Farm Worker

Work description

The farm work position includes duties associated with the planting, cultivation, harvesting of potatoes. This work can require standing, walking, stooping, bending, and lifting up to 50 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. Potatoes Workers will bend and stoop to pick potatoes according to size, color, shape and degree of maturity and place into field containers. Duties include ride planters and harvesters .Workers must use care when performing their farm work duties and exercise consciousness to not damage or bruise the vegetables. Workers must adhere to all safety rules as instructed by their supervisors and all farm work operations must meet the standards and specifications given by the employer. 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 containers, taking care to avoid damage or bruising. Workers may carry full container weighing approximately fifty (50) lbs. and empty into field bin or load onto trailer. General duties include weeding, tree and brush removal, lawn care,cleaning, demo and cleaning up old buildings, repair and maintenance on buildings and equipment, general painting, power washing and polishing, hand digging drainage ditches. Workers will load and unload trucks. Assist with installation and removal of irrigation tubing or pipes. . Workers will perform field cleanup such as the removal of rocks, stumps, plastic, and trash. Workers may be required to cut, split and stack firewood. Workers will perform various duties associated with cleaning trucks, farm buildings and painting. Workers will maintain fences. Workers must use care when performing their farm work duties and exercise consciousness. Workers must adhere to all safety rules as instructed by their supervisors and all farm work operations must meet the standards and specifications given by the employer. Workers will be instructed in the safety and operation of the vehicle/equipment before operating. All vehicles should be driven in a manner to protect workers, in-field crops, and equipment. Operators should ensure all equipment is functioning correctly before operating. The use of all necessary PPE and safety equipment including wearing of seatbelt at all times when operating farm equipment is mandatory. Workers may assist with the repair, service, and maintenance of farm equipment including the prep, cleaning, lubrication, assembly, inspection, dismantling of equipment parts. Farm, Field, and Shed Sanitation: Workers may be responsible for maintaining and removing temporary/permanent fences, picking up trash, cleaning bathrooms, sweeping, raking, using blowers, and mopping floors, cleaning packing line equipment and other similar farm and shed sanitation as part of SOPs and SSOPs within Good Agricultural Practices (GAPs), Good Handling Practices (GHPs), and Good Manufacturing Practices (GMPs) for Food Safety. This includes personal hygiene and handling the fruit in the field and shed with an emphasis on food safety, sanitizing all harvesting and packing equipment and keeping the fields and shed as clean as possible.