Job Information
Confidential Employer Fruit Harvester & Orchard Worker in Gardners, Pennsylvania
*"This is a Temporary Position. Dates of employment are from 2/19//2023 to 11/16/2024. To apply: click on "I want to apply" and fax your resume/application to Luis C. Gomez-Ruiz or Jim Marchione at (717) 334-3869. Be sure to reference the job posting number (Job#19626294) on your resume/application. All resumes/applications are reviewed and only those that match the job specifications are forwarded to the employer for consideration. This job requires a minimum of three months of prior experience working in a diversified orchard, handling manual tasks associated with commodity production and harvest activities. *Crops/Commodities: apples, peaches. Harvest: Pick apples and peaches by hand for fresh market and processing. Spot and/or strip pick fruit based on seasonal need. Ensure removal of all fruit meeting picking requirements from trees. Gently snap fruit off tree with pads of fingers and palm of hand to avoid stem pulls, punctures, bruising, or other damage. When directed, cut stems with handheld stem clippers after removal of fruit from tree. Carefully place fruit in picking container worn over shoulder with straps. Empty filled picking container weighing up to 40 lbs into bulk field bin, avoiding bruising of fruit. Avoid/discard severely damaged or decaying fruit. Keep bins free of limbs, leaves, decayed fruit and any other foreign matter. Use/handle ladders up to 20 ft. in length and weighing up to 60 lbs. Follow supervisors' instructions on color/size or other requirements of harvested fruit. Must be able to differentiate between colors and fruit varieties accurately. Harvesting specifics can change daily depending on different orchards, varieties, crop or market conditions. Workers will be expected to conform to the specific instructions given for each fruit variety in any given orchard. Supervisors will explain and demonstrate picking requirements to all workers at the start of the season and as needed thereafter to ensure quality standards. Minimum harvest production standards are as follows: 16 bushels per hour for clean-picked fresh apples, 16.5 bushels per hour for clean-picked processing apples, 11.5 bushels per hour for spot-picked apples. Minimum harvest production standards may be adjusted downward to accommodate extenuating market and/or harvest conditions and such adjustment shall be communicated to workers. Bruised or damaged fruit will be noted by supervisor(s) in a post-inspection quality report, and shall not be excessive. Bruising and damage tolerances will vary based on crop and market conditions and shall be communicated to workers by supervisors. Worker's picked fruit will be inspected randomly each day. Supervisors may issue written disciplinary notice to workers with a significant number of culls, bruised, or damaged fruit. Repeated failure to follow quality control instructions may result in disciplinary action up to and including termination. Piece rate pay may be enacted based on variety and crop/market conditions. Piece rates starting at $0.90 per bushel and may go up based on variety and conditions. Workers must comply with picking instructions and communicated quality standards. Workers failing to produce a sufficient number of piece rate units to earn the Adverse Effect Wage Rate (AEWR) for all hours worked during a pay period will be paid on an hourly basis at the AEWR for that pay period. Workers paid on an hourly basis who fail to perform their duties in a timely and proficient manner and/or fail to meet minimum harvest production standards will be provided up to three warnings, and will be coached/instructed on working faster and more efficiently. Worker may be terminated upon issuance of third warning. Pruning: Hand pruning based on fruit variety. Use manual and mechanized pruning tools and equipment. Identify and remove stubs or broken branches, downward-growing branches, branches rubbing against each other, shaded interior branches, dead wood and shoots-suckers. Follow supervisor ' instructions on pruning method. Thinning: Hand thin to control the size and quality of fruit. Remove excess and defective fruit from within a cluster of other fruits. Must accurately identify and remove misshapen, damaged or otherwise unmarketable fruit. General labor: Perform ditching, shoveling, hoeing, hauling and other manual tasks. Clear debris and stones from orchards, and clean/maintain farm buildings, structures, equipment, and work areas. Remove suckers from tree bases. Lift, carry, and load/unload products or supplies. Hang mating disruption tabs in trees.