Agricultural Labor Management

From the University of Vermont 

Agricultural labor management is more than scheduling employees to milk, plant crops, or repair machinery. It also requires you to be a leader. And, you can't be a complacent leader. Your enthusiasm and ability to motivate employees is what will help you to reach your farm's goals.

New Hampshire Resources on Farm Management & Labor: http://extension.unh.edu

Keeping Your Employees Happy &  

Your Production Profitable

From ATTRA 

Beyond Basic Compensation:

Using Bonuses, Profit Sharing & Employee Ownership to Motivate and Retain Workers on Your Farm

From ATTRA  

With input costs and market prices continuing to add pressure to farming operations, the ability to maintain satisfied, engaged, and skilled employees who are familiar with the farming operation is becoming increasingly important. Of the different strategies growers can employ to increase employee satisfaction and retention, variable pay systems such as profit sharing, bonuses, and employee ownership appear to be some of the most important.

Simple Solutions:  

Ergonomics for Farm Workers  

From The National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health 

Stooping or kneeling and crawling to harvest salad greens requires a lot of time and energy. Lifting and moving your harvest container many times as you fill it adds to the work load. An alternative is to build a simple cart, which allows you to sit and roll while you harvest. This is less tiring for the knees, back, hamstrings, and torso. The cart also holds your harvest container, so it rolls along with you.   

You're the Only Labor (Or You & Your Family):

Managing Personal Stress  

On Sustainable Farms & Ranches

From ATTRA 

This issue of ATTRAnews presents ideas on how to cope with stress. These suggestions are gleaned from ag producers and the experts who help them get through hard times. What are the best ways to sustain the sustainable farmers and ranchers who may be facing burnout?

How Farms Work:  

Writer Goes Into the Field to Uncover  

Reality of Farm Labor Crisis

From Buffalo News 

"People have these radically old-fashioned ideas about what farms are," Rivers said with a wry laugh, on a recent weekday from his Albion home. "I don't want to be disparaging -- but it would take an exceptional American to be able to do these jobs today."

Finding, Interviewing & Managing Interns

• ATTRA 
• Willing Workers on Organic Farms (WWOOF) 
• Organic Volunteers  
• Idealist 
• Good Food Jobs 
• Sustainable Food Jobs 
• Interviewing Applicants 
• Intern Handbook