The Sugar Beet Harvest, 2019

We decided early on in 2019 to give the Sugar Beet Harvest a try. We knew very little about it, but had met some fellow Work-Campers, at Amazon CamperForce 2018, that previously worked it and said it was fairly easy and a quick way to earn a decent amount of money.

The harvest season begins October 1^st and lasts anywhere between two and four weeks. The harvest locations are in Montana, North Dakota and Minnesota. Since we knew our Camp Hosting gig in California was ending in late September, and we had never been to any of the harvest states, we felt this was a good opportunity to visit a new place and earn some extra cash. And now that we’ve worked it, it’s also a good opportunity for us to share our experience at the Sugar Beet Harvest! But first, a quick introduction to the star of the show…

The Sugar Beet

The sugar beet, larger and far less tasty than a regular beet, is grown to produce sugar. Once the sugar beet is refined to its finished product (sugar), it cannot be distinguished, molecularly, from cane sugar. Harvesting sugar beets is a science and requires the cooperation of Mother Nature. If it rains or snows too much, the fields become too wet for heavy farm equipment and trucks. If it’s too warm or cold, the sugar beets can’t be piled (stored). The weather not only determines the length of a harvest season, but also how successful it is.

Sugar Beet

While the exterior isn’t much to look at, you might be surprised by what’s on the inside! Not all sugar beets are white.

The Basics

The following information is what I consider the basics (or “staples”) of any work camping job. Obviously, things like pay will vary depending on how much experience you have and possibly the state you work in. Your RV accommodations will also vary depending on your assigned work area. A lot of the information is general, however, so it will apply regardless of your experience or location.

Available Positions

Several positions are available during the harvest and can include: Harvest Assistant, Harvest Safety Coordinator, Harvest Communication Coordinator, Foreman, Mechanic’s Helper, Piler Operator, Payloader Operator, Skidsteer Operator, Helper, Scale Personnel, Quality Lab Personnel and Driver. Several of these jobs require additional training/experience and can have a higher hourly wage. Many of the higher paying positions are filled by employees that have returned to the Sugar Beet Harvest year after year and have received on-the-job training. You should know – as a new hire you will most likely be filling the position of a “Helper” unless you’re bringing special skills to the table.

Shifts

There are only two shifts and they are each twelve hours long (0800 – 2000 or 2000 – 0800). You’ll be assigned to either days or nights and there’s no guarantee you’ll get the one you want. Assignments are made based on the needs of the business. There are no scheduled days off. As long as the weather permits, work continues. It is possible you could end up working fourteen days in a row. Although everyone hopes for a speedy and successful harvest, I would imagine the occasional bad-weather day provides a much-needed break for the workers. Because Rebecca and I couldn’t be guaranteed opposite shifts (so Richey wouldn’t be alone for 12 hours every day), I was flying solo on this one.

Pay

Employees receive regular pay for the first eight hours of their shift and time and a half for the next four. Saturday is paid at time and a half for all hours worked, and Sunday is paid at double time. This was my first season at the Sugar Beet Harvest, so I was hired as a “Helper” at $14.06 per hour. I was assigned to day shift (0800 – 2000 hrs) at the Sabin, MN piling station. I also received training as a Piler Operator and stood in for the primary operator during his breaks.

RV Accommodations

We were provided a free site at Lindenwood Park in Fargo, ND. This is located about five miles from the Sabin Piling Station I worked at in Minnesota. The park is beautiful. It has green grass, mature trees and walking paths for as far as the eye can see. It’s situated alongside the Red River and is a very popular place to walk, jog, bicycle, picnic, play baseball or just sit and stare at all the deer and squirrels that call it home. It gets even better farther into October, as the leaves on all the trees turn red, orange and yellow. And since a couple of Richey’s favorite pastimes include squirrel-watching and chasing/crunching leaves, he gives the location “two paws up” and a “woof, woof!”

One thing we didn’t care for – only water and electric hookups were available at the sites. We didn’t know sewer wasn’t included until after we committed ourselves to the job. Luckily, a honey wagon came by and dumped our tanks, frequently enough, so that we didn’t have to cut back on our water consumption too much. Overall, we were satisfied with the accommodations.

A Helper’s Duties and Beet Harvest Operations

The following information and photos should give you a decent understanding of a Helper’s duties, the physical requirements involved, and the overall process of the Sugar Beet Harvest. It will also give you an opportunity to see the environment you’d be working in should you pursue a job.

Duties / Physical Requirements

You’re not guaranteed a position that keeps you out of the weather or off your feet. If you’re hired on as a Helper, you should be prepared to be standing and exposed to the elements for the entire twelve-hour shift. Helpers guide the trucks around the piling station and keep the area around it clean. You’ll see and understand what a piling station is when you get to “The Operations / Process.” In addition to guiding trucks, Helpers are constantly shoveling their areas, bending over to remove stray beets, collecting samples of beets weighing 25lbs, and occasionally cleaning machinery. There’s no particular duty, as a Helper, that’s especially strenuous, but you need to consider any physical issues you might have that could be exacerbated by the length of the shifts and the repetition of movements.

You’ll receive three breaks per shift. Two fifteen-minute breaks and one thirty-minute lunch break. They’re short but paid for. You do not have to clock out. And since your place of employment is essentially a “dirt field,” there’s no cozy, comfortable place for you to take your break or eat your lunch. There is a scale house but it’s industrial and sparsely furnished, so most people sit in their vehicles. There are also no restroom facilities…. only porta-potties!

The Operations / Process 

Again, your “office” is located on a dirt field, aka “the yard.” You’ll be working with and around machinery and other people performing different duties, all of which are key components to the process and the safety of everyone involved. The following information and pictures will give you a good idea of the environment you’ll be working in and the type of work you’ll be performing.

Sugar beets are transported by truck from the farmers’ fields to one of the piling stations located in the yard. The trucks are weighed with their load of beets and then move into a piling station to dump them. The piler moves the beets up its conveyer and places them on top of all the other beats dumped there before them. The piles of beets can reach twenty feet high.

After the trucks have dumped their load (beets and dirt), they move forward so the dirt can be dumped back into their truck. Then, the trucks are weighed again. Why? Because the farmers are only paid for the weight of the beets, not the dirt. If Mother Nature is cooperating, this process is repeated hundreds of times a day.

This truck has already been weighed and is at the piling station.

A closer look at the same truck. The beets have not been dumped yet.

This truck is in the process of dumping its beets.

Same truck

This is a photo of the conveyer, beat pile, and a truck receiving the dirt that came in with its load of beets. 

Considerations

The Sugar Beet Harvest is a great way to make money, but there are a few things you should consider before submitting your application:

Time and Money

Ideally, the harvest will last approximately two weeks. But weather conditions that are too warm, cold or wet will shut it down and cause a delay in the completion time. This is the second year that the harvest has had extended shut downs of four or more days at a time. This is important to know when scheduling your travel plans or lining up another work-camping job that starts before the beginning of November.

Most people understand the season can last the entire month of October, but they usually expect to work and be paid for at least fourteen days of it. Because this gig is so weather-dependent, you should always plan on staying at least thirty days in order to “get in” your fourteen days of work. Signing up for less time or leaving before the harvest is complete, may leave you financially disappointed.

Additionally, it will be two weeks before you receive your first paycheck, so arriving with enough money for food, fuel, propane, etc., is essential. As previously explained, if you get hit with delays right from the start, your first paycheck will be less than expected. This is another reason to come financially prepared.

Climate

The weather can change several times during a shift, so layering your clothes will help you adjust along with the temperature. October in Fargo, ND or Sabin, MN isn’t a particularly warm month to begin with, so you’ll be keeping most of those layers on as opposed to taking them off. The closer you get to the end of October, the more frequently the temperatures will drop to forty degrees and below. Add the wind to this, and you’re in for a very long day (or night). You’ll be given additional breaks to get you out of the cold, but beware and dress accordingly! If you’re working on or around the piler, you and your clothes will get dirty and smell like sugar beets. One more thing… always, ALWAYS, bring along a rain jacket.

Our Thoughts on The Sugar Beet Harvest, 2019

We enjoyed it! I added another work camping job to the resume and learned several new skills including heavy machinery operations. We met a lot of people, made a few friends, and will even be working with some of them at Amazon in Tennessee. The park we stayed in is very nice and the surrounding neighborhoods  are too. We’re happy with the amount of money we made, and as it turns out, it’s even more than we estimated. In short, we had a good experience and would do it again!

Sugar Beet Harvest Information and Application for Employment

Information on the Sugar Beet Harvest, job description and employment application can all be accessed here. After I submitted my online application, I received an email and newsletter from a “Workamper Liaison” with Express Employment Professionals. This correspondence provided me with the location of my assignment, direct deposit request, pay rate information and “Jobinar” signup link. I was contacted monthly by the Workamper Liaison via phone and email. In July, I received an email with my start date and campsite location.

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