4xtrahands / farm employee

Ffermer Bach

Member
Livestock Farmer
Depends a bit doesn’t it. If you are employing someone full time you would be expected to provide appropriate kit. But if you are paying an hourly rate to someone self employed then you’d kind of expect them to turn up for the job with appropriate kit.
tricky one that, I know a builder who used a self employed plumber to undertake the soil and vent pipes (I think), this plumber chose to do the work off a DIY tower scaffold (without rails) and fell off, the builder had a court case with the HSE, so as a main contractor you should choose subcontractors who are safe, I think, a casual worker you should provide the wet weather gear (and a full time employee), builder doing your roof, not (but you should undertake due diligence to ensure he is safe). I know keen building firms, who, every time a new employee starts they are issued with coat, boots etc as part of the induction, new employees are often surprised as although these are the laws, often employers don't follow them.
 

unlacedgecko

Member
Livestock Farmer
Location
Fife
Don’t think I’ve ever been to a farm where the staff got given coats and boots and the like

All my staff (not that I have any at the moment) receive full workwear. Boots, overalls (if working inside) and waterproofs (if outside).
These issued items remain company property and are to be returned at the end of employment, or their cost deducted from final pay packet.
 

Cowmansam

Member
Livestock Farmer
Location
Shropshire
Seems fair It’s never even crossed my mind I always thought you turn up equipped to work bet I spend several hundred a year on work wear easy so I’m missing a trick really
 
Maybe try advertising on some Irish websites.

Very man lads who are brought up on the family farm aspire to work with a larger scale than they are used to, but since they have been on the farm as children are generally handy with most things by late teens.
Exactly this , some very good irish lads ,
landed on a very good lad ,just from a comment on a face book page , piled it on him this spring and he doing the biz , not afarid of thinking for him self and getting a grease gun , out or washer , and threw him in at deep end with ,new fert spreader vari rate and all, last couple days when calm ,he was out at 4 , and at it , while calm , and had two very long days , 😍😍😍😍 And set him off ploughing ,and pleasantly suprized , for a novice , he will get combine job ,
plenty of bodies out there , but its brains that are lacking ,
 

kiwi pom

Member
Location
canterbury NZ
Really??.....
”Crap working conditions”..... ......... Good hourly wages, generous overtime pay, occasional £ bonus , use of farm equipment by permission , 28 days holiday, sick pay, pension scheme, use of farm vehicle, modern washing facilities , cloths washer , tumble drier, heated eating room with microwave and kettle ,drying room, safety clothing allowance, modern clean reliable air conditioned GPS steered tractors , continuous training and fully concreted clean farm yards.
Upto the early nineties the two staff members had been here since the age of 16 until their retirement as had their grandfather before them. I don’t think we are too bad to work for.
Sounds bloody awful to me???!.

Experienced farm workers who have been round a bit tend to talk to each other and observe what is going on at farms in the area. They know who's there, how many leave and soon figure out if it's a step up to go there should a vacancy exist. They also see the places that are always recruiting and see red flags.
If you offer everything you say in your post and local workers aren't coming to you, there may be another reason.
 

jjm

Member
Mixed Farmer
Location
North Yorkshire
Experienced farm workers who have been round a bit tend to talk to each other and observe what is going on at farms in the area. They know who's there, how many leave and soon figure out if it's a step up to go there should a vacancy exist. They also see the places that are always recruiting and see red flags.
If you offer everything you say in your post and local workers aren't coming to you, there may be another reason.

Pigs and sheep don’t appeal to some arable operators!.
 

kiwi pom

Member
Location
canterbury NZ
Pigs and sheep don’t appeal to some arable operators!.

I'd much prefer some stock work as well. It must be mind numbingly boring on a combinable cropping farm for 7 or 8 months of the year.
Some farms can keep staff some can't, lots of reasons for it, sometimes its their fault, sometimes people just want to move on to something new.
 
I'd much prefer some stock work as well. It must be mind numbingly boring on a combinable cropping farm for 7 or 8 months of the year.
Some farms can keep staff some can't, lots of reasons for it, sometimes its their fault, sometimes people just want to move on to something new.
That depends to be fair what farm you are on? I m on my own on 1500 acres of combineables and beet. Never a boring day I m busy all year around but not doing silly hours so have a pretty great work life balance! Would nt change it for the world! And to be fair as I've never done anything else apart from the arable side since I was 11 years old would never consider any job with livestock in the mix beacause I have zero interest nor any experience whatsoever with livestock! Certainly would nt be confident or know if an animal was sick etc! I d be a fish out of water on that one and would be pure useless at it! You certainly have to have a love for cows etc to do it? So agree with the previous post too that not all arable guys will do livestock work! Very difficult to find a good all rounder these days on that one!
 

SFI - What % were you taking out of production?

  • 0 %

    Votes: 80 42.3%
  • Up to 25%

    Votes: 66 34.9%
  • 25-50%

    Votes: 30 15.9%
  • 50-75%

    Votes: 3 1.6%
  • 75-100%

    Votes: 3 1.6%
  • 100% I’ve had enough of farming!

    Votes: 7 3.7%

Red Tractor drops launch of green farming scheme amid anger from farmers

  • 1,294
  • 1
As reported in Independent


quote: “Red Tractor has confirmed it is dropping plans to launch its green farming assurance standard in April“

read the TFF thread here: https://thefarmingforum.co.uk/index.php?threads/gfc-was-to-go-ahead-now-not-going-ahead.405234/
Top