Farmworkers & Laborers

Work description

HARVEST citrus fruit by hand under supervision; the worker will place a picking sack over his shoulder and carry an 18 to 20-foot ladder from the field truck to the particular areas of the grove to be harvested. The picking sack is a canvas bag equipped with a strap for support and an opening for inserting fruit and another for removing it. A fully loaded sack weighs between 80 to 100 pounds ,, depending on the size, condition, and variety of fruit. The worker positions the ladder against the tree and within reach of the fruit, in a leaning position, taking care not to damage tree limbs or fruit or interfere with other workers. The worker places the ladder securely to prevent slipping or falling and possible injury to themselves or other workers. The worker will climb the ladder, remove fruit from the tree using a snapping action of the wrist, and place the fruit in a picker's bag. When the bag is full, the picker will descend the ladder, take the full sack to the assigned fruit tub or bin located in the grove, and drop the fruit in the tub. The worker will then return to the assigned tree and repeat the operation until all fruit and trees have been harvested. The worker will be supplied a ladder and a picking sack free of charge; the employer can charge the worker for reasonable costs related to the worker's refusal or negligent failure to return the tools or due to such workers. The citrus-picking sack weighs approximately 5lbs when empty but can weigh up to 100lbs when filled with citrus. Each ladder weighs approx. 25 lbs. A citrus tub will be placed relatively close to each employee's work area. A tub is equivalent to 10-bushel boxes. The tub will be emptied by the employee's crew leader, or the applicable minimum wage rate for time spent performing such clean-up work. Workers on physical work restrictions or when harvesting work is not available may be required to perform miscellaneous clean-up work on grove property, on structures utilized in the grove operation, and on housing for harvesting workers. Such clean-up activities include the sprouting, pruning, and painting of trees; debris, weed, and vine removal; nursery and irrigation repair; housing and structure cleaning and repair; and general grove clean-up as required. Harvesting of plants Workers will be paid the highest of the adverse effect wage rate and the prevailing wage rate: