Agriculture Services Laborer

State of Oregon • Wilsonville, OR

3d • Onsite

About The Position

he Oregon Department of Agriculture (ODA) is currently recruiting for three Agriculture Services Laborer positions within the Agriculture Services Division, working primarily with the Plant Health and Shipping Point Inspection Programs. These positions support the department’s mission to safeguard Oregon's agriculture, natural resources, working lands, economies, and communities through assistance, compliance, and market support. Oregon Department of Agriculture – Who we are: At the Oregon Department of Agriculture (ODA), employees work with a dynamic and supportive team of mission-focused individuals tasked with ensuring healthy natural resources, environment, and economy for Oregonians now and in the future through inspection and certification, regulation, and promotion of agriculture and food. Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion are embedded in the Department of Agriculture core values. Employees at all levels of the agency work together to foster fairness, equity, inclusion, and belonging. The department strives to be a model employer committed to promoting diversity, equity, and inclusion. Learn more about what we do here What you’ll be doing: As an Agriculture Services Laborer, you will be part of the Agriculture Services Division, a group of programs that work together statewide to assist Oregon’s agriculture producers to successfully sell and ship products worldwide. The Shipping Point Inspection (SPI) Program provides a variety of services for the inspection, verification, and certification of Oregon commodities prior to their shipment into US and world commerce channels. These include impartial third-party inspection of product to determine grades of fruits, nuts, and vegetables and implementation of alternative inspection programs where ODA staff collaborate with customers to provide inspections. SPI program staff provide inspections and issue phytosanitary certificates to support export of Oregon agriculture commodities. The main goals of the Plant Health program are to protect Oregon’s agricultural industries, environment, and quality of life from damaging plant pathogens and parasites and to enhance the marketability of Oregon's agricultural and horticultural products. The programs within Plant Health are conducted statewide and affect all segments of Oregon’s agricultural and horticultural industries as well as natural resources in urban and rural environments. In this position, you will provide shipping point inspections, phytosanitary inspections, official sampling and witnessing, and other services to assist customers in moving agricultural products. This position works in the Plant Health laboratory and performs inspections of commodities, including seed and nursery planting material. This position assists laboratory staff in preparing materials and samples for testing, prepares media, washes glassware, and other duties as assigned. This position assists with field work such as surveys, sample collection, commodity inspection, and field inspection of crops for plant pests and diseases to support quarantines and exports. As part of the smoke management program, this position conducts PiBALs and participates in observation of open field burning. As needed this position may support other Agriculture Services Division or agency programs. The Agriculture Services Laborer is a seasonal part-time position, located at the North Valley Complex in Wilsonville, Oregon. Click here to view a full description of this position.

Requirements

• Must be at least 18 years of age at time of hire.
• Must have a valid driver’s license and an acceptable driving record.

Nice To Haves

• General knowledge of agriculture, horticulture, plant pathology, agronomy, or related experience.
• Experience with inspection, laboratory testing, and/or plant disease identification.
• Basic knowledge of arithmetic (addition, subtraction, multiplication, division).
• Ability to keep accurate written records of inspection activities and fee collections.
• Ability to communicate orally and in writing with a variety of people to obtain or provide information.
• Consistent adherence to established protocols, safety standards, and ethical conduct when representing the agency.

Responsibilities

• provide shipping point inspections
• phytosanitary inspections
• official sampling and witnessing
• assists customers in moving agricultural products
• performs inspections of commodities, including seed and nursery planting material
• assists laboratory staff in preparing materials and samples for testing, prepares media, washes glassware, and other duties as assigned
• assists with field work such as surveys, sample collection, commodity inspection, and field inspection of crops for plant pests and diseases to support quarantines and exports
• conducts PiBALs and participates in observation of open field burning
• may support other Agriculture Services Division or agency programs

Benefits

• The State of Oregon offers a competitive and affordable health and benefits package, including excellent medical, vision and dental coverage, paid holidays off, and personal business leave, as well as paid and accrued vacation leave and sick leave.
• In addition to standard medical benefits and employee leave, the state also provides additional optional benefits, such as basic life insurance, short-term disability, long-term disability, deferred compensation savings program, and flexible spending accounts for health care and childcare expenses.

What This Job Offers

• Job Type: Part-time
• Career Level: Entry Level
• Education Level: No Education Listed