Nursery Worker

Job description

Crops/Commodities:
nursery stock.
This job requires a minimum of three months of prior verifiable experience working on a nursery handling both manual and machine tasks associated with nursery production. Workers must be able to perform manual as well as mechanized activities with accuracy and efficiency. Jobs may include any combination of planting, hoeing, transplanting, fertilizing, pruning, spacing, preparing soil, weeding, spraying and watering, tagging, mowing, loading/unloading trucks. Performs any other duties involved in the maintenance of plant materials and nursery stock. Workers will require minimal supervision.

Count and inventory plants. Load plants onto wagons and trucks. Remove plastic from hoop houses in spring and cover hoop houses with plastic in fall. Assist with building hoop houses. Plant and dig field grown plants, burlap roots, perform general maintenance of field grown plants. Fill, lift, and carry various size pots with soil and plants weighing as much as 60 pounds Plants must be handled carefully to ensure that minimal leaves, limbs and roots are not broken.

Workers must have an understanding of nursery quality control standards and a working knowledge of nursery production procedures. Workers must be able to harvest crops according to predetermined, customer specific standards. Must select and harvest crops which are suitable for various clients.

In addition, workers may be required to perform variable tasks relating to nursery production such as the following: irrigation, ditching, shoveling, hoeing, hauling, ground preparation, weeding, product installation and other related tasks.

Work may also include mechanized field work using power equipment By way of example and not limitation power equipment may include tractors, planters, sprayers, transmission trucks, forklifts, loaders and other equipment. Workers will be expected to be able to operate and maintain agricultural equipment with or without direction.

Work is to be done in the field for long periods of time. Workers are expected to perform duties including boxing, weighing and loading of nursery stock. Workers may assist in loading trucks with nursery stock and materials weighing up to 60 pounds and lifting to a height of 5 feet. Workers should be able to work on their feet in bent positions for long periods of time. Allergies to ragweed, goldenrod, insect spray, related chemicals, etc. may affect workers' ability to perform the job. Workers should be physically able to do the work required with or without reasonable accommodations. Workers are exposed to wet weather early in the morning through the heat of the day, working in fields. Temperatures may range from 10 to 100 F. Workers may be required to work during occasional showers not severe enough to stop field operations. Employer-paid post-hire drug testing is required at random, upon reasonable suspicion of use and after a worker has an accident at work. Saturday work required.

Employer assures that workers will be provided transportation from living quarters to work site every day (for workers who must be provided housing under the applicable regulations.)

Persons seeking employment as experienced Nursery Worker must be available for the entire period requested by the employer. Applicants must be able to furnish verifiable job reference(s) or comparable third party documentation from recent employer(s) establishing acceptable prior experience. Successful applicants will be subject to a trial period of up to 5 days during which their performance of required tasks will be evaluated. If the performance is not acceptable to the employer the worker's employment will be terminated.

Special Requirements

This job requires three months of prior verifiable experience working on a nursery handling both manual and machine tasks associated with nursery production. Must be able to lift/carry 60 lbs. Employer-paid post-hire drug testing is required at random, upon reasonable suspicion of use and after a worker has an accident at work.