Farm Labor

Job description

The farm work position includes duties associated with the harvesting and field packing of watermelon, oranges, grapefruit and onions. This work can require standing, walking, stooping, bending, and lifting up to 75 pounds for long periods of time outdoors in all weather conditions. It also includes making important decisions based on size, coloring, and ripeness according to prescribed standards.

This work requires adherence to important food safety and quality standard operating procedures and the ability to work quickly and consistently alongside fellow workers with a positive, professional, team- based attitude and a consideration for the safety and health of fellow workers and of the consumers who will purchase and consume the fresh produce grown, harvested, packed, and shipped from the farm.

Instruction will be given for each task and standards of performance communicated to worker. Workers will be assigned a row or series of rows and required to select and pick produce according to criteria outlined and demonstrated by managers such as size, coloring, and ripeness. They will be responsible for in-field grading and discarding of poor quality, rotting, and/or over-ripened produce. Workers will gently load the good quality produce into canvas sacks, taking care to avoid damage or bruising. Workers may be responsible for picking up trash and other similar farm sanitation as part of SOPs and SSOPs within Good Agricultural Practices (GAPs), Good Handling Practices (GHPs) for Food Safety.

Oranges and Grapefruit: Harvesting citrus fruit by hand under supervisor's instructions, the worker will place a picking sack over his shoulder and carry an 18' to 20' ladder from the field truck to the particular area of the grove to be harvested. The picking sack is a canvas bag equipped with a shoulder trap for support, an opening for the insertion of fruit, and an opening to remove fruit. A full loaded sack weighs between 80 and 100 lb, depending upon the size, condition and variety of fruit. Worker positions ladder against the tree and within reach of the fruit in a leaning position, taking care not to break limbs, damage the tree, knock of fruit or interfere with other workers, in a secure position to prevent slipping or falling and possible injury to themselves or other workers. Worker will remove fruit from the tree and place into pick sack. When pick sack is full take full sack to fruit tub. The worker in order to perform this kind of work must be able to work outside for at least 7 hours a day in all kinds of weather and be in possession of the requisite physical strength and endurance to repeat the picking process rapidly. The employer will provide the tools necessary to perform the described job duties without charge to the worker. The employer will charge the worker for reasonable costs related to the worker's refusal or negligent failure to return the tools or due to such worker's willful damage or destruction of the tools.

Onion: Grading will be done by working carefully remove any leaves and defective pieces as defined by grading supervisor as potatoes move across grading belt/tables. Onions must be handled carefully to avoid bruises or fingernail cuts. Fillers: workers will bag the graded fruit in paper bags or appropriate containers by hand as necessary according to packing instructions disclosed by the supervisor. Workers will stack bags onto pallets once full.