Canada Summer Jobs: School Grown Market Garden Assistant

School Grown Market Garden Assistant
**Main Tasks**:
School Grown is a schoolyard farming Social Enterprise that provides paid jobs and school credit to high school youth. We grow food at Burnhamthorpe CI Farm and Eastdale CI Farm. You will spend the spring, summer and fall seeding, weeding, harvesting, selling at the farmers market, and participating in weekly workshops about cooking, food justice, and anti-oppression. The School Grown Market Garden Assistant will work alongside the School Grown Coordinator, supporting the maintenance of our school-based market garden, orchard, shelterbelt, pollinator garden, and the community compost exchange programs.
This position is funded through the Canada Summer Jobs Program and requires that the applicant:

- Be between 15-30 years of age (inclusive)
- Be a Canadian Citizen, permanent resident, or person on whom refugee protection has been conferred under the Immigration and Refugee Protection Act
- Be legally entitled to work according to the relevant provincial legislation and regulations

**Duties include (but are not limited to)**:

- Support and maintain farm sites in collaboration with School Grown staff. This includes preparing garden beds, seeding, weeding, watering, and harvesting produce.
- Support with harvesting and distribution of produce grown at the school farms by compiling weekly orders and assisting with harvest records and data management.
- Support the maintenance of the pollinator garden, orchard and shelterbelts
- Support shifts at the on-site market which includes working along with other youth and collaborating in handling cash, merchandising products, and delivering friendly customer service
- Support the Community Compost Exchange program once a week.
- Work collaboratively with volunteers, student interns, co-op students, and other School Grown staff to complete daily tasks.
- Support recording and managing of relevant production and marketing data
- Farmer’s market activities including supplying, setting up and closing down, merchandising, customer service, mentoring and supporting volunteers,
- Participate in FoodShare staff and team meetings, all staff training and reporting requirements such as timesheets and handle other duties as assigned

**Required Qualifications, Knowledge and Experience**:

- At least 1 year of experience in vegetable gardening, growing food, or working with plants
- At least 1 year of experience running a compost system in small-scale or backyard gardening
- Demonstrated interest in community-led food projects and/or neighbourhood-based community organizing.
- Demonstrated commitment to principles of food justice and equity
- Demonstrated ability to work within a diverse community (people of different ages, abilities and cultural backgrounds)
- Demonstrated ability to work independently and as part of a team
- Effective communication and organizational skills
- At least one year of experience working with youth in a community setting is an asset
- Knowledge of food systems, including growing, cooking, and composting, is an asset
- Valid G Driver’s License is an asset

**Job Requirements**:

- Must meet Canada Summer Jobs Program requirements, outlined above
- Willingness to do physical labour outside in all weather conditions (rain or shine)
- Lifting and moving up to 40 pounds
- Some evening work may be required (but you’ll always know well in advance)

Please note that the successful applicant will be required to obtain a Vulnerable Sector Check. FoodShare will cover the cost of this requirement.
**Compensation & Benefits**:
**Salary**: $24.50/Hour

**Benefits**: Vacation in pay (8%), paid days for wellness days & sick days and personal days will be pro-rated based on days worked/contract dates, health benefits reimbursement (prorated), daily lunch stipend.
**Contract Type**: Fixed term, Fixed hours
**Duration**: 8 weeks (35 hours/week)
**Reports to**: Community Action Support Program Manager
**Location**: remote, may require some in-person meetings or events
**Available positions**: 2
**Anticipated Start**: June 2025 (Flexibility in start date is possible, but no later than June 26, 2025, and ending no later than August 30, 2025)
- Note that as part of FoodShare’s commitment to equity, all staff get equal pay for equal work. As a result salaries and benefits are non-negotiable.

**Selection Process**:
4. The hiring committee may conduct a second round of interviews, which may include a pre-interview assignment, which would be compensated.
**Please note**:
FoodShare is a food justice organization. This means that we are committed to working to identify and dismantle systemic forms of oppression that cause and perpetuate food security inequities.
Racialized people and others from equity-seeking groups are over-represented in food insecurity and poverty statistics but are significantly under-represented in community-based food organizations. We believe that those most affected by an issue must have access to p