Senior Aquaculture, Crop and Forestry Workers
Apply in-depth industry specific knowledge to manage and supervise aspects of aquaculture, broadacre, horticultural crop, fisheries, forestry and vineyard production.
A harvest week on the farm
You are a senior farm worker, supervising a small crew and running a section of the farm during the busiest week of the year. It is 5:30am. The crop is ready to pick, rain is forecast for the weekend, and your crew includes two new workers who have not done this before.
Choose what you would do. Then see what happens. There are often good reasons for each choice.
The forecast has changed. Rain is coming by Friday night, not Saturday. We have got the east block and the west block still to do. I need both done before it rains. Do you think you can manage it?
Say yes, push the crew and finish both blocks, whatever it takes, before the rain arrives
The crew burns out on Thursday, quality drops, and a worker nearly falls from a ladder in the rush. Promises made before looking at the crew's pace are expensive.
Work out what is realistic, tell Sylvie which block comes first and what you need
You propose starting the more fragile block first and bringing in two extra pickers. Sylvie agrees and the crew is on a plan. Both blocks are picked with a few hours to spare.
Say you can only do one block, so she should decide which one to lose
Sylvie is left to decide without a plan from you. An honest limit is useful, but she wanted options, and you were closer to the work.
I have been picking for two hours and I feel a bit dizzy. It is hot and I did not have a big breakfast. I do not want to look weak on my first week. I think I'll be all right if I carry on.
Thank Luis, send him to rest in the shade with water and food, and check on him soon
Luis recovers in twenty minutes and returns to a lighter task. The crew sees that stopping when you feel unwell is fine. He tells you later he nearly kept going.
Tell him to push on, since everybody is tired and hot and the work is nearly done
Luis keeps going and then sits down hard in the row. He is fine after a rest, but the day is lost. Heat illness is a real risk, and the people on a crew rely on the supervisor noticing.
Send him to rest, but do not check on him again because the crew is busy and short-handed
He rests but has no water nearby and drifts back to work early. Sending someone to rest is half of it; checking in is the other half.
I am here to inspect the fruit before the truck. A lot of these look very ripe. If it's soft by the time it reaches the city, I won't be able to take it. Is it going to be okay? Tell me honestly.
Say it will be fine, to keep the sale
The buyer accepts the load and some of it arrives soft. She rejects part of the delivery and trusts you less next season. A sale that rests on a promise is fragile.
Show Ida the fruit, say what you think, offer to send the ripest cases for a closer market and the firmer ones further away
The split works for her and the load is accepted, but it takes more organisation than you planned and the truck loads late. Good ideas still need a bit of planning time.
Show Ida the fruit honestly, point out the ripest, suggest a sensible split and agree on what she will accept
Ida takes the firmer fruit and agrees to a lower price on the riper batch. Nothing is rejected, and she looks forward to next season. Honesty at the inspection kept the relationship.
How it went
Both blocks are picked before the rain, and the crew is tired but pleased. Supervising on a farm means reading the weather, the crop and the people at once, and taking responsibility for all three. Does the idea of leading a crew through a harvest appeal to you?
This is a simplified, fictional situation to help you explore. It is not professional instruction or a test of your ability.
Case study: The harvest that nearly missed its truck
A fictional case set in a fictional mixed farm and orchard in a river valley, with a small crew, tractors and a packing shed.
The situation
Wiremu was the senior hand at Creekbend Orchards, supervising a crew picking the last of the season's nectarines. A truck was booked for 4pm to take the fruit to market. By midday, a fault in the packing line meant they were behind, and the farm manager, Sylvie, asked Wiremu if the crew could pick faster. He noticed some pickers were beginning to bruise fruit in their hurry.
What they did
Wiremu called the crew together for a short break and a quick talk. He told them the truck was a priority but that bruised fruit would be rejected at the market. He moved two people from picking to help with the packing line and slowed the picking pace. He phoned Sylvie to update her, and to ask the trucking company if the pickup could be moved by an hour.
How it turned out
The truck took the load an hour late and the fruit arrived in good condition. The packing line was fixed by one of the crew. Sylvie said she would rather have an honest hour's delay than a rejected load. Wiremu began briefing the team before every harvest on what quality looked like.
What would you do?
- How would you push a crew to be quick without letting quality drop?
- What would you say to the manager when you are behind schedule?
- Do you enjoy work where weather and timing decide a lot of your choices?