Finding hired help willing to work on a farm that operates 24 hours a day, 365 days a year –including Friday and Saturday nights, July 4, November 15 and December 25– can be a real challenge.
Particularly for farms with several employees, do not wait until there is a position available to start recruiting labor. Maintaining a steady flow of applicants will prove helpful when there is a sudden need to fill a position. When thinking about labor needs on your farm, consider recruiting differently for entry level positions and experienced workers.
Create a job posting for entry level positions that very clearly describes the job for someone who has never worked on a farm. Michigan State University Extension recommends considering including information such as: the need to work nights, weekends and/or holidays, starting wage, hours per week, shift length, available benefits, skills needed, if the position is indoors or outdoors, what training will be available and the farm location.
Once you have the job posting written, you have to get it out there. Make the job posting available to current employees to share with their friends. Consider hanging it in stores, restaurants or gas stations that are nearby the farm. Think about places the type of employee you want to attract would be visiting and post ads there. Often times, Latino workers will shop and dine at different places, so be sure to place ads at those establishments. In Michigan, job postings can be placed on the Michigan Works! website where you can also browse applicants. Many farms have been successful in finding entry level help using the job listing site on Craigslist. Always have applications available to fill out on farm if someone stops by looking for a job, even if you are not currently hiring.
