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Job library › Tasmania › Castle Forbes Bay (Huon Valley)

Farms and orchards・Cherry orchard

Reid Fruits Castle Forbes Bay

Reid Fruits cherry orchard at Castle Forbes Bay, Huon Valley (picking, from the end of December to the end of January)
Castle Forbes Bay (Huon Valley), Tasmania 7116

Cherries
Specified work✓ Eligible
PayPiece rate
TransportCar needed
AccommodationFind your own accommodation
Overall score7.0・Worth considering

Specified work eligibility

Use the postcode of the work location — not the company's head office, and not where you live.

✓

This location counts as specified work

Postcode 7116 is on the Department of Home Affairs "Regional Australia" list, and the work type is "Plant and animal cultivation".

Work address

22-32 Crowthers Road, Castle Forbes Bay TAS 7116

Postcode 7116・Huon Valley · Map location is approximate

Open in Google Maps

Work category

Plant and animal cultivation

Harvesting and packing fruit and vegetables, pruning trees and vines, livestock work, and primary meat processing such as slaughtering, cutting and packing. Secondary processing such as winemaking or processed meats does not count.

Within one employer, not every role counts as specified work (for example office admin or cleaning depends on Home Affairs' current temporary concession). Check the label on each role below, and keep every payslip.How specified work days are counted

Note: on 17 September 2026 the government announced second and third visas will move to a ballot. Completing specified work makes you eligible to enter, but it no longer guarantees a visa (start date not yet announced).Details

Jobs

1 casual / seasonal roles. Duties, requirements and required licences are listed separately.

Cherry pickerCherry picker

Casual Counts as specified work

Pick cherries into harvest boxes (lugs) of about 8 kg.

Pay method

Piece rate
Piece rate per lug (about 8 kg per lug), according to the employer's FAQ; on any day when piece-rate earnings fall below the minimum hourly rate for your age bracket, pay is topped up to the minimum hourly rate for that day. The price per lug is not published. (Fair Farms pay rates: the Horticulture Award casual Level 1 rate is $32.18/hour from 1 July 2026.)

Hours

Usually 6 am to 3 pm (or as decided by management), up to 7 days a week, depending on weather and fruit volume

Requirements

No special requirements / to be confirmed

Licences

Not required

The Reid Fruits FAQ says both picking and packing work can count towards second Working Holiday visa days. Source: https://reidfruits.com/frequently-asked-questions/

Work duties

Hand-picking cherries into boxes, paid by piece rate.

Work environment

Outdoor orchard; work is scheduled depending on weather and fruit volume.

Pay and superannuation

What the employer publishes and the legal minimum are shown separately.

Pay
Casual work paid per box (piece rate); on days when piece-rate earnings fall below the minimum hourly rate, the pay is topped up (per the employer's FAQ, the Horticulture Award 2020 applies). The rate per box is not published.
Applicable Award
Horticulture Award (MA000028)
Legal minimum hourly rate
Level 1 (new starter, up to 3 months): $32.18/hour
Level 2: $33.05/hour
Level 3: $33.55/hour
Casual (including the 25% casual loading), effective from 1 July 2026.Fair Work pay guide
Piece-rate guarantee
Piece rates have a floor: each day you must get at least the hourly rate × hours worked that day (casual Level 1 $32.18 an hour). The piece rate must let an average worker earn at least 15% more than the hourly rate (about $37.01). Before you start, the employer must give you a written piece-rate record signed by both of you.
How you are paid
To be confirmed
By law wages must be paid in money (cash, cheque or bank transfer) at least monthly; whichever method is used, the employer must give you a payslip within 1 working day of paying you.
How often you are paid
To be confirmed
Under the Award: Paid weekly or fortnightly
Superannuation
Yes. Your employer must also pay 12% of your wages into your super account — this applies to working holiday makers too, however much you earn. From 1 July 2026 it must be paid within 7 working days of each pay day. You can claim it back after leaving Australia (taxed at 65% for working holiday makers).
Tax
If the employer is registered as a Working Holiday employer, 15% is withheld on the first $45,000 of income. Being taxed 30% suggests the employer may not be registered; without a tax file number (TFN), 45% is withheld.

Statutory figures last checked: 2026-10-05. Your actual pay is what your employer's contract and payslips show.

Hours

Usual hours
Usually 6am to 3pm, up to 7 days a week
Shifts
Day shift
Weather-dependent?
Yes. Work may stop if it rains or is too hot, and there is no income that day.
Additional notes
According to the FAQ, hours depend on the weather and the amount of fruit, or are decided by management.

When they need workers

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The Castle Forbes Bay orchard harvest period is the end of December to the end of January.

The website says applications for picking in the 2026–2027 season are open (you can choose only one application, picking or packing). The harvest period at the Castle Forbes Bay orchard is the end of December to the end of January. Pickers are casual.

Hiring now

Applications for 2026–2027 season fruit pickers are open (casual; no closing date given)

Hiring status is checked automatically every day; last checked: 2026-10-06.See the job ad

How to apply

My application status Saved only in this device's browser

Online form on the official website

Apply via online formEmail: cfb_admin@reidfruits.com.au

Before you apply

Apply online for the 2026–2027 season picking; you can apply for either picking or packing, not both. For picking questions about the Castle Forbes Bay orchard, email cfb_admin@reidfruits.com.au.

Only apply through the channels listed on this page or published on the employer's official website. Legitimate employers never ask you to pay for a job; for look-alike job sites or people who message you privately, check the official website first.Avoiding illegal work

You will need

  • You can apply for either picking or packing, not both
  • Need to arrange your own transport (the employer says there is no public transport to the orchard)

Restrictions

  • Each person can apply for only one job (picking or packing)

Licences required

No licence is needed for general roles.

Official website
reidfruits.com
Careers page
Go to the careers page

Transport

Car needed. The Reid Fruits FAQ says you need your own transport to get to the orchard; there is no public transport.

Getting there without a car

The employer says there is no public transport to the orchard, so you need to arrange your own transport (you may be able to find a carpool).

Public transport

Not verified

Nearest airport

Hobart

Nearest town: Castle Forbes Bay (Huon Valley)

Accommodation and local amenities

Nearby amenities were not checked item by item; most of the accommodation Reid lists is around Huonville.

Accommodation

Find your own accommodation

The orchard has no accommodation. Nearby accommodation listed by Reid: Little Devil Backpackers (Huonville), Balfes Hill Huon Valley Backpackers, Huon Flash Packers, Huon Valley Caravan Park, Cygnet Caravan Park, Franklin Camping Ground.

Grocery shopping

To be confirmed

Medical

To be confirmed

Other

To be confirmed

Weather

Cool summers: at the nearby Grove station, the average maximum in January, the hottest month, is 23.5°C, and annual rainfall is 734.0 mm (taken from the Reid Huonville packing shed data already on the site; BOM station 094220).

Climate data to be added.

Next 7 days

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Overall score

Calculated from public information with a fixed formula — not a paid ranking. Ratings from past workers are shown separately in the reviews section.

7.0out of 10
Worth considering
Specified work eligibility
10.0Postcode 7116 is on the official "Regional Australia" list
Legal and transparent
8.0ABN active, Employed directly by the company
Pay transparency
6.0Mainly piece rate; income depends on speed and yield
Transport
3.0Car needed
Accommodation
4.0Find your own accommodation
Amenities
7.0Basic shopping in nearby small towns
Weather
6.0Climate data to be added

Pros

  • The official FAQ is very clear (pay method, hours, season, accommodation)
  • Piece rate, but with a rule topping up to the minimum hourly rate
  • The employer says fruit picking work can count towards the second Working Holiday visa

Watch out for

  • Piece rate
  • Short season
  • No public transport; you need your own transport
  • Outdoor work depends on the weather; whether there is work depends on the weather and the crop

Weights: specified work eligibility 25%, legal and transparent 20%, pay transparency 15%, transport 10%, accommodation 10%, amenities 10%, weather 10%.How it is calculated

Online reviews and past workers' experiences

Compiled from Indeed, Glassdoor, backpacker blogs and the news. Everything is a paraphrased summary — follow the links to read the originals.

Experiences from past workers

Reid Fruits job information from a Huon Valley hostel (2020) English

An advertorial from the Pilgrim Hill hostel (not a first-hand account by a worker): Reid Fruits has cherry packing sheds and picking work; the packing shed is very cold to keep the cherries fresh, so dress warmly; the season is from the end of November to mid-February.

Published: 2020-10-31・Source

The Indeed page for Reid Fruits (https://au.indeed.com/cmp/Reid-Fruits/reviews) was rate limited this time, so the rating was not read; no Fair Work Ombudsman or court records concerning Reid Fruits were found. No reviews specific to this orchard were found.

Review summary last checked: 2026-10-06. Online reviews are personal experiences and may be out of date or not reflect the whole picture; ratings change over time, so the original sites prevail.

Reviews from past workers

Worked here? Your experience can help the next person avoid mistakes.

Loading reviews…

Reviews on other sites: Indeed

Sources

Last checked: 2026-10-06. If you see outdated or incorrect information, let us know.

Not yet confirmed: The orchard coordinates are an approximate position in the Castle Forbes Bay area, not the exact location of the orchard.; The distances to nearby supermarkets and medical care have not been checked item by item; the amenities level is estimated from the fact that most of the accommodation Reid lists is in Huonville.; The website does not give a closing date for picking; the season dates follow the 2026 FAQ, and the actual dates may differ slightly each year.