,
planting, cultivating, staking, and weeding of plants by hand and/or hoe. Workers will bend and stoop to pick vegetables according to size, color, shape and degree of maturity and place into field containers. Workers must use care when performing their farm work duties and exercise consciousness to not damage or bruise the fruit and vegetables. Workers must adhere to all safety rules as instructed by their supervisors and all farm work operations must meet the standards and specifications given by the employer. Workers will be assigned a row or series of rows and required to select and pick produce according to criteria outlined and demonstrated by managers such as size, coloring, and ripeness. They will be responsible for in-field grading and discarding of poor quality,
rotting, and/or over-ripened produce. Workers will gently load the good quality produce into containers, taking care to avoid damage or bruising. Workers may carry full container weighing approximately fifty (50) lbs and empty into field bin or load onto trailer. The pay rate for all activities associated with the production of vegetables will be paid hourly.

Watermelons: Workers will be required to turn watermelon vines from drive rows, cut ripe melons, and harvest the cut melons. Instruction will be given for each task and standards of performance communicated to worker. Workers will be assigned a row or series of rows and required to select and pick produce according to criteria outlined and demonstrated by managers such as size, coloring, and
ripeness. They will be responsible for in-field grading and discarding of poor quality, rotting, and/or over-ripened produce. Workers will gently load the good quality produce into containers, taking care to avoid damage or bruising. Workers will unload containers at the packing shed and place fruit onto a conveyer belt to grade and then pack the fruit into boxes. Workers visually grade harvested produce and remove culls. Workers need to use both hands while grading at all times. Workers pack the graded produce in appropriate containers by hand. Filled boxes and cartons are stacked carefully by prescribed pattern and height onto pallets and secured by netting or tape. Workers may be required to operate forklifts and tractors after having been instructed on how to safely operate said machinery.

Special Requirements

None