How hard is it to get a ranch/farm hand job?

[Anon]

I've considered ranch hand or farm hand work in the past, but how do you get a job like that with no experience?

 

[mattvei]

same as any other job - switch the risk. Talk to and network a number of potentials as research on what is involved. Then offer yourself on a firm trial basis

 

[Van Vliet]

 

[Morgana]

With the current labor shortages, this would probably be a great time to get experience.

 

[JDelete]

As someone who was raised on a farm/ranch, I think I have a perspective on this which might be somewhat of a downer. I say farm/ranch because we had both aspects—grain farmer and cattle production. This was because when the markets are down on one, chances are the other will do better that year.

If you haven't been raised on a farm/ranch and have the experience that goes along with it, you are at a distinct disadvantage. If you do manage to be in the right place at the right time to find a job, you are going to get the most menial, labor intensive, low paying jobs—things like cleaning the manure out of barns and stalls, etc. You won't get the easier jobs of driving a tractor down a field in an air-conditioned cab with a stereo blasting (that task is a relatively short period of the total work year anyway). Since you don't have experience, you won't be trusted with a couple hundred thousand dollars of equipment. Besides, the more experienced workers will get that task while you are manually forking manure.

As for a labor shortage, I still have friends who farm and ranch. They don't have a labor shortage. What they do have is a drastic reduction in the market demand for their product which furthers tightens their budget, hence the lack of need for extra labor.

 

[Anon]

same as any other job - switch the risk. Talk to and network a number of potentials as research on what is involved. Then offer yourself on a firm trial basis

Networking? what's that? I've gotten almost all of my jobs through temp agencies.

As someone who was raised on a farm/ranch, I think I have a perspective on this which might be somewhat of a downer. I say farm/ranch because we had both aspects—grain farmer and cattle production. This was because when the markets are down on one, chances are the other will do better that year.

If you haven't been raised on a farm/ranch and have the experience that goes along with it, you are at a distinct disadvantage. If you do manage to be in the right place at the right time to find a job, you are going to get the most menial, labor intensive, low paying jobs—things like cleaning the manure out of barns and stalls, etc. You won't get the easier jobs of driving a tractor down a field in an air-conditioned cab with a stereo blasting (that task is a relatively short period of the total work year anyway). Since you don't have experience, you won't be trusted with a couple hundred thousand dollars of equipment. Besides, the more experienced workers will get that task while you are manually forking manure.

As for a labor shortage, I still have friends who farm and ranch. They don't have a labor shortage. What they do have is a drastic reduction in the market demand for their product which furthers tightens their budget, hence the lack of need for extra labor.

Sounds like it's probably not a good career path for me anyways, but it sounded interesting from a seasonal work perspective.

How much do you guys usually get paid? Are there other types of outdoors seasonal jobs besides ranch hand work? I know there is but like, give me specific ones to look for.

 

[Morgana]

Here are a few recent articles on labor shortages in ag:

https://www.agweb.com/news/business/taxes-and-finance/five-facts-about-ag-labor-shortage

https://apnews.com/article/immigrat...mic-business-50121aa858e9f7cb2c708d94602ef366

https://www.natlawreview.com/articl...icultural-laborers-ohio-and-pennsylvania-face

https://www.texomashomepage.com/news/local-news/farmers-and-ranchers-see-increase-in-labor-shortage/

https://www.dairyherd.com/news/labor/labor-shortage-continues-plague-farms

 

[JDelete]

Read through those articles—looking to hire high school kids, H2A workers, seasonal workers, etc. Yes, there is always a shortage of people to pick the melons and fruit and similar types of jobs. I'm not sure that is what GetterdoneGary has in mind though coming from a 1K a week take home pay job. Anyway, I going by information I get first hand from farmers/ranchers I have known my whole life.

 

[thegoodtom1]

If it's experience you want, join the next beet harvest and stay on for a while.

 

[Morgana]

Entry level is entry level. Not a lot of those jobs offering 1K/week, or easy work, in any field.

Logic suggests that most of the jobs with a worker shortage have some kind of serious downside. That doesn't mean there's no opportunity in there, especially for an energetic and resilient person willing to try stuff out. These are changing times.

Yes, there is a difference between the personal stories of a few close friends and multiple researched articles written by strangers in a variety of publications. Each type of source has its place. The trick is evaluating each carefully, recognizing what it's useful for, and putting it in context.

 

[JDelete]

The downside to most of the jobs in those sources is it is hard work with long hours oftentimes in high heat. The pay is about 15K annually. Farm workers are exempt from most federal regulations such as there are no minimum wage requirements, no extra pay for overtime, very few protections if any.

But, it that appeals to you, go for it.

 

[Anon]

The downside to most of the jobs in those sources is it is hard work with long hours oftentimes in high heat. The pay is about 15K annually. Farm workers are exempt from most federal regulations such as there are no minimum wage requirements, no extra pay for overtime, very few protections if any.

But, it that appeals to you, go for it.

Eh...I'd rather not right now.

 

[Anon]

I mean I like animals, and I love working outdoors and learning how to grow food, but leaving a skilled, $1,000+ a week job where I'm treated fairly well to go shovel maneuer every day of the week for 12+ hours for $12 an hour sounds like a stupid idea.

 

[Anon]

But then again, I'm also kind of tired of paying $800 a month on a place that doesn't guarantee me sleep in a town I hate living in, and I'm not afraid of getting dirty, and again, I do love the outdoors.

 

[grumpygrizzly]

Check out the jobs on this site: https://workamper.com/ There are all kinds of jobs listed there.