Cornell Agricultural Workforce Development is offering two one-hour three-session Onboarding Webinar Series via Zoom that target farm employers and the educators and consultants who support them. Registration is free, but required. The same content will be offered at both series.

The first series will be held from 11:00 AM to 12:00 PM on December 8 and 22, and January 5.  Register for this series at tinyurl.com/AWOnboarding2021. The second series will be held from 11:00 AM to 12:00 PM on January 21, and February 4 and 18. Register for this series at tinyurl.com/AWOnboarding2022.

The first days and weeks on the job set the course for a new farm employee. Given the tight labor market, a successful onboarding program can be an essential tool to help reduce employee turnover, increase employee safety and productivity, and contribute to a farm's success.

"A successful onboarding process begins with a well-planned orientation, training and compliance, and leads to improvements that benefit both the manager and employees throughout the relationship," said Dr. Richard Stup, Cornell Agricultural Workforce Specialist.

The three-session Onboarding Zoom Series focuses on navigating employment requirements and improving human resource management practices, including enhancing training skills.

In the webinar series, the Cornell Agricultural Workforce team will share how to use onboarding materials, methods and templates. Established tools, including templates, training documentation, resources for employee records, and worksheets, are posted online at agworkforce.cals.cornell.edu. The series covers how to navigate employment requirements and improve human resource management practices, including enhancing training skills. Each webinar includes a 20-minute presentation, followed by 15 to 20 minute breakout sessions, and finishes with a 15-minute general Q&A session.

Assigned "homework" between each session, completed with the support of a CCE educator or consultant, ensures participants exit the series with a personalized onboarding template, onboarding materials, trainings, and methods.

To sign up for this or future Onboarding projects, contact Lucas Smith (ls678@cornell.edu), Ag Workforce Development, or your local Cornell Cooperative Extension educator. Visit agworkforce.cals.cornell.edu/onboarding-webinar-series for more information about the webinar series. Visit agworkforce.cals.cornell.edu/onboarding/for more information about onboarding.

Successful projects have a staff member who focuses on HR a few hours each week.

A planned onboarding with orientation and training ensures compliance with basic regulations and policies; provides clarification on work procedures and expectations, and offers safety training; establishes a workplace culture based on values, philosophies and traditions; and creates connected relationships at work that allow employees to engage and thrive.   

Benefits for Farms

• Ensures compliance with basic regulations and policies.
• Provides clarification on work procedures and expectations, which results in better employee performance and safety.
• Establishes a workplace culture based on values, philosophies and traditions.
• Creates connected relationships at work that allow employees to engage and thrive.
• Increases employee commitment and reduces turnover.
• Provides accessible and realistic support for farm onboarding, even when labor and time are in short supply. 

Farmer Recommended

• "Participate. It makes the process better for both employer and employee. It improves compliance, safety, performance, and morale."
• "It helps keep hiring organized and gives a sense of professionalism."
• "It organized and standardized our system of. We are now more in compliance than ever. This made me so much more confident as I go through the new hire process with employees. I got major bonus points on my FARM evaluation for the new employee training with my google classroom that I have set up!"