Edward Vinson Ltd consists of 75 hectares of strawberry fields (of which 20 hectare are table tops), 3 hectares blueberry fields spread over 3 main sites located in Kent, which is in the South of England.

The type of work varies throughout the season from working in the pack house, planting and husbandry work to the main job picking strawberries.

Employees are either paid by the hour or by piece work, earnings are received on a weekly basis. At the end of each week workers receive a pay slip with a breakdown of their earnings and the tax and national insurance paid.

You will receive your first pay 2 weeks from your first working day, therefore, it is advisable to bring some money to cover your living expenses over the first couple of weeks. Your salary is then paid at the end of each week into your bank account.

We help each staff member upon arrival to set up a secure bank account which allows the money to be withdrawn free of charge at most cash points when required.

A working week commences on a Monday and finishes on a Sunday. Hours of work depends mostly on the season and the weather. Working hours can range from anything between 30-48 hours of work 4-7 days a week. During the peak season overtime is available. Staff are collected each day and taken to their work station. Normally staff will work 39+ hours per week.

Work is monitored at all times to ensure productivity by collecting data on exactly how much each worker performs in their respective job. Each worker is supervised to ensure that they are reaching the level required.

Hourly work

Our basic hourly rate in 2010 starts at £5.81/ per hour. Overtime rate is 150%.

Piece work

Piece work means that the worker is paid a fixed "piece rate" for each unit produced or action performed. The overtime rate is 150%.

Eg. £0.581 per unit of work would require 10 units of work to be completed to achieve £5.81 (the basic rate) per hour. The advantage of piece work is that the more pieces/units you produce the more you will earn, this will require hard work.

£0.581 x 10 = £5.81 + £0.693 (Holiday pay)

Locations

Sandbanks Farm
Sandbanks Lane, Graveney, Faversham, Kent ME13 9DH

Lady Dane Farm
Love Lane, Faversham, Kent ME13 8BJ

Wilford Court Farm
Blacketts Road, Tonge, Sittingbourne, Kent ME9 9AS