Nursery Worker, Harvester And General Laborer

Job description

Sandy Ridge Berry Farms, LLC (also referred to herein as “Sandy Ridge Berry Farms” “Employer” or “Company”) is a fixed-site grower which owns and controls its work sites (listed below) and all agricultural commodities produced at such sites.

Sandy Ridge Berry Farms’s Oregon address is located at 7495 Sequoia St. NE, Brooks OR 97305; telephone: (805) 832-8656. The Employer has designated the following address as its Application Site: 7495 Sequoia St. NE, Brooks OR 97305, Telephone (805) 832-8656.

• Take I-5 North to the Brooks Exit (263)
• Travel East on Brooklake Rd to Hwy 99E
• Travel North on Hwy 99E to Waconda Rd NE
• Travel East on Waconda Rd NE to 72nd Ave NE
• Travel South on 72nd Ave NE, this road sweeps to the east and becomes Seqoia St. NE
• Travel East on Sequoia St NE to 7495 Sequoia St NE

Sandy Ridge Berry Farms has sole discretion, within the confines of applicable Federal and State laws, to hire Nursery Worker, Harvester and General Laborers to perform work associated with blueberry and blackberry harvest. This includes hiring the specific number of workers needed to complete the harvest as well as defining the period of need. In this case, we are hiring temporary, seasonal Nursery Worker, Harvester and General Laborers for the period starting on July 15, 2022 through September 30, 2022. This is the typical harvest season for the previously listed commodities in this region.

All Nursery, Harvester and General Laborers assigned by Sandy Ridge Berry Farms in these locations will work under the direct control of Sandy Ridge Berry Farms.

The work is performed in the field on the farm and in a nursery:
Primarily involved in the maintenance of the long cane nursery. Secondary responsibility is to join the piece rate harvest crews in fresh market blackberries. Tertiary is hourly hand harvest of the blueberry test plot and maintenance of this plot. Additionally, farm maintenance activities, specified below, will be done.

Priorities
Essential Job Responsibilities:
Nursery Work
Under the supervision of a Sandy Ridge leader, the crew will assist in the care and training of long cane nursery crops including but not limited to pruning plants, training plants, tying plants, moving pots, fixing irrigation, deploying and fixing trellising and weeding
Blackberry Harvest
Hand pick and hand pack fresh market blackberries with a minimum productivity of 3.0 crates per hour (12 x 6oz) and 1.5 crates per hour (12 x12oz); Hand pick blackberries for frozen
Act as puncher, stacker or table help.
Blueberry Test Plot Harvest and Maintenance
• Follow the directions of the test plot manager to hand harvest blueberries
• Weed and maintain the test plot area
General Farm Maintenance
• Maintain tunnel plastic
• Pull weeds
• Hand apply pesticides (additional training will be given before this task)
• Cut suckers
• Prune and train plants
• Trellis repair and maintenance
• Operation of farm equipment after skills are demonstrated and safety checkouts (for each piece of power equipment) are completed
Quality control
• Establishes and follows a packaging review system that ensures harvested product meet company standards in quality and appearance.
o Appearance: Good packing, full baskets (no bridges); ask harvesters to re-pack crates and pick correct fruit color as needed.
o Crates: Make sure the crate is clean and is the correct type of crate.

Additional Job Responsibilities:
Workers are responsible for following Crew Leader instructions. These include, completing daily warm-up exercises.

Tools and equipment:
Workers normally use containers or buckets and a table upon which the buckets are placed. The Company will provide the tools and equipment necessary to perform all required tasks at no cost to the worker.

Special Requirements

3 months of blueberries or blackberries harvesting experience.
Cannot be color blind due to the need to distinguish colors of crops for proper ripeness and maturity.
No smoking, illegal drugs, alcohol, or weapons of any sort in the housing or work fields.
Proficiency in English or Spanish is required for training and safety purposes.
Work is performed outdoors in open fields and can involve exposure to sun, wind, mud, dust, heat, cold and other elements of the normal field environment.
Temperatures can range from 50 degrees F to over 90 degrees F during the period of employment.
Workers should come prepared with appropriate clothing and footwear for the work and working conditions described.
Must have attention to detail.
Ability to produce a quality product at an efficient pace.
Ability to understand and follow directions.
(See Addendum C)