Orchard Worker - 83 Fulltime H-2A Seasonal Jobs available 03/11/24-12/14/24.

　　Apples: Workers will manually plant and cultivate apples; use hand tools, such as shovels, trowels, hoes, tampers, pruning hooks, shears and knives. Duties include tilling soil, transplanting, weeding, thinning or pruning; applying fertilizers, pesticides and herbicides. Identify plants, pests and weeds to determine the selection and application of pesticides, herbicides and fertilizers. Inform farm managers of crop progress. Clear and maintain irrigation ditches. Record information about crops, such as pesticide use, yields or costs. Prune trees seasonally to promote optimum growth of tree and fruit. Gather pruned branches from area for disposal. Perform pruning and suckering by cutting terminal growth and water sprouts from inside of tree using hand pruner. Thins trees from orchard to eliminate diseased or nonproductive trees using chain saw. Drive/operate utility vehicles and row crop tractors.

　　Machine Operation: Under direction of management, workers will operate farm equipment to till soil and to plant, cultivate, spray and aid in the production and harvest of apples.. Adjust, repair, and service farm machinery and notify management when machinery malfunctions. Workers will make sure bins are clean and free of debris before placing harvested apples into the bins. Workers will load the bins onto the rail using a tractor. Worker places ladder firmly against or within tree in a secure position so as not to break limbs or knock off fruit and to prevent slipping or falling. All fruit is to be handled with care to avoid bruising. Fruit injured by bruising during picking shall not exceed 1% (WNY) for fresh and 1% (WNY) for processing. Each worker's picked fruit will be inspected according to instructions given each day by the orchard foreman. Workers will be directed to strip all fruit from tree at one picking or to spot pick (selective picking) according to size and color depending on crop conditions and state of maturity. Fruit picked as drops is never mixed with tree fruit. Worker places ladder firmly against or within tree in a secure position so as not to break limbs or knock off fruit and to prevent slipping or falling. Workers may be asked to perform nursery work which will include budding, care of nursery trees, grafting and weeding as directed by management. Observe and listen to machinery operation to detect equipment malfunctions. Irrigate soil, using portable pipes or ditch systems, and maintain ditches or pipes and pumps. Mix specified materials or chemicals, and dump solutions, powders into sprayer machinery. Operate or tend equipment used in agricultural production, such as tractors, trailers, and irrigation equipment.

　　Requirements:

　　Requires 3 months of verifiable prior experience working in an orchard, performing described tasks.Workers must be able to lift/carry 60 pounds. Exposure to extreme temps. Repetitive movements, extensive walking, extensive pushing/pulling & frequent stooping. Alcohol & drug screen after accident at work, at employer expense. Sat work required.The full terms and conditions of the job (form ETA790a) should be reviewed and provided to qualified applicants from this website: seasonaljobs.dol.gov. For qualified applicants requiring a Spanish translation of this job order, please email DIPA@labor.ny.gov or call 1-877-466-9757. Please include the applicant name and job order number in your request.