Strawberry Ground & Machine Harvest

Job description

H-2A and corresponding domestic workers must be available to perform each of the following job activities in connection with the harvesting and farming operations:

Strawberry Ground & Machine Harvest (Fresh, Cannery, Juice), General Labor (road cutting, planting, runner cutting, weeding (long-handled hoe)), Indirect Labor, General Farm Labor, General Ranch Maintenance, Forklift Driver, CalVan Drivers, Sanitization activities, and Health/Wellness Monitor to perform the following duties:

Strawberry planting/replanting, stripping, road, flower and runner cutting, vine trellising, hoop plastic installation/tear down, sucker removal, cane removal, and removal of old strawberry vines.

Workers will also perform duties associated with and directly related to strawberry harvest work, including but not limited to picking and packing strawberries in the field for fresh market, cannery, and freezing/juicing; distinguish quality and ripeness; pick, and place in tray / packing containers in the field.

Ground Harvest: working in rows, the worker bends over and picks strawberries with hands, places the strawberries in a box, walks and carries the box with strawberries to the packing table located at the end of the row in the field. The worker returns to the row to continue ground harvest.

Berries Machine Harvest: Workers will perform duties associated with and directly related to berry harvest work, including but not limited to picking and packing berries in the field for fresh market and freezing/juicing; distinguish quality and ripeness; pick and place in tray / packing containers in the field. Pickers will work on berry picker machine to aid harvest: working in rows, worker bends over and picks berries with hands; places berries in box and stacks full boxes on machine floor. Empty boxes are retrieved from top of machine. The machine will transport filled boxes to the end of the row - workers using machine aid do not carry full boxes to the end of rows.

Indirect Labor:

Puncher/Quality control: Quality control person makes sure that product meets standards of quality. They examine and weigh product baskets to be of the weight and quality required. Some quality control inspections are routine and quick, others are more complex and lengthier. Quality control person may be responsible for declaring that a product (basket) is not below the specified quality. Quality control person may also inspect that a picker is not leaving good product in the furrow or are putting incorrect/bad product in baskets. They may make recommendations for improvements.

Loader/Stacker: Primary job is to remove full/filled boxes (flats) from machine belt and stack on a pallet. Worker is responsible that all boxes are well stacked and ensures there are enough empty boxes (flats) ready in machine belt so pickers have access to them.

Time Keeper/Scanner/Puncher: Time keeper/scanner/puncher will scan employees ID badge to record start/end times during each work day. Worker is also responsible for scanning full/filled boxes to ensure they are accounted for.

Opening roads: During the preparation of the farming of the berries and once the beds on the berry fields have been covered with plastic, workers will use a shovel, and under the direction of the supervisor, cut out the plastic covering the ground by shoveling and pressing down on it with the sharp side of the shovel with the goal of making a road to divide the lots/fields. As the worker advances along the side of the bed, they repeatedly walk, bend at the waist, set up the irrigation lines on the bed, shovel and press down with the shovel to pull out unwanted plastic while tucking in the plastic under the soil to secure its position. Cycle repeats until road is achieved.

Special Requirements

Workers must stand, sit, crouch, bend, reach, lift and carry items weighing up to 50 pounds in the course of performing required activities. Workers must be able to listen, understand, and follow instructions of company supervisors and managers.

The company's Employment Arbitration Agreement is set forth in this Clearance Order outlining the procedures to follow in raising concerns to seek their prompt resolution with an option to arbitrate unresolved matters.