I have officially been working at Produce (A)Isle for approximately three weeks or so after my initial training and being turned out into the wild of the general work population. To date I have been working closing shifts, which essentially consists of refilling bins of fruits and vegetables and getting things ready for the morning shift. My usual start time is 1700 and I seldom stay beyond 2200. As the shift is over four hours, I am allocated one 30 minute unpaid lunch and one 15 paid break (when was the last time that happened?). My first 8 hour shift will have happened by the time of this post (Saturday afternoon and evening).
The work is not particularly taxing, either mentally or physically. It consists of a fair amount of lifting and organizing: sorting through bins and combining them while culling out the fruit/vegetables with issues, pulling out items from the walk-in cooler and restocking them, fronting products on shelves. Most of the boxes are not very heavy, but some of the bins - onions and potatoes especially - can take a fair amount of effort to get on/off the display. There is at least one partial inventory check (7 to 10 scans), sweeping, and out the door I go.
The time tends to go quickly (even more quickly when you are alone and trying to get everything done) and to date I have never, ever had an idle moment. The work is the sort that one can find engaging, busy with the hands and the mind sufficiently engaged that I can think about the state of the fruit/vegetable that I am working with as well as other issues or problems.
Some things I have initially noticed:
- We go through a ton of bananas, even on a 5 hour shift. The banana shelf is probably 10 feet long with four rows divided between regular and organic; we easily have to refill it completely at least once and partially once or twice.
- Biggest sellers in Summer: Roma tomatoes and avocados.
- The store is completely dependent on what is shipped and what you get is what you put out. We were out of grapes for a week and cilantro almost that long. No idea why.
- Organic fruit is generally 1) more costly; and 2) goes bad more quickly.
- Sometimes, the fruit comes in spoiled even before it makes it out to the floor. Berries seem especially prone to this.
- Pro tip: The waxier your apples feel, the longer they have been there.
- Pro tip 2: The best produce is not necessarily always in the back of the bin/row. It should not be assumed everything is rotated forward; sometimes things just get put on top.
Is it making a financial difference? It is, in fact. And while I am working a lot harder for money that even two months ago I would have made in a far shorter time, I find the job equally or even more rewarding - therapeutic, one might say. There is something to just working a rhythm, answering customer questions and watching boxes get crushed in the compactor.
It is not that there are not demands on me. It is just that they are direct, resolvable, and I can go home every evening without a single piece of mental baggage. And that may be the biggest benefit of all.
Thank you for the pro tips! I don't buy much produce nowadays, but the tidbits are good to know. One thing we enjoy (especially in winter) is grapefruit. But I haven't seen that for a very long time. Seems like you get good physical activity with this job; I'd call that another plus.
ReplyDeleteLeigh, hopefully they are useful. I am certainly already applying the information in my current purchasing life (to be fair, I mostly purchase at the store I work at, so I now have insight others do not).
DeleteThe best grapefruit, if you can get it, is from the Rio Grande Valley. It is usually available in late November/December (STxAR will know of it). It is worth waiting the year for.
It is a lot of physical activity - literally there is not a moment of rest, beyond our breaks.
Insider Scoop! ........ :) There's something to be said for completeness of a task eh? Interesting info TB.
ReplyDeleteThere is Nylon12.
DeleteI assume this information is more or less true across multiple stores in multiple locations. After all, there is only a certain amount of things you can do with produce.
All of that fruit that goes bad can be a great source of seeds for a food forest.
ReplyDeleteMaybe for Old Home? Plant them thickly, cull to ten times the final, desired density. Cull the ones that survive again based on fruit quality or for cadence-of-ripening.
Good idea, ERJ. I will have to play with how things work in the Autumn, when I can start planning a bit more appropriately. Sadly, the vegetables I am most interested in do not seem to go bad often.
DeleteClearly defined tasks, a minimum of political managers, and (sticking my tongue firmly into my cheek) a tad of over qualification and smarts for the job makes a great work environment.
ReplyDeleteI've rarely found that combination in my jobs.
John, I am surer there is some level of work politics. I think, for example, that store management is probably rife with it as some managers are trying to "move up" into other stores, others are trying to make their names, etc. That said, for the amount of hours I work, I think I will see none of that.
DeleteIt certainly has promise, and the great thing is that I think it has long term promise - or at least as long as I want to work at it.
The term
ReplyDeleteThe term JOB and OCCUPATION are used for describing a person's paid task. Your time appears to engage many of what makes you you. Attention to details, sorting out the bad from the good and constant movement, free from the confines of a desk job. Your mind is constantly engaged with making decisions.
So not a boring desk job. Cool !
It does seem to be a good fit so far. Certainly I am have not been bored, am largely independent, and am coming to learn what "job complete" means (which is an achievable goal).
DeleteI know exactly what ya mean!!
ReplyDeletePP, it makes for an interesting change of pace from my usual work. But every night so far when I get home, I can leave the job at the door. That is priceless.
DeleteBeing tall with long arms, I have always selected my fruit from the top back of the displays. I wasn't assuming those fruit were the newest but merely that they have been least picked through by other smaller people.
ReplyDeleteI'm always amazed by the things people in the states call bananas. They are hybrids bred to hold up well to shipping and display and not for taste. After eating some actual bananas that aren't bred for anything but taste, I have a hard time eating those things sold here in the U.S.
Ed - Not a bad assumption. There would be, I think, two schools of thought: The "Just pile it on" and the "Move the oldest stuff to the front at the bottom". I am the second group, which means I take more time at my job - but I suspect the other happens.
DeleteBananas are an interesting subject. I just learned (thanks to a question from work) that most bananas in the US are a single variety, which is slowly succumbing to disease and will likely be replaced by another monocrop. I envy you your banana experiences.
As has been pointed out, a lot of reasons for your grocery job to be very rewarding in a number of ways. I am glad for you, TB. :)
ReplyDeleteYou all be safe and God bless.
Thank you Linda. So far it has been immensely rewarding, and not most of that being financial.
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