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NORTH PERROTT FRUIT FARM
Summer Jobs Information

Information for Fruit Pickers

To harvest the apple crop every year the farm needs between 15 and 20 pickers per day during the month of September. If you are interested in a job for 2006 please read on.

The Job

To harvest apples and pears from the trees and place them carefully into bulk bins. A picking bucket, containing up to 10kgs of fruit, is carried from the shoulders and is emptied into the bulk bins which when filled weigh approximately 360kgs.

Timing

The fruit harvest can vary by up to a week in different years. Normally the main harvest starts in the first week of September and finishes in the second week of October.

The Contract

The job is defined by the Agricultural Wages Board as ‘Manual Harvest Worker’. It is a one-day contract and requires that you be paid at the end of each day. Providing that employees provide a contact address there is no tax deducted. There is no requirement to give notice to quit by either side.

Payment

The job is subject to the current Agricultural Wages Board rates.   The majority of the picking is done using a piecework rate. The rate per bin varies by variety and orchard but is set so that an average picker can earn in excess of the minimum hourly rate and it is not uncommon for good pickers to earn considerably more. Payment is made at the end of the day and in most cases is exempt from tax but not from National Insurance contributions.

Training

Full training and supervision will be given. The class 1 fruit is all destined for supermarket sales and is very important that it is picked to exacting quality requirements. It is also important that the fruit is picked carefully to avoid bruising and that the job is done thoroughly.

Equipment

It is a physically demanding job that is sometimes conducted in less than favourable weather conditions. The farm provides picking buckets and picking gloves but you must come prepared for the worst weather every day (no matter what the forecast) i.e. waterproof clothing and boots.

Accommodation and Local Facilities

At present the farm has no accommodation for pickers. However, there are flush toilets, hot and cold water and a shower for those that want to camp in either tents or caravans. The orchards are equidistant between two villages. There is a public telephone, pub and garden centre/village store in North Perrott and village store/post office, pub and public telephone in Haslebury Plucknett. The local bus service operates between Yeovil and Crewkerne and passes through both villages. Both towns have railway services.

Interested in a job? Contact us for an application form on 01460 73451, by e-mail or by Feed Back.

We regret that we cannot accept applications from residents outside the EEC.

 

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