Bench Hand

About the role

The primary purpose of the stuffing department is to take bulk raw product and portion, form, and encase it to conform with the various shapes and weights necessary for sale. A Bench Hand is responsible for assisting the operator with handling raw materials and stuffed sausage prior to and after the stuffing process.

Responsibilities

• Inspects raw materials and stuffed product for obvious deficiencies prior to stuffing and after.
• Handles stuffed product immediately after it has been stuffed, including hanging snack sticks, chubs, linked products, and summer sausage.
• Assists in loading raw materials into equipment at a suitable rate for the stuffing process.
• Labels or wraps stuffed product prior to the smoking process.
• Cleans stuffing containers and machines.
• Ensures a safe and quality food product in the work area, reporting all food safety and quality-related problems to a supervisor, manager, or the QA department.

Requirements

• Prefer education equivalent to a high school diploma.
• Prefer 1-3 months of manufacturing or food manufacturing experience.
• Proven track record in acceptable levels of attendance, safety, and quality of work.
• Basic understanding of GMP’s, HACCP, and SQF guidelines.
• Mathematical skills to add, subtract, multiply, and divide.
• Basic communication skills to interact with and understand work assignments.
• Ability to apply common sense to carry out simple one- or two-step instructions.
• Ability to deal with standardized situations with only occasional or no variables.

Physical and work environment requirements

• Must be able to stand/walk for 8-9 hours per day.
• Must be able to lift, push, pull up to 50 pounds regularly and up to 100 pounds occasionally.
• Must be able to bend, twist, stoop, squat, and reach above shoulders as needed.
• Good hand and eye coordination required.
• Must be able to work in temperatures of 40 degrees or less.
• Must be able to work overtime during peak production periods.