Fresh Harvest, Inc. is hiring five seasonal citrus workers in Heber, California, under the H-2A visa program. Workers will harvest citrus, prune trees, operate forklifts and tractors, and perform farm maintenance. The job pays $16.90 per hour for 35 hours weekly, with employer-provided housing and October start.
Citrus Workers, CalVan Drivers & Crew Leader
Seasonal harvest roles with Fresh Harvest, Inc., based in Heber, California.
Citrus Worker jobs at Fresh Harvest in Heber, California are open for the 2026 harvest, paying $16.90 an hour on an H-2A visa, with five positions up for grabs and housing provided on-site.
About the Role
Fresh Harvest is hiring five workers under the H-2A program to cover a full season of citrus work in Heber, starting October 19, 2026. This isn’t a single narrow job, it’s a rotation across real farm tasks, so you’ll build a genuinely broad skill set rather than doing one repetitive motion all day.
The core work is hand-harvesting lemons, oranges, mandarins and grapefruits. You’ll climb a ladder, clip the fruit carefully with shears so the crop doesn’t bruise, and load it into a sack slung around your neck and shoulders. Once that sack hits 50 to 80 pounds, you carry it down and dump it into a bin, then start again. It’s steady, physical work that rewards a good rhythm.
Beyond picking, you might find yourself pruning trees with shears and a hand saw, driving a forklift to stack bins onto trailers within a 300-foot work zone, or running a tractor to move empty bins out to the crew and full ones back. There’s also general ranch upkeep, things like farm road maintenance and dust control, so no two days look exactly alike.
Shifts run 6:00 AM to 12:30 PM, 35 hours a week, which means you’re done well before the afternoon heat sets in.
What You’ll Be Doing
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Hand-harvest citrus using ladders, clippers and shoulder sacks - ✓
Prune trees using shears and a hand saw, then clear debris - ✓
Operate a forklift to stack and transfer bins onto trailers - ✓
Drive a tractor to place and collect bins across the field - ✓
Handle general farm road maintenance and dust control - ✓
Prepare freshly harvested crop for shipment
What You’ll Need
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At least 2 months of hands-on experience working with citrus trees or plants, with written proof - ✓
Normal color vision, since sorting fruit by color is part of the job - ✓
Comfort using shears, clippers and gas-powered hand saws safely - ✓
Willingness to follow a strict no drugs, alcohol or weapons policy on-site and in housing - ✓
High school education or below is fine, no advanced qualifications needed
Job Snapshot
Full-time, Seasonal
5
$16.90 USD/hour
35 hrs/week, 6:00 AM–12:30 PM
High school or below
Entry Level (0–2 years)
Heber, California (on-site)
H-2A
Pay & Conditions
Seasonal H-2A work like this is a real foot in the door for U.S. agricultural experience, and picking up forklift and tractor skills alongside harvesting only makes you a stronger candidate for future seasons or other farm roles.
Ready to Apply?
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