Farm & Orchard Workers

Job description

Perform manual labor to cultivate and harvest peaches, plums, and nectarines; plant, cultivate, and harvest strawberries, blueberries, soybeans, peas, melons, beans, corn, tomatoes, squash, cucumbers, okra, turf grass, and wheat; and prune and thin fruit trees. Clean, pack, grade, sort, and load harvested product. Use hand tools such as shovels, trowels, hoes, tampers, pruning hooks, shears, and knives. Till soil. Transplant and weed crops. Workers may rake and grade soil, harvest sod, ride on tractor and stack sod on pallets. Assemble trellises, repair fences and farm buildings, or participate in irrigation activities. Set up and operate irrigation equipment. Proper spacing as instructed is required when thinning, as well as which peaches are to be left or removed. Only specified fruit is to be picked as instructed and desirable fruit should not be left on the tree, dropped or removed from ground. Prune and thin fruit trees as instructed by supervisor. Workers must have a general understanding of how pruning affects competition with fruiting wood and how thinning is done to provide nutrition to the developing fruit. Improper pruning can cause problems with fruit load, fruit size, disease severity, and overall production. As a minor activity, operate tractors to harvest crops and repair and maintain farm vehicles, implements, and mechanical equipment. Inform farmers or farm managers of crop progress. Identify plants, pests, and weeds to determine the selection and application of pesticides, herbicides and fertilizers. Apply pesticides, herbicides, or fertilizers to crops. Record information about crops, such as pesticide use, yields, or costs. Grade and sort products according to factors such as color, species, length, width, appearance, feel, smell and quality to ensure correct processing and usage. Workers must use care when grading and packing not to damage or bruise produce. Discard inferior or defective products and/or foreign matter and place acceptable products in containers for further processing. Weigh products or estimate their weight, visually or by feel. Place products in containers according to grade and mark grades on containers. Record grade and/or identification numbers on tags or on shipping, receiving, or sales sheets. Workers are also responsible for farm, field and shed sanitation duties including picking up trash, cleaning bathrooms, and sweeping floors. Occasional manual digging. Assist with Good Agricultural Practices policies. Using the employer’s vehicles, licensed drivers may transport workers and be offered additional hours. Allergies to ragweed, goldenrod, honey bees, insecticides, herbicides, fungicides, or related chemicals may affect a worker’s ability to perform the job. Persons seeking employment in this position must be available for the entire period requested by the employer. Employer reserves the right to discharge an obviously unqualified worker, malingerer or recalcitrant worker who is physically able but is unwilling to perform the work necessary for the employer to grow a premium quality product, or for any other lawful reason.

Employer may request, but not require, workers to work more than the stated daily hours and/or on a worker’s Sabbath or federal holidays. Worker must report to work at designated time and place each day. Daily or weekly work schedule may vary due to weather, sunlight, temperature, crop conditions, and other factors. Employer will notify workers of any change to start time.

Workers should expect occasional periods of little or no work because of weather, crop or other conditions beyond the employer's control. These periods can occur anytime throughout the season. Workers may be assigned a variety of duties in any given day and different tasks on different days.

TERMINATION. All workers will be subject to a two day introductory period, during which the employer will evaluate workers' performance of required tasks.

Special Requirements

One month of farm work experience required. Work outside in inclement weather conditions including rain and extreme temperatures. Perform prolonged walking, stooping, bending, reaching, pushing and pulling, lifting and carrying 50 lbs. Use 8 ft. ladder while pruning fruit trees above head. Must be 18 or older.