Protect Your Farm with Good Hiring Practices

Many jobs in agriculture are not the typical job. They're often low pay, long hours and no benefits. It's a job that is there for a reason - to feed people. This means keeping an eye on costs, but can and has opened farms up to some expensive mistakes. It also has brought an awareness that not all applying for work are what they seem to be.

Increasingly undercover videos and access are the primary reason some seek a job in agriculture. Most farms do not endorse cruelty to their animals as a means of staying in business. Indeed most farms will immediately dismiss someone found abusing animals if they know about it. There's the catch - often they find out it happened when it's reported to the media.

This has been the case many times over and warrants a new look at hiring practices for the protection of animals and employees alike. Be aware - know the names and aliases of "undercover operators" that have worked at various farms. False identification is illegal in many ways but without a full check it's too easy to slip through. Check original social security cards as a means of insuring people are who they claim to be.

Several of these false names, and ties to real ones, are found online. The Animal Agriculture Alliance touches on several - "Jason Smith" also used names of John Knoldt and Chris Paxton. "Jason" has used Knoldt's social security number for one job, also tracing to Christopher Parrett. "Pete Romoland" was quoted as saying "I do not believe that under any circumstances we should raise animals for food" yet talked his way into positions at animal agriculture facilities. James or Jimmy Carlson is another person working with animal rights groups that isn't interested in working as much as access to the animals to get footage.

In most undercover videos it shows edited footage, often shot over weeks if not months. The actions are hidden from the farm owner or manager. The time to start watching is the first contact. Be wary of people, especially out of state people, showing up to work no matter what they say. Check identification and conduct a thorough screening. Consider experience, where the experience was gained and lapses in employment. Check references thoroughly, notice how the employee acts during the interview.

Draw up an agreement that all employees must sign regarding animal care, and what they should do to report any animal issues they witness. Include how long the employee has to report this - as quickly as possible isn't enough. Set 24 hours or 48 hours as a limit. Many of the cruelty documentation showed camera operators keeping silent for weeks and in some cases months to allow the "abuse" to continue, even taking part in it to appear 'legitimate.' If you're away at a show or convention it may be that someone else is in charge, but have all employees understand consequences for violating this is termination and, if warranted, legal action.

Clear communication before hiring should detail what is expected, farm policies and other information employees need to understand.

Use extra caution with applicants willing to work for little or no pay in order to learn or gain experience. Mismatched information is a red flag. Don't count on temporary work or limited work being a solution. Those with an ulterior motive will find it.

Caution in hiring for farm employment can't be stressed enough. It's a matter of protecting life and farm. Document everything. Ask questions, verify and re-verify information.

It's not just livestock operations that need to be vigilant. Illegal activities in many aspects of agriculture warrant attention to those on your farm team. Extreme activists have targeted many operations - if you sell feed, even up to restaurants can be considered 'evil' by these groups.

Protect your farm. Use smart hiring practices.