Job description
FARM WORKER (DAIRY)
INDUSTRIAL 2 - DAIRY UNIT
Location: Research Farmed Estates, Hillsborough
Hours: 37hrs per week, 5 days per week
Duration: up to 3 months
Pay: £ per hour
About AFBI & the Agri-Environment Branch:
The Agri-Food and Biosciences Institute (AFBI) delivers world-class science to support agriculture, the environment, and the wider economy. Sponsored by the Department of Agriculture, Environment and Rural Affairs (DAERA), AFBI provides evidence-based research and monitoring that informs government policy and promotes sustainability in Northern Ireland and beyond.
Working Hours:
The successful candidates will normally be required to work 5 days each week, totalling 37 hours. Candidates should be aware that cows in a dairy herd must be milked/fed and managed 365 days per year, while experiments are also undertaken throughout the year. This means that working during weekends, holiday periods, early mornings and into the evenings is essential to meet business needs. The successful candidate will be required to help cover these work requirements on a rota basis
Main duties include:
1. Milking duties, including bringing cows to and from fields and houses for milking, preparing cows for milking, milking cows, maintaining hygiene throughout the milking process, maintaining parlour cleanliness.
2. Feeding cows, including preparing experimental rations to specific experimental requirements, normally using a telescopic handler, tractor and mixer wagon, but also by hand or using a mini mixer.
3. Pasture/grazing management, including sowing fertiliser, mowing paddocks using a mower, harvesting grass using a zero-grazer, weed control, allocating pasture, setting up fence lines, checking water troughs.
4. Maintaining high animal health and welfare standards, including identifying and treating sick animals, routine health management, vaccination, hoof care, assisting veterinary practitioners.
5. Fertility management, including heat detection, artificial insemination, assisting at calving, and ensuring the health and welfare of calves and cows at birth.
6. General livestock management duties, including bedding cow houses/cubicles and calving pens (for example, with straw, sawdust and lime), clipping cows.
7. Recording detailed herd health and management details, both electronically and hard copy, as appropriate. Assisting scientific staff to take measurements.
8. Maintaining overall cleanliness and tidiness of the dairy unit, including cleaning and disinfecting animal accommodation, brushing, power hosing, grass cutting, weed control/management, silo management.
9. All types of general farm duties, and any other duties that may arise, including young-stock management.
10. Conducting an evening check of animals within the herds, which may include checking youngstock and calves.
Eligibility Criteria:
11. Two GCSE's including English Language and Maths, grade C or above, or a recognised level 2 or higher in Agriculture or equivalent in a relevant area.
12. Demonstrate, by way of examples, at least 12 months experience of working in a Dairy Unit of over 200 diary stock, including milking, feeding, maintaining cow hygiene throughout all milking processes and working with young stock.
13. Demonstrate, by way of examples, experience in all of the following:
14. Pasture/grazing management in whole
15. Heat detection/Fertility
16. General livestock husbandry skills including animal Health and Welfare and have knowledge of sustainable farming principles
17. Possess a full, UK current or exchangeable** driving licence for manual vehicles, (to aid the successful candidate in driving AFBI vehicles) enabling the licence holder to fulfil the duties of this role.