Come work with us!
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January 2025:
Skinny Dip Farm is hiring one or two crew members for the
2025 season. These positions have the potential to expand into year-round jobs with
housing on our certified organic vegetable farm In Little Compton RI and
Westport MA. Our goal is to run the farm with a small crew of experienced farmers,
but we are open to folks with less experience if we feel they could grow into bigger
roles with more experience. Housing is available to a limited number of
applicants.
About the Farm:
Skinny Dip Farm is owned and operated by Hannah and Ben
Wolbach. We started it in 2011 and are busy making plans for our 15th
season in operation. We farm both at our home, on about 1.5 acres in Little
Compton, and on another 4 or so acres of leased land in Westport. We grow a
wide variety of crops which are sold at farmers markets, through a small CSA,
to restaurants and caterers and through an online store. We primarily grow
vegetables, with an emphasis on salad greens, but also grow flowers (+/- .25
acre), herbs and some other oddball crops like dry beans and flour corn. We
also run chickens on cover crop as part of our fertility plan and aim to send
about 250 to slaughter annually. We grow and sell year-round, with winter
production in 4 unheated high tunnels, 3 cat tunnels and outside for as long as
we can, which is pretty deep into December most years in our ocean influenced
South Coast locations. We manage our two properties differently, leaning
towards minimal till, intensive methods on the home property and tractor based
extensive methods on the leased land, though that is and has been evolving. We
run the farm with a small crew, 6 people in 2024, who are very involved in most
aspects of running the farm. We take great pride in the quality of our produce
and our commitment to caring for the land we farm. Overall, the farm is very
successful and we are able to significantly invest profits into our operation. We
are a family farm, our two daughters (8 and 10) are around, helping out, making
mischief and love befriending the farmers.
About the job:
We are looking to add one or two full-time employees.
Depending on how many people we hire, our crew would total 5 or 6. This core of
farmers make the farm go round—getting the myriad of jobs done and keeping up
our high standards of quality while enjoying working hard together. For the
right people, there is the possibility of taking the lead in specific areas of
interest. We hope that those we hire are excited to be crew leads, list managers,
task prioritizers, wash stand expediters. Specific areas of interest or
expertise that would be a good fit right now would be small scale, intensive,
minimum and no till production, Small fruits, crew organization and efficiency,
orchard establishment and animal husbandry. There is also potential to work at
farmers’ markets.
We are looking, first and foremost, for really great
people—we’re going to spend a lot of time together—with a strong commitment to
growing quality produce and caring for the land. We really value good
communication skills and a desire to learn.
Desired
Applicants:
·
Love working outside
·
Know how to work hard, have a desire to work
smart
·
Are physically capable—can lift 50 lbs repeatedly,
are ready for hands and knees work
·
Have a driving record clean enough to make it
onto our insurance in order to drive farm vehicles
·
Would consider working multiple seasons at
Skinny Dip Farm
·
Have a positive attitude
Hours are mostly Monday-Friday, 40 hours/ week, though some
weekend work and a share of greenhouse tending may be asked. Perks include paid
vacation and sick leave that start to accrue after 6 months, time and financial
support for farm conferences and trainings.
Housing, if desired, is a room in a shared house with other
member(s) of the crew. The house is quite nice and adjacent to the farm’s
Little Compton fields, close to beaches, and within walking distance of town. We
are open to hiring a farming couple or to housing a non-farming partner, though
a non-farming partner would be asked to pay rent. Pets are a possibility, but
would need to be okayed by the current human residents and pass a sniff test if
there are any non-human residents at the time of hire.
Exact compensation will depend on experience, and if you
live onsite. Last year our range was $15-21/ hour. Start date is somewhat
flexible. We really get rolling in March and will want our full-time crew in
place by the end of May at the latest.
No health insurance or other benefits included, though we
recommend checking out Healthsource RI and/or Mass Health to get an idea of
what health insurance costs could look like. Most folks we’ve hired have been
eligible for generous help through the exchanges.
Our Hiring Process
Our primary goal is to find people who feel like a good match for
both the vitality of the farm, and in terms of personality. Accordingly, the
plan is to do an initial short interview/ conversation by phone to make sure
that it looks like the job could be a good fit and then invite our top
candidate(s) to visit the farm for a working interview and have a more in-depth
conversation about working together while taking on a few tasks.
Your next step, if you so choose, is to send a resume and
cover letter to skinnydipfarm@yahoo.com. Need
more info? Feel free to reach out with questions, or to request more
information.
