Part Time Beekeeper in San Francisco Bay Area, CA
Job Description
About Sager Family Farm
Sager Family Farm encourages children to develop a love for learning and curiosity about the natural world. We use reverse field trips (bringing the animals into elementary school classrooms) to create equitable access to formative, hands-on experiences. Big Buzz About Bees is our flagship program, where we bring 5,000 honey bees into classrooms to enrich STEAM curriculum.
About the Role
Sager Family Farm is in need of an Beekeeper / Apiary Manager to oversee the health and well-being of the bees that support our educational lessons. This is a Seasonalor position, which we anticipate will vary between 25 hours per month (spring/summer) and 5 hours per month (winter).
Apiary Manager Responsibilities
Responsibilities of the Beekeeper / Apiary Manager position include:
Performing regular beehive inspections of approximately 12 – 15 hives located throughout the San Francisco Bay Area (Mountain View, Los Altos, Redwood City, and Woodside). Frequency will vary from 1-4 week intervals depending on weather and beehive conditions.
Take notes on the status of each hive, including observations of: brood (eggs, larvae, pupae, brood pattern), availability of resources (nectar, bee bread), temperament of bees (calm, defensive, robbing), honey production (number of nectar and honey frames), size of brood nest (number of frames bees are clustering over), health of bees (varroa mite counts, visible signs of disease in brood/adult bees, pest issues).
Meet regularly (weekly to bi-weekly in spring/summer, monthly in winter) over zoom/phone with Sager Family Farm staff to review status of hives.
Expand and reduce hive size as needed.
Bring concerns about hives to Sager Family Farms attention. This may include, but is not limited to: unusual brood pattern or appearance, suspected disease, queenlessness, signs of swarming or supersedure, pest issues, concerns raised by hive hosts/property managers.
Apply mite/general health treatments to hives as needed.
Remove honey from hives and arrange pickup by Sager Family Farm. Each frame of honey should be marked indicating the hive of origin. You will NOT be responsible for honey harvesting or bottling.
Communicate needs of any equipment or supplies to Sager Family Farm.
Provide a report of hours, inspection dates and locations to Sager Family Farm for invoicing.
Follow appropriate safety and biosecurity measures (eg. wearing appropriate protective clothing, sanitize tools between inspections of different hives, take appropriate fire prevention measures).
Seasonal Details
Anticipated start date is ASAP.
You will be an independent Seasonalor. The hourly rate of pay will be $30 and $45 per hour depending on experience. The expected number of hours per month will vary but will be approximately 25 hours per month (spring/summer) to 5 hours per month (winter).
Drive time and mileage will not be reimbursed.
Qualifications:
Strongly prefer candidates who have 5+ years of experience managing 3 or more hives.
Strongly prefer candidates with experience managing multiple apiaries.
Strong understanding of honey bee biology and honey bee colony development.
Awareness of occupational hazards (i.e. sting risk) and ways to mitigate these risks.
Excellent organizational and time management skills.
Strong written and verbal communication abilities.
Requirements:
Must have reliable access to a safe vehicle with capacity to move hives & equipment between sites.
Valid driver’s license, auto insurance and a clean driving record.
Must be at least 18 years old, legally authorized to work in the United States.
Must be able to stand, walk, reach above shoulders, and climb or balance. May occasionally lift and/or move up to 50 lbs.
The duties listed above are intended only as illustrations of the various types of work that may be performed and are not all inclusive. The omission of specific statements of duties does not exclude them from the position if the work is similar, related or a logical assignment to the position.
Sager Family Farm provides equal employment opportunities to all employees and applicants without regard to race, color, religion, national origin, ancestry, gender, sex, gender identity or expression, age, medical condition, sexual orientation, marital status, citizenship, pregnancy, physical or mental disability, genetic information, veteran status, military status, caregiver status or any other characteristic protected by federal, state, or local laws.
Job Type: Seasonal
Pay: $25.00 – $45.00 per hour
Expected hours: 1 10 per week
Benefits:
Dental insurance
Flexible schedule
Health insurance
Paid time off
Schedule:
Choose your own hours
On call
Ability to commute/relocate:
San Francisco Bay Area, CA: Reliably commute or planning to relocate before starting work (Required)
Experience:
Beekeeping: 3 years (Preferred)
Work Location: In person
How to Apply
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