Farm Worker

H2ajobs; Bowling Green (FL); On-site; USD 17,000 - 21,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Housing provided

Meals provided

Weekly transportation to stores

Job summary

H2ajobs in Florida is seeking farm workers for harvesting and packing strawberries. The role involves standing, walking, stooping, bending, and lifting up to 50 pounds outdoors in all weather.

Workers implement size, color, and ripeness criteria per standards and follow strict food safety and quality SOPs with a team-oriented approach. Additional tasks include installing plastic row covers, irrigation setup, weed control, and field grading.

Qualifications

• Experience wanted: 2 months.

Responsibilities

• Harvesting and packing of strawberries according to size, color, and ripeness.
• Stand, walk, stoop, bend, and lift up to 50 pounds for long periods outdoors.
• Install plastic and drip irrigation, cover edges with soil, avoid damage to plastic.
• Field grading of berries and loading into field bins or trailers for transport.
• Ensure berries are handled carefully to prevent bruising and fingernail cuts.
• Follow food safety and quality SOPs and work with a team in a safe environment.
• Possibly pick berries in cups, clamshells, or flats as market demand dictates.
• Participate in transportation and housing/meals logistics as described.

Job description

The farm worker position includes duties associated with the harvesting and packing of strawberries. 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.

Strawberries: Workers will help install black plastic and drip irrigation on rows in the field being careful to cover all of the exposed edges of plastic cover with soil and being careful not to tear or punch holes in plastic. Workers may be asked to utilize implements associated with the installation of the plastic row covers incidental to performing required tasks on the ground. Workers will remove weeds from around the plants and from the row middles. Workers will bend and stoop to pick up strawberries according to size, color, shape and degree of maturity and place into field containers. Workers will be expected to pick fully ripe strawberries, discard any cat-faced, deformed, decaying or undersized berries according to supervisor’s instructions. Also, workers must carefully remove any undesirable berries from the plant that would later cause fungi to attack the plant. Workers may carry full containers to empty them into a field bin or load them onto a trailer. When full, carried to end of rows at designated truck-loading place. Then the buckets of berries will be inspected for quality and loaded for transportation to roadside market. All berries must be handled carefully to prevent bruises or fingernail cuts. Pickers will take extreme care not to damage the delicate berries.

Depending on market demand, workers may also be required to pick berries in cups, clamshells and/or flats. Berries harvested specifically for sale at roadside stand as fresh market specialty basket containers must be field graded. For berries harvested for sale at roadside stands, extra care must be used to ensure that each strawberry is undamaged and perfect. All berries must be handled carefully to prevent bruising or fingernail cuts. Pickers will take extreme care not to damage the delicate berries. Quality and workmanship is of the utmost importance.

The employer intends to utilize the approximate staggered start dates:

11/10 - 30 workers

12/10 - 27 workers

Housing: Employer-provided (including mobile or range)

Meals: Housing is provided at no cost to workers who are not reasonably able to return the same day to their respective residences. Housing is not provided to non-workers. Employer will furnish free and convenient cooking and kitchen facilities so that workers may prepare their own meals. No charge will be made for the provided beds, appliances, cooking utensils and similar items furnished to workers to whom housing is provided hereunder unless unlawfully removed or damaged beyond normal wear and tear. Employer will provide (on a voluntary basis) weekly transportation to assure workers access to stores where they can purchase groceries. If for any reason the kitchen facilities become unavailable due to fire or calamity, the employer will provide 3 meals per day for which a deduction shall be made until the kitchen facilities become operable.

Transport: After a worker has completed fifty percent of the work contract period, the employer will reimburse the worker for the cost of transportation and subsistence from the place the worker came from to the place of work, if such costs are borne by the worker.

Experience wanted: 2 months

Employer may conduct drug/alcohol testing post-employment and at the employer's expense.

Employer may conduct criminal background checks post-employment and at the employer's expense.