Graveyard Sanitation Lead

Location: Sacramento Valley Walnut Growers – 896 O’Banion Road, Yuba City, CA 
Department: Sanitation 
Reports To: Graveyard Supervisor 
Employment Type: Full-Time, Graveyard Shift (approx. 8:00 PM – 4:30 AM) 
Pay Range: $18.00 – $21.00 per hour, DOE with additional Graveyard differential pay

Position Summary: 

Sacramento Valley Walnut Growers is seeking a reliable and motivated Graveyard Sanitation Lead to help oversee the nightly cleaning of equipment, production areas, and facility grounds. This position acts as the point person for the sanitation crew, ensuring that nightly tasks are completed effectively, safely, and in accordance with food safety standards. 

Key Responsibilities: 

The Sanitation Lead is responsible for coordinating and executing nightly sanitation operations to ensure all equipment and production areas meet food safety and operational standards. This role provides hands-on leadership to the sanitation team, assigning tasks, ensuring proper coverage, and reinforcing safe work practices, including correct PPE usage.

The Sanitation Lead oversees the complete cleaning process, including disassembly, sanitation, and reassembly of processing equipment, ensuring all work is performed in compliance with SSOPs, GMPs, and HACCP requirements. This role verifies that all equipment and areas are cleaned to production-ready standards through post-clean inspections and assign corrective actions as needed prior to startup.

This position is responsible for monitoring and controlling sanitation chemicals, including titration and dilution, to ensure proper concentration and safe handling practices. The Sanitation Lead maintains accurate documentation, including cleaning logs, titration records, and task checklists, and supports pre-operational inspections by identifying and escalating any food safety or equipment concerns.

Additionally, the Sanitation Lead assists in training new team members and works with management to develop and update sanitation procedures. The role requires safe operation of equipment such as forklifts, scissor lifts, and boom lifts, and the ability to work at heights as needed to support full facility sanitation.

This role is accountable for ensuring all equipment is production-ready at startup, maintaining chemical and food safety compliance, and minimizing sanitation-related downtime.

 Physical Requirements: 

• Stand, walk, bend, and climb ladders/stairs for extended periods. 

• Lift up to 50 lbs regularly. 

• Work in cold, wet, and humid environments for long perio 

Qualifications: 

• High school diploma or GED preferred. 

• Minimum 1–2 years of sanitation experience in a food processing facility. 

• Prior experience as a lead or mentor in a production or sanitation team. 

• Knowledge of basic food safety practices (GMPs, SSOPs, HACCP). 

• Ability to read and follow written procedures and checklists. 

• Comfortable working in cold, wet, and physically demanding conditions. 

• Ability to lift 50 lbs and stand/walk for extended periods. 

• Bilingual (English/Spanish) a plus. 

Work Schedule: 

• Graveyard Shift: Monday through Friday, approximately 8:00 PM – 4:30 AM 

• Overtime and weekend work may be required during harvest and peak periods.