Hiring and managing employees is one of the most challenging and rewarding parts of running a growing farm business.
Beth Holtzman of UVM Extension will introduce the Farm Labor Dashboard, a free online suite of tools to support better labor planning and management. Beth will also share strategies for recruitment, training, and performance evaluation, helping participants set themselves and their employees up for success.
Participants will learn how to:
- Assess whether they are ready to hire with the Hiring Readiness Self-Assessment
- Write clear, effective job descriptions using the Job Description Generator
- Calculate the true cost of employees with the Employee Cost Estimator
- Evaluate investments with the Mechanization/Labor ROI Estimator
- Create employee policy manuals and training plans
The workshop will feature a Farmer Highlight from Andrew Lawson of Appleton Farm, who will offer real-world insights into how he plans for labor each season, hires and trains staff, and manages day-to-day employee performance.
Participants will leave with:
- Concrete strategies
- Online tools
- Inspiration to improve their workforce planning and labor management.
Who should attend?
This series is designed for beginning and intermediate farmers who want to better understand how to plan for labor needs, build strong teams, and comply with employment requirements.