Tobacco Laborers

Job description

Workers are required to work inside structures and outside in various weather conditions/temperatures. Workers
may propagate, set, cut, house, and strip tobacco. Will chop out weeds with a how, remove tops and suckers from
plants. Workers will use a tobacco knife to cut plants off at ground level and spear tobacco stalk over metal spear
onto 48 inch wooden stick. Industry standard is 6 plants per stick making loaded sticks weight about 50 lbs each.
Plant reach heights of 7 feet tall. Workers will move loaded sticks from ground to the wagon and then transfer into
the drying barn. Workers must stand on rails up to 48 inches apart and 6 feet from the ground. Worker on a wagon
will transfer loaded stick over his head to the worker on rail at the next level, then the worker on the top level will
hang stick separating plants for air curing the tobacco. Must prevent breaking/bruising of plants. Per production
standards worker are required to be able to cut or hang 100 sticks of tobacco per hour. Workers strip leaves from
stalks when applicable and place in bins by grade per their supervisors instructions. Workers will load/unload
trucks, clean equipment and work areas. May work with irrigation equipment, cultivate and fertilize soil and crops.
May perform miscellaneous duties such as harvest of hay, raking hay, and clear fence rows, clean/repair farm
buildings, dig ditches, cut firewood, feed animals, and other farm activities. Must be able to operate some farm
equipment such as tractors, post hole diggers, small power tools, and hand tools. Will perform year end cleanup
which includes removing plastics, leftover crop, and other debris left in the field, and any other necessary duties