Fruit and Vegetable Field Work, Harvesting and Packing

at JBO Harvesting, Inc in LAKE PLACID, Florida, United States

Job Description

The worker will perform job duties as assigned by supervisor. They will vary from time to time depending on crop ripening and weather. The fruit and vegetable harvesting & packing season is temporary and will last from June to October. Bell Pepper Hand Harvesting-In order to perform this kind of work, the workers mut be able to walk down the field row carrying a harvesting hamper, bend down and look for the ripe peppers, gently twist them off the bush and place them in the harvesting hamper. The worker will then take the full hamper of peppers over to the loading truck and hand it to the truck loader to dump into the large plastic bins on the loading truck. The empty hamper is given back to the worker, and the process is started again. Bell Pepper Packing-The bell pepper is transported to the packing shed. Upon its arrival, the large plastic bins are unloaded by a forklift and placed on a conveyer belt. The conveyor belt dumps the bell pepper out of the plastic bins onto another conveyor belt. The group of workers on the conveyer belt are responsible for sorting, labeling, assembling the cardboard boxes, and packing the bell pepper in cardboard containers according to specifications given by the supervisor. Corn Hand Harvesting- In order to perform this kind of work, the worker must be able to walk down the field row and look for the ripe corn and cut the crop off the plant by pulling in a downward motion. The corn is then placed in harvesting crates until full. The worker then takes the full crates to the loader on the loading truck. They are given an empty crate, and the process is started again. Corn Packing-The corn is transported to the packing shed. Upon its arrival, the crates are unloaded by a forklift and placed on a conveyer belt. The conveyor belt dumps the corn out of the crates onto another conveyor belt. The group of workers on the conveyer belt are responsible for sorting, labeling, assembling the crates and packing the corn in crates according to specifications given by the supervisor. Watermelon Hand Harvesting-In order to perform this kind of work, the worker must be able to walk down the field row and use a knife to hand cut ripe watermelons off the vine for harvesting. The watermelons are then loaded in a bus by forming part of an assembly line, in which the first worker bends down picks up the watermelon and it is passed on to consecutive workers by passing, catching, lifting, until it reaches the worker on the bus, who then sets it down and stacks them until the bus is considered full. Watermelon Packing- The watermelon is transported by bus to the packing shed. Upon its arrival, it is unloaded by a group of workers and placed on a conveyer belt. The group of workers on the conveyer belt are responsible for sorting, labeling, and packing the watermelon in cardboard containers. While the workers are waiting on the next load of watermelons to arrive, they will be responsible for assembling cardboard containers. Cantaloupe Hand Harvesting-In order to perform this kind of work, the worker must be able to walk down the field row and bend down to hold the vine steady and apply downward pressure on the melon while simultaneously twisting it around the stem slowly until the ripe cantaloupe comes off the vine. The cantaloupes are then loaded in a bus by forming part of an assembly line, in which the first worker bends down picks up the cantaloupe and it is passed on to consecutive workers by passing, catching, lifting, until it reaches the worker on the bus, who then sets it down and stacks them until the bus is considered full. Cantaloupe Packing- The cantaloupe is transported by bus to the packing shed. Upon its arrival, it is unloaded by a group of workers and placed on a conveyer belt. The group of workers on the conveyer belt are responsible for sorting, labeling, and packing the watermelon in cardboard containers. While the workers are waiting on the next load of cantaloupes to arrive, they will be responsible for assembling cardboard containers.

Field Work- The employee will perform various field work to include but not limited to the following: Prepare the fields for planting-this will consist of putting down and taking off plastic ground cover, digging trenches, installing and repairing irrigation, planting, weeding, picking up trash, burning trash, and other miscellaneous work. Stringing and Unstringing crop-the employee will take the plant, vine, or bush and place down stakes and tie string from stake to stake and then secure the vine or bush around the twine to help keep it off the ground. At the end of the harvesting season the workers will remove the stakes, twine, and plastic ground cover. All of the fruit and vegetable harvesting, packing, and transporting labor is performed on the farms specifically listed in the worksites on the application and itinerary and are all a part of the fruit and vegetable farming operation. The field drivers, which are employees of JBO Harvesting, Inc. are the ones that drive the agriculture farm vehicles and equipment being used in the field to load the fruit and vegetables and take them to the shed located on the farm for packing. The packing shed workers are employees of JBO Harvesting, Inc. The packing shed is located on the farms listed on the harvesting itinerary. The packing of fruits and vegetables is considered agriculture labor because the work is being done on a farm and the fruits and vegetables are a horticultural commodity that must be packed by grade before leaving the farm for selling purposes at the market. The fruits and vegetables are in unmanufactured state at the time of packing and all the fruits and vegetables are produced on the farm. JBO Harvesting, Inc. is the operator of the farms for the time period requested. Farm Equipment and Vehicle Operation-The workers may need to drive and/or operate various agricultural farm equipment and vehicles on the farm to perform the work on the farm such as field trucks, tractors, and forklifts. The workers must use safety and precaution when using agricultural farm equipment and vehicles. The worker must be seated and practice safety and precaution. The worker must wait to exit the agricultural farm equipment and vehicles when it comes to a complete stop. The worker will keep the agricultural farm equipment and vehicles free of trash. Only properly licensed drivers will be permitted to operate the agricultural farm equipment and vehicles. Workers must take care to operate all equipment safely and follow all safety requirements outlined by the employer. The workers may serve as a team leader.