Fruit Picking

[eddies bank balance]

Has anyone in here done the friut picking thing?

'we' are thinking of doing the above anywhere between jan and april, what i would like to know is...

1)how much per hr?
2)where have you been?
3)how hard is the work?
4)accomodation tent/cabin?
5)is it fun?

[Eunos]

ebb, as a young 'un I worked on the orchards. But I never picked fruit.
Extremely hard job in hot weather.
1.) I'm unsure of the current rates, I know the union got in a few years ago and finally got a decent wage.
2.) NA
3.) You need to be able to pick 3 or 4 bins a day to make good money. Now a bin is approx 1.2 metres times 1.2 metres by .8 metre. You need to fill it by transferring the bag you have picked the fruit CAREFULLY. Bruising the fruit will see you docked. The gun pickers do 8 or more bins a day.
4.) Most orchards have cabins for pickers. Lots even have air-con these days. God bless the unions.
5.) You will meet good people of every nationality and make firm friends and have good times. But the work itself is not fun.

As a postscript ph (03) 5831 2511 to talk to a harvest office up here.
Here is their website;
http://www.worktrainers.com.au/


Times have changed greatly since my short time on the farms. Even the trees on many orchards are now trained to grow in a certain way to make pruning/picking easier.
Have a good chat to the harvest office.

[Eunos]

Just looking at that website myself.
This page;
http://www.worktrainers.com.au/information.html
is excellent. Will answer most of your questions.

[eddies bank balance]

Cheers, thanks for the info, anyone else like to respond and let me change the fruit picking to 'harvest picking'.

[HAL]

I just don't understand.

[eddies bank balance]

[HAL]

Tell me more about your family.

[CQ]

its a good way to get skin cancer too!

[Birdy]

EBB I used to pick grapes in vineyards while I was at uni and that wasn't too bad at all. Out in the sun all day with plenty of people to chat to, nothing too strenuous although if you're big like I am it can be a bit rough on your back and knees until you get used to it and then your fine. The period in which they pick grapes is usually around Jan-May I think.

They either pay you by the hour or per bucket. If they're big blue grapes like the pinot noir and they pay you by the bucket you can earn a fait bit cause their so easy to spot. If they're like chardonnay grapes and they pay you by the bucket you could end up with less because they blend in with the vines and are harder to spot.

[stonedpies]

i cut sqush here in NW Tassie for a few years....moneys ok if u get good paddocks..if they r shit its not owrth the effort of getting out of bed but if they r good u can make 150 a day...personally i kinda enjoyed it for the first season after that tho was a major pain in the ass..
glad i got a real job now

[DidakinthePocket]

1)how much per hr? - around 10-15 bucks
2)where have you been? - Young
3)how hard is the work? Bloody hard, why do you think they need travellers to do it??? The locals arent that stupid!
4)accomodation tent/cabin? camp is your best bet.
5)is it fun? it can be, but its a bitch of a job. 8 hours a day in the sun, 30 degree days with reflection off the ground.

[Eunos]

[eddies bank balance]

It seems like it will be more of a challenge, but hey we are leaving melb around the end of jan, early feb, we plan to pick for a couple of weeks then head of to Alice, bum around in a tent, then pick again, somewhere in oz etc..

but thankx for all your reply's and Tess,yes it will be interesting.

[HAL]

I agree. Interesting comparison.