Celebrating Farming by Highlighting a Leader in Human Resources: Laura Penera

During National Fruit and Vegetable Month, the Grower Shipper Association is celebrating the farmers and teams who work hard every day to bring healthy and wholesome foods to consumers. Therefore, we will be doing a series of new blogs featuring interviews with farmers and farm employees, including their biggest challenges, why they love farming and their favorite part of the day. Today we feature Laura Penera of Braga Fresh Family Farms.

Braga Fresh Family Farms is a third-generation farming company which grows both conventional and organic produce, including green beans, cauliflower, broccoli, spring mix, kale, spinach, green onions, leeks, chard and more. Laura has been with Braga Fresh for over 20 years, and their Human Resources Manager since 2003. She is a leader in her profession, serves as a member of the Agricultural Personnel Management Association’s Board of Directors, and is a regular speaker at human resources workshops and conferences. She lives in Soledad with her husband and two sons.

What is your background and how did you get your start in human resources?

I’ve been working for the Braga Family for the past 20 years. I started working part-time in the payroll office. After three years, I was asked to handle Human Resources. At the time, I didn’t have a full understanding of what HR entailed, let alone on a farm. Rod (Braga) told me that I would get all the training and help I needed, and 20 years later here I am. I learned my job in the trenches and now deal with all aspects of human resources from overseeing payroll to worker safety compliance and ensuring proper employee training.

What are your days like?

I could be out on the ranch meeting with an employee or overseeing a training session alongside a lettuce field. The next day I could be at a meeting negotiating health insurance plans for our employees. I’m also in charge of handling social responsibility audits and tracking our efforts, which many retailers require. My job also requires that I regularly attend conferences and industry workshops to help keep up with new laws and ever-changing regulations.

What’s the best part of your job?

I work for a fantastic family that values their employees and always wants to do the right thing for them. I feel most proud when I get a call from an employee and I’m able to help them.

Why is training for you and your staff important?

Laws and regulations are always changing. Decisions made by lawmakers, regulators etc. can have a significant impact on us and we have to keep up to be sure that we stay in compliance to continue doing business. There is a need for constant training. I feel fortunate to have a leader that completely supports my continued education to be able to perform my job duties with confidence. We’ve been successful in human resources because of this training and networking.

You aren’t involved in directly growing the crops, but how does your job contribute to providing high quality and safe food for consumers?

It goes back to employee training. Whenever we bring on a new employee, food safety training comes first. We tell them always to remember that if the food is not good enough for you and your family, don’t send it to others.

So you take pride when you see the harvest too?

Oh yes. And I love going to stores in other counties or states and seeing our products. I always send pictures back to the office when I do. It makes me proud to know I work for this company, and we can grow this nutritious food we send to consumers all over the world. It’s inspiring and motivating that I’m a part of it.

How do you measure success in your job?

I witness hard work daily. People want to be here, and they want to be a part of our continued growth. We want to be that “go-to” company. Our expectations are clear – we want a safe, happy and harmonious work environment for all.