Job Duties:
Nursery Worker. Perform a variety of complex tasks related to growing and harvesting plug plants including berries, shrubs, trees, and other vegetation. Perform manual labor including, but not limited to, propagating, cutting, seeding, planting, cultivating, pruning, applying fertilizer, herbicides and insecticides, loading and unloading plant material and supplies. Duties include filling trays/pots, potting, mixing soil, and unloading plants during transplanting/potting, loading plants for transplanting/potting, grading, sorting and packing plant material to fill orders, tag plants for sales, identify and tag plant material, recognize and control plant diseases and pests. Grading is done by size, quality, and root development. Watering: Workers will water plants by hand and booms to maintain appropriate water for plants. Pull weeds/chop: Workers will walk along rows inside and outside greenhouses as specified by employer and remove weeds and grass by hand or using a hoe. May operate and perform minor maintenance and repairs on farm vehicles, implements or equipment. Perform farm, field and shed sanitation duties. Mow grass and operate trimmer around farm buildings. Direct and monitor the work of casual and seasonal help during planting and harvesting. Operate farm vehicles to haul crops and drive other farmworkers from place to place around the farm properties (including on public roads to reach farmer’s fields) during the workday. May operate truck with GVWR of less than 13 tons to deliver crops produced on the farm (in its unmanufactured state) to storage or to market or to a carrier for transportation to market. Though not a hiring requirement, if a worker drives a company vehicle during the period of employment then at the time of operating the company vehicle the driver must possess a valid driver’s license issued by a U.S. state or foreign equivalent and operate the company vehicle in accordance with the license restrictions and vehicle classifications applicable to that license. Propagation Facility: Propagating, planting, transplanting, cleaning facilities, maintaining an aseptic workspace, mixing media, pouring media, closing containers, moving and preparing containers for media and wrapping tools for sterilization. Harvesting micro cuttings to place on new media using scalpels and forceps. Washing and/or cleaning of tissue culture containers and tools, placing containers in the appropriate location. Checking plants for contamination. Scan plants to deliver to acclimation facility. Load, move and deliver plants media containers, or supplies from propagation facilities to other locations. Inspect containers for microbial contamination. Use basic computer skills for inventory/tracking of plant materials. Document, label, and record daily activities using basic computer skills. General cleaning and maintenance of facility. Moving supplies and materials to and from the employer’s field and farm facilities. Acclimation Facility: Harvesting micro cuttings using scalpel and forceps for rooting and transplanting. Grading/sorting by size and quality. Watering. Checking plants for contamination. Placing/opening/removing lids to support acclimatization. Boxing up plants to transport to the greenhouse. Load, move and deliver plants or supplies from acclimation facilities to other locations. Using basic computer skills for inventory/tracking of plant materials. Pest/disease management. Labeling and tagging plants and trays appropriately, scan trays to deliver to greenhouse facility. Wash and/or clean tissue culture containers. General cleaning and maintenance of facility.
Special Requirements:
Prolonged walking, standing, bending, stooping, and reaching. Job is outdoors and continues in all types of weather. Workers may be requested to submit to random drug or alcohol tests at no cost to the worker. Failure to comply with the request or testing positive may result in immediate termination. All testing will occur post-hire and is not a part of the interview process. Negative result may be required post-hire and before commencing work. Must be able to lift and carry 25 lbs. repetitively throughout the workday. Must not hinder another workers productivity. Use of personal cell phone or other personal electronic device during working hours strictly prohibited except for work-related calls or emergencies and violation may result in immediate termination. Requires one month verifiable prior work experience in the crop activities listed. Must commit to work entire contract period. Continued.