Field Crew Leader Amber Waves Farm
- Date Posted December 13, 2018
- Location Amagansett, NY
- Category Agriculture
- Job type Full-Time
Amber Waves Farm is a fun, fast-paced work environment where we champion good ideas, hard work, common sense and follow-through. Each day we work towards improving our methods, expanding our knowledge base, and becoming a better all-around farm. We simultaneously promote efficiency and the production of high quality food in the fields alongside a celebration of kindness and collaboration among the crew, and openness and outreach to the community. The physical nature of the work is both challenging and rewarding, as is the considerable time we farmers spend interacting with the public both on and off the farm. The entire Amber Waves Farm team of about 25 people consists of not only farmers but also educators and retail market and kitchen staff. The field crew typically consists of 9-12 people, including first and second year Apprentices, a Crew Leader and Field Manager, the farm’s full-time founding farmers, and part-time summer help. Job description
Amber Waves Farm is seeking an experienced and energetic candidate for our crew leader position for the 2019 season. The primary responsibility of the crew leader is to implement the daily plan set by the field manager by directly supervising our crew of 6-7 apprentices and other crew members during daily field work. With guidance and support from farm managers, the crew leader will ensure that all tasks are completed correctly, efficiently, and safely while maintaining a positive and supportive work environment for crew members.
In addition to managing transitions between tasks, the crew leader will also take a leadership role in the quality control, organization, and tracking of produce to its final destination: CSA, on-farm retail market, off-site farmers market, and restaurant wholesale and food pantries. This requires a combination of being able to follow directions, pay strong attention to detail and being able to make strong independent decisions while remaining flexible and adaptable to changing situations. The crew leader must be willing and able to lead by example in the quality of their work. At times, the crew leader will be expected to keep the farm running smoothly and efficiently in the absence of other farm managers.
An ideal candidate should have excellent communication skills and be comfortable supervising a small crew, holding a group accountable to efficiency and quality standards and working on or around medium sized farm equipment.
The crew leader will be responsible for:
- Arriving at the farm before the crew to go over the daily plan with other managers
- Leading and motivating the crew through daily field work including seeding, transplanting, hoeing, trellising, hand weeding, greenhouse work, harvest, post-harvest washing and packing, and other field projects
- Ensuring tasks are completed correctly, efficiently, and safely with attention to detail and quality standards. This includes training apprentices and crew members in proper techniques and managing transitions between projects to maintain a good workflow and pace throughout the day while ensuring that farm policies for best practices are followed
- Participating in farm apprentice education, which includes the rotating responsibility of leading a weekly discussion of a specified topic set out in the farm's apprenticeship curriculum, willingness to answer apprentice questions throughout the work day, weekly discussions, and field walks
- Maintaining a good attitude and contributing to positive team morale
- Maintaining harvest logs and other farm record-keeping tools, taking part in produce quality control, organization, and tracking
- Operating tractors, trucks, trailers, wagons, and other farm equipment
- Helping scout for pests, diseases or other problems encountered during daily harvests and communicating crop conditions, abundance or scarcity to the other managers
- Keeping the farm running smoothly in the absence of farm managers, which includes independent decision-making and time good time management
- Supervising monthly volunteer work days throughout the season
Qualifications:
- Three seasons of experience working on a small to medium scale vegetable farm, and a desire to continue to puruse an agricultural career
- A strong, foundational understanding of food production systems having experience with seasonality, plant propagation and seedling care, plant life cycles, scouting for pests and diseases, harvest and post-harvest handling, farmers markets, etc.
- At least one year of experience supervising employees, interns, and/or volunteers in some capacity
- Excellent time management and strong sense of pace and urgency associated with task completion
- Strong communications skills, positive attitude, and desire to teach crew members and set the daily tone for the crew
- Ability to quickly pick up new concepts and techniques and then teach them to others
- Strong physical work ethic and excellent attention to detail
- Valid drivers’ license
- Prior experience using small or mid-size tractors and equipment
Start Date (slightly flexible): March 1-15, 2019
End Date: November, 2019 (year-round work opportunities available, and intention to stay for more than one season is ideal)
Farm housing is available for rent