Bench Hand-1st Shift

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

Essential Duties and Responsibilities: This list of duties and responsibilities is not all inclusive and may be expanded to include other duties and responsibilities, as management may deem necessary from time to time. 

• Inspects raw materials and stuffed product for obvious deficiencies prior to stuffing and as well as after. 
• Handles stuffed product immediately after it has been stuffed. This includes hanging of the following products: Snack sticks, Chubs, Linked products, and summer sausage. 
• Assists in loading the raw materials into a piece of equipment at a suitable rate for use at the stuffing process. 
• Labels or wraps stuffed product prior to the smoking process. 
• Cleans stuffing containers and machines. 
• Takes responsibility in work area to produce a safe and quality food product. Reporting all food safety and quality related problems to supervisor, manager, or to the QA department to initiate immediate action. 

Specific Knowledge, Skills, Licenses, Certifications, Etc.: To perform this job successfully, an individual must be able to perform each essential duty satisfactorily. The requirements listed below are representative of the knowledge, skill, and/or ability required. Reasonable accommodations may be made to enable individuals with disabilities to perform the essential functions.

• Prefer education generally equivalent to a High School Diploma; 
• Prefer 1-3 months of manufacturing, or food manufacturing experience.
• Requires a proven track record in acceptable levels of attendance, safety and quality of work. 
• Requires a basic understanding of GMP's, HACCP and SQF guidelines. 
• Requires mathematical skills that require ability to add, subtract, multiply and divide.
• Requires basic communication skills in order to interact with and understand work assignments. 
• Requires ability to apply common sense understanding to carry out simple one- or two-step instructions.
• Requires 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 on a regular basis, up to 100 pounds occasionally. 
• Must be able to bend, twist, stoop and squat, reach above shoulders as needed for day to day responsibilities and other miscellaneous duties. 
• Must have good hand and eye coordination. 
• Must be able to work in temperatures of 40 degrees or less. 
• Must be able to work overtime, during peak production periods.