Agricultural equipment operators drive and control equipment to support agricultural activities such as tilling the soil; planting, cultivating, and harvesting crops; feeding and herding livestock, or removing animal waste. May perform tasks such as crop baling or hay bucking. May operate stationary equipment to perform post-harvest tasks such as husking, shelling, threshing, and ginning.
Load and unload crops or containers of materials, manually or using conveyors, handtrucks, forklifts, or transfer augers.
Mix specified materials or chemicals, and dump solutions, powders, or seeds into planter or sprayer machinery.
Spray fertilizer or pesticide solutions to control insects, fungus and weed growth, and diseases, using hand sprayers.
Observe and listen to machinery operation to detect equipment malfunctions.
Manipulate controls to set, activate, and adjust mechanisms on machinery.
Operate or tend equipment used in agricultural production, such as tractors, combines, and irrigation equipment.
Adjust, repair, and service farm machinery and notify supervisors when machinery malfunctions.
Attach farm implements such as plows, discs, sprayers, or harvesters to tractors, using bolts and hand tools.
Load hoppers, containers, or conveyors to feed machines with products, using forklifts, transfer augers, suction gates, shovels, or pitchforks.
Direct and monitor the activities of work crews engaged in planting, weeding, or harvesting activities.
Operate towed machines such as seed drills or manure spreaders to plant, fertilize, dust, and spray crops.
Weigh crop-filled containers, and record weights and other identifying information.
Walk beside or ride on planting machines while inserting plants in planter mechanisms at specified intervals.
Drive trucks to haul crops, supplies, tools, or farm workers.
Guide products on conveyors to regulate flow through machines, and to discard diseased or rotten products.
Position boxes or attach bags at discharge ends of machinery to catch products, removing and closing full containers.
Irrigate soil, using portable pipes or ditch systems, and maintain ditches or pipes and pumps.
Work Context
Work Context information for this career will be available soon.
Work Activities
Operating Vehicles, Mechanized Devices, or Equipment — Running, maneuvering, navigating, or driving vehicles or mechanized equipment, such as forklifts, passenger vehicles, aircraft, or water craft.
Inspecting Equipment, Structures, or Material — Inspecting equipment, structures, or materials to identify the cause of errors or other problems or defects.
Establishing and Maintaining Interpersonal Relationships — Developing constructive and cooperative working relationships with others, and maintaining them over time.
Controlling Machines and Processes — Using either control mechanisms or direct physical activity to operate machines or processes (not including computers or vehicles).
Handling and Moving Objects — Using hands and arms in handling, installing, positioning, and moving materials, and manipulating things.
Processing Information — Compiling, coding, categorizing, calculating, tabulating, auditing, or verifying information or data.
Performing General Physical Activities — Performing physical activities that require considerable use of your arms and legs and moving your whole body, such as climbing, lifting, balancing, walking, stooping, and handling of materials.
Communicating with Supervisors, Peers, or Subordinates — Providing information to supervisors, co-workers, and subordinates by telephone, in written form, e-mail, or in person.
Repairing and Maintaining Mechanical Equipment — Servicing, repairing, adjusting, and testing machines, devices, moving parts, and equipment that operate primarily on the basis of mechanical (not electronic) principles.
Identifying Objects, Actions, and Events — Identifying information by categorizing, estimating, recognizing differences or similarities, and detecting changes in circumstances or events.
Coordinating the Work and Activities of Others — Getting members of a group to work together to accomplish tasks.
Resolving Conflicts and Negotiating with Others — Handling complaints, settling disputes, and resolving grievances and conflicts, or otherwise negotiating with others.
Guiding, Directing, and Motivating Subordinates — Providing guidance and direction to subordinates, including setting performance standards and monitoring performance.
Developing and Building Teams — Encouraging and building mutual trust, respect, and cooperation among team members.
Updating and Using Relevant Knowledge — Keeping up-to-date technically and applying new knowledge to your job.
Monitor Processes, Materials, or Surroundings — Monitoring and reviewing information from materials, events, or the environment, to detect or assess problems.
Assisting and Caring for Others — Providing personal assistance, medical attention, emotional support, or other personal care to others such as coworkers, customers, or patients.
Getting Information — Observing, receiving, and otherwise obtaining information from all relevant sources.
Evaluating Information to Determine Compliance with Standards — Using relevant information and individual judgment to determine whether events or processes comply with laws, regulations, or standards.
Monitoring and Controlling Resources — Monitoring and controlling resources and overseeing the spending of money.
Thinking Creatively — Developing, designing, or creating new applications, ideas, relationships, systems, or products, including artistic contributions.
Training and Teaching Others — Identifying the educational needs of others, developing formal educational or training programs or classes, and teaching or instructing others.
Documenting/Recording Information — Entering, transcribing, recording, storing, or maintaining information in written or electronic/magnetic form.
Knowledge of the structure and content of the English language including the meaning and spelling of words, rules of composition, and grammar.
Operation and Control
Controlling operations of equipment or systems.
Operation Monitoring
Watching gauges, dials, or other indicators to make sure a machine is working properly.
Troubleshooting
Determining causes of operating errors and deciding what to do about it.
Active Listening
Giving full attention to what other people are saying, taking time to understand the points being made, asking questions as appropriate, and not interrupting at inappropriate times.
Equipment Maintenance
Performing routine maintenance on equipment and determining when and what kind of maintenance is needed.
Repairing
Repairing machines or systems using the needed tools.
Quality Control Analysis
Conducting tests and inspections of products, services, or processes to evaluate quality or performance.
The ability to coordinate two or more limbs (for example, two arms, two legs, or one leg and one arm) while sitting, standing, or lying down. It does not involve performing the activities while the whole body is in motion.
Control Precision
The ability to quickly and repeatedly adjust the controls of a machine or a vehicle to exact positions.
Near Vision
The ability to see details at close range (within a few feet of the observer).
Depth Perception
The ability to judge which of several objects is closer or farther away from you, or to judge the distance between you and an object.
Problem Sensitivity
The ability to tell when something is wrong or is likely to go wrong. It does not involve solving the problem, only recognizing there is a problem.
Far Vision
The ability to see details at a distance.
Response Orientation
The ability to choose quickly between two or more movements in response to two or more different signals (lights, sounds, pictures). It includes the speed with which the correct response is started with the hand, foot, or other body part.
Rate Control
The ability to time your movements or the movement of a piece of equipment in anticipation of changes in the speed and/or direction of a moving object or scene.
Reaction Time
The ability to quickly respond (with the hand, finger, or foot) to a signal (sound, light, picture) when it appears.
Oral Comprehension
The ability to listen to and understand information and ideas presented through spoken words and sentences.
Arm-Hand Steadiness
The ability to keep your hand and arm steady while moving your arm or while holding your arm and hand in one position.
Speech Clarity
The ability to speak clearly so others can understand you.
Manual Dexterity
The ability to quickly move your hand, your hand together with your arm, or your two hands to grasp, manipulate, or assemble objects.
Static Strength
The ability to exert maximum muscle force to lift, push, pull, or carry objects.
Trunk Strength
The ability to use your abdominal and lower back muscles to support part of the body repeatedly or continuously over time without 'giving out' or fatiguing.
Hearing Sensitivity
The ability to detect or tell the differences between sounds that vary in pitch and loudness.
Oral Expression
The ability to communicate information and ideas in speaking so others will understand.
Speech Recognition
The ability to identify and understand the speech of another person.
Deductive Reasoning
The ability to apply general rules to specific problems to produce answers that make sense.
Information Ordering
The ability to arrange things or actions in a certain order or pattern according to a specific rule or set of rules (e.g., patterns of numbers, letters, words, pictures, mathematical operations).
Extent Flexibility
The ability to bend, stretch, twist, or reach with your body, arms, and/or legs.
Finger Dexterity
The ability to make precisely coordinated movements of the fingers of one or both hands to grasp, manipulate, or assemble very small objects.
