Job Overview
United Nursery is seeking a motivated, dependable, and detail-oriented Forklift Operator to support our warehouse, shipping and receiving, and production operations.
This position primarily supports United Nursery’s store-side business and is not directly involved in our eCommerce fulfillment operation. The employee will be responsible for managing inbound and outbound truck loading, safely moving and storing palletized materials, verifying shipment documentation, and delivering production supplies to the appropriate teams.
The successful candidate must be experienced operating a forklift in a multi-level warehouse racking environment and understand that accurate paperwork, inventory counts, safety, and organization are just as important as equipment operation.
This is an opportunity to join a fast-paced agricultural and distribution environment where safety, precision, communication, and teamwork are essential.
Key Responsibilities
- Safely operate forklifts, reach trucks, pallet jacks, and other authorized material-handling equipment.
- Load and unload inbound and outbound trucks accurately and efficiently.
- Store and retrieve pallets from multi-level warehouse racking.
- Verify all incoming and outgoing shipments against bills of lading, purchase orders, packing lists, transfer documents, and other shipping paperwork.
- Confirm pallet counts, quantities, item descriptions, and the condition of all materials being received or shipped.
- Identify and immediately report shortages, overages, damaged materials, or paperwork discrepancies.
- Document receiving and shipping activity accurately and ensure that quantities are properly reflected on all paperwork.
- Move fertilizer, pots, soil, packaging materials, and other nursery production supplies to the appropriate departments and production teams.
- Assist with general warehouse and production-support activities as operational needs require.
- Organize inventory and maintain accurate pallet and material locations.
- Assist with physical inventory counts and cycle counts as needed.
- Coordinate with supervisors, truck drivers, warehouse employees, and production teams to maintain an efficient workflow.
- Help maximize warehouse space and ensure materials are stored safely and correctly.
- Conduct routine pre-operation forklift inspections and promptly report equipment damage, maintenance concerns, or unsafe conditions.
- Maintain a clean, safe, and organized warehouse, loading area, and material-storage environment.
- Follow all company safety procedures and applicable OSHA requirements.
- Perform manual material-handling duties, including lifting, moving, and organizing supplies, when forklift operation is not required.
Required Qualifications
- Minimum of five years of professional forklift operating experience.
- Demonstrated experience storing and retrieving pallets in a multi-level warehouse racking environment.
- Experience loading and unloading commercial trucks and trailers.
- Strong knowledge of shipping and receiving procedures.
- Ability to accurately review bills of lading, packing lists, purchase orders, and related documentation.
- Strong attention to detail and commitment to inventory and shipment accuracy.
- Basic math skills for counting, measurements, quantities, and inventory calculations.
- Ability to recognize and document damaged, missing, or incorrectly shipped materials.
- Ability to safely lift and carry up to 50 pounds.
- Ability to work independently while also supporting a team environment.
- Dependable attendance, punctuality, and a strong work ethic.
- Ability to communicate clearly with supervisors, drivers, warehouse personnel, and production employees.
- Ability to work safely in a fast-paced warehouse and agricultural production environment.
- Forklift certification is preferred. The selected candidate may be required to complete company-specific safety training and certification.
Preferred Qualifications
- Previous shipping and receiving experience.
- Experience with reach trucks, pallet jacks, and similar warehouse equipment.
- Familiarity with warehouse management systems, barcode scanning, or inventory-control systems.
- Experience conducting physical inventory counts or cycle counts.
- Previous experience in a nursery, agricultural, landscaping, manufacturing, warehouse, or distribution environment.
- Bilingual English and Spanish communication skills.
- Basic equipment troubleshooting experience.
- Previous lead, warehouse coordination, or supervisory experience is helpful but not required.
Physical and Work Environment Requirements
- Ability to stand, walk, bend, climb, reach, and work for extended periods.
- Ability to repeatedly enter and exit forklift equipment throughout the workday.
- Ability to safely lift and move materials weighing up to 50 pounds.
- Ability to work indoors and outdoors in varying temperatures and weather conditions.
- Ability to work around plants, soil, fertilizer, moisture, dust, pallets, trucks, and agricultural materials.
- Ability to work occasional overtime or weekends during peak production and shipping periods.
What We Are Looking For
We are looking for a safety-conscious and experienced forklift operator who takes ownership of their work. The ideal candidate is organized, accurate, dependable, and capable of balancing forklift responsibilities with shipping documentation, inventory control, warehouse organization, and support for our production teams.
The employee must be comfortable working in a changing environment and assisting where needed to keep warehouse and production operations moving efficiently.
Join United Nursery and become an important part of the team responsible for ensuring our materials and products are received, stored, moved, and shipped safely and accurately.
United Nursery is an equal opportunity employer.
Pay: $18.00 - $21.00 per hour
Benefits:
- Employee discount
- Paid sick time
- Paid time off
People with a criminal record are encouraged to apply
Work Location: In person
