Job Description
Description
Title: Farm Hand Dept: Field Hours: 45 hours weekly, 7:30 to 5pm with some flexibility. Part time positions available. Report to: Field Crew Manager Wage: Starting at $17.50-$22.00 an hour depending on experience The Farm Hand is a seasonal entry-level position and works under the guidance of our year-round farm staff to assist with planting, maintenance, harvesting, and post-harvest of all our local crops.
We are a highly diversified farm that harvests produce directly from our fields to be sold in our Farmstand, at local Farmer's Markets, and to Martha's Vineyard Island businesses. A summer seasonal peak of about 25-30 Farm Hands assist the 5-8 year-round and experienced Farmers in carrying out all farm-wide tasks. Team members should have a strong work ethic and be ready to learn about the tools and trades of farming. With a greaat diversity of tasks, and opportunities to learn a new trade, this is the best position for someone new to farming and/or manual labor.
In our daily work, we: -
-
- Are willing to work outdoors in all weather conditions.
- Perform field work including, but not limited to, seeding, transplanting, hand weeding, hoeing, moving irrigation, watering and harvesting
- Use and safely handle farm equipment including tillers, wheelbarrows, tools and hand-tools such as shears and knives.
- Move quickly while supporting our very high quality standards. Food quality and efficiency is very important to us.
- Wash and prepare our harvests for retail and wholesale.
- Perform other related farm duties as assigned.
Position Requirements
Our ideal candidate is :
- Drawn to food, farming, and the people who do it.
- A minimum of 16 years old (with valid worker's permit) or older.
- Motivated with a desire for knowledge and a passion for farming and crops.
- Able to take direction, show initiative, and work well in a team as well as independently.
- Previous farm experience preferred but not necessary.
- Able to perform physically demanding and repetitive tasks and able to lift 50+ lbs repeatedly.
- Has a U.S. driver's license and a clean driving record.
- A love of the outdoors
Please Note: J1 Visa students are not permitted to work in the fields, per federal guidelines.
Full-Time/Part-Time
Full-Time and/or Part-Time
Wage
Compensation is based on experience, $17.50-$22 hour base.
Position
Farm Field Hand (seasonal)
Exempt/Non-Exempt
Exempt
About the Organization
Morning Glory Farm, started in 1975 by James and Deborah Athearn, grows about 65 acres of vegetables and small fruits on the island of Martha's Vineyard.
Small successive plantings of a wide variety of crops supply the Farmstand from May through December.
Crops include sweet corn, lettuce, carrots, beets, tomatoes, melons, potatoes, beans, squash, pumpkins, and more. Our herb garden supplies a full assortment of culinary herbs. We also raise four acres of cut flowers, and small plantings of strawberries, grapes, peaches, and beach plums.
We keep beef cows on pasture in Chilmark for which we harvest 45 acres of hay and we also produce eggs, pork and fresh, pasture-raised chickens to sell in the Farmstand. Twenty-three acres of our vegetable fields are farmed using natural practices and only OMRI certified fertilizers and pesticides. We manage the rest of our land with a minimum of pesticides and with attention to the long-term health of the soil.
The farm name grew from the vision of the sun rising over lush, green fields, cows with udders full of milk ambling past bountiful gardens and hedgerows lively with honeybees: true wealth of nature's glory.
Each year we meet a new crew of farmers, bakers, cooks, and Farmstand staff who become part of the farm family. The farm has benefited from a variety of wonderful people who have endowed Morning Glory with their own special contributions.
Job Tags
Full time, Part time, Summer work, Local area, Outdoor, Gangs, Day shift,