The Role: Hydroponic hourly employees work as one crew. As an employee, you are required to participate in mandatory stretching exercises at the beginning of each shift before working and may be required to perform any of the following Essential Job Functions or any other job-related function as required by Management.
Location(s): Livingston, TN
Greenhouse Area Responsibilities:
- Seeding
- Seed the lettuce plants using vacuum seeding tools or by hand, inspect the seed (remove any damaged seed or cracked coating).
- Place the seeds into the growing media trays, then irrigate.
- Move the trays onto the racks for the germination process.
- Push racks of trays from the germination room to the floating nursery table.
- Place tray markers into the trays.
- Move trays from the floating table to the ebb and flow water tables.
- Move rafts from the south end of the floating table and place those rafts on a pallet.
- Use a pallet jack to move the rafts to the north end of the floating table.
- Load rafts and trays at the north end of the floating table and use a pallet jack to retrieve and restock seeding materials.
- Clean up the work area.
- Transplant 1
- Push racks of plants to the transplant area.
- Use a pallet jack to move rafts to the Transplant 1 area.
- Move down the stacked rafts from the pallet.
- Take the plants that have been seeded from the trays and transplant them into 72-count rafts.
- Inspect plants for quality and uniformity and then place the rafts into the pools in the nursery.
- Clean up the work area.
- Transplant 2
- Move a pallet of 18-count rafts to the Transplant 2 area.
- Move the plants that have been transplanted into the 72-count rafts from the nursery pool to the water conveyor.
- Push rafts on the conveyor to the transplant station.
- Move 18 count rafts from the pallet into place, transplant young plants into 18 count rafts.
- Inspect plants for quality and uniformity.
- Stack 72-count rafts onto a pallet for cleaning.
- Push completed 18 count rafts back onto the water conveyor.
- Move 18 count rafts from the water conveyor to the grow-out pool.
- Move a pallet of 72-count rafts into a storage area for later cleaning. Clean up the work area.
- Any other job-related function as required by Management.
Packing Room Area Responsibilities:
- Loading the River
- Move full-grown 18-count rafts of lettuce from the grow-out pool to the harvest line water conveyor.
- Trim Side
- Take the lettuce plants from the rafts.
- Inspect plants for any quality issues (i.e., tip burn, rot, pest issues).
- Trim leaves and remove or wrap the roots.
- Place the lettuce into the elevated tray conveyor on the assembly line.
- Slide the rafts down the line for cleaning.
- Throw the trimmed roots and leaves into the residue trough.
- Pack Out
- Unbox and set up the packing materials.
- Clamshells
- For single clamshells: Separate and place individual clamshell containers directly on the conveyor.
- For 3-count clamshells: Separate a 3-count clamshell from the stack onto a worktable.
- Pack Side
- The single lettuce head is placed directly on the clamshell conveyor.
- For the 3 Count-fill Clamshell, the lettuce plants are placed on the work table and then placed on the clamshell conveyor.
- Take the cleaned lettuce plants from the elevated tray conveyor, perform a quality check of the product, and place them into the clamshell container.
- Turn the clamshell in the appropriate direction for the label to be applied correctly.
- Pack Out
- Inspect the labeled clamshell for quality and pack the containers of lettuce into boxes.
- Palletize boxed cartons of product.
- Move pallets of product to the vacuum cooler track using a stacking-capable electric pallet jack.
- Move packaging materials from the storage area to the packing room using the appropriate forklift or pallet jack.
- Board Washer
- Stack the washed rafts on pallets for reuse. Move clean palletized raft to transplant and storage areas using an electric pallet jack.
- Box Builder
- Build a carton for the finished product.
- End of shift clean-up of the packing area.
- Any other job-related function as assigned by Management.
Sanitation Responsibilities:
- Skim, wash down, scrub, and/or refill north and south greenhouse water conveyors according to schedule.
- Collect, dump, and rinse garbage receptacles in the greenhouse and pack room.
- Dump the large garbage bin into the dumpster using a forklift.
- Move pallets of clean 18-count rafts from the pack room to transplant and storage areas using an electric pallet jack.
- Wash down and clean the pack room conveyors and equipment.
- Sanitize equipment according to schedule.
- Wash and stack 18-count and/or 72-count rafts on pallets for reuse.
- Move clean palletized rafts to transplant and storage areas using an electric pallet jack.
- Any other job-related function as assigned by Management.
Preferred Qualifications:
- GED/High School Diploma preferred
- 6 months to 1 year of experience in a production/plant environment preferred.
Basic Job Requirements:
- Lifting requirement of up to 45 lbs.
- Exposure to extreme temperatures.
- Extensive pushing or pulling.
- Extensive standing and walking.
- Frequent stooping or bending over.
- Repetitive movements.
Ideal Candidate:
- Performs and completes the job requirements.
- Reads and communicates in English.
- Tolerates warm conditions up to 80 degrees within the nursery and greenhouse operations.
- Tolerates humid conditions, up to 80 percent humidity, within the nursery and greenhouse operations.
- Tolerate cool temperatures as low as 40 degrees within the nursery and greenhouse operations.
- Ability to work in a wet environment.
- Uses a standard electric jack.
- Stands on concrete floors for long periods of time.
- Works continuously for up to three hours without a break.
- Must be trained and cross-trained in a variety of work areas.
- Works well with others.
- Is punctual and reports ready to work, willing, and able to work when scheduled.
- Remains at work longer than scheduled to perform additional or unanticipated work.
- Works overtime when necessary.
- Wears personal protective equipment (PPE) in all weather conditions.
- Follows Good Manufacturing Practices (GMP) and the safety rules of the Company.
