Sanitation Associate (East Coast)

: About Thistle: Thistle was founded in 2013 with a mission to make it easy to get and stay healthy while improving the sustainability of our food system. We deliver delicious, ready-to-eat plant-forward meals, snacks, and cold press juices to our customers' doorsteps to empower our customers to improve personal and planetary health by eating more plants. To date, we've delivered over 20 million nourishing meals to customers across the West and East Coast, and we're just getting started! The San Francisco Business Times named us one of the Top 100 Fastest Growing Private Companies in the Bay Area in 2025, and Inc. awarded us Best in Business in 2022 among companies that “go above and beyond” in both food and sustainability sectors. About the Role: Reporting to the Quality Assurance Manager, Sanitation Associates are responsible for performing routine sanitation tasks throughout our facility. This is a unique opportunity to be part of the early team at Thistle's brand new East Coast facility, located in Burlington, NJ, responsible for launching and growing Thistle East operations to bring delicious, plant-forward, and planet-friendly meals to customers on the East Coast. The schedule is four days per week, ten hours per day, 6:00 am - 4:30 pm. This position is 100% onsite at our Burlington facility.

What you'll do

• Follow set SOPs, Process Controls, and facility policies
• Prioritize sanitation tasks based on production needs
• Responsible for cleaning building and equipment following a Master Sanitation Schedule (MSS)
• Perform Chemical concentration and verify results
• Know and take steps to correct sanitizer concentration above Food Contact concentrations
• Recognize soil types and use proper chemicals for removal
• Properly use all sanitation equipment safely
• Recognize and differentiate pH levels for adjusting and neutralizing solutions
• Must protect product from contaminations while completing assigned tasks
• Ensure cleaning is done correctly
• Inspect equipment before and after cleaning for any possible contamination
• Report any acts or conditions that may place our product at risk
• Responsible for learning safety rules
• Responsible for following safety rules

What you'll bring

• High school diploma or equivalent required
• 1+ years of manufacturing sanitation experience required
• 1 - 3 years experience in a food manufacturing environment preferred
• Mechanical aptitude with the capability to learn and follow instructions for disassembly and reassembly of food processing equipment.
• Ability to demonstrate excellent safe work habits at all times
• Experience with OSHA programs highly preferred
• Ability to complete and obtain various safety certifications within the first year
• Experience with Sanitation Chemicals as well as the ability to complete and obtain various sanitation certificates within the first year
• Clear and concise communicator, verbal and written
• Ability to work calmly and effectively under pressure
• Ability to work in a fast-paced, deadline-oriented environment
• Must be able to work as a member of a team
• Experience in a food manufacturing environment preferred
• Overtime, weekend and holiday work, as required
• The ability to manually move, lift, carry, pull, or push objects up to 50 pounds.

$23 - $27 an hour Our Team: We are mission-driven and share a growth mindset. We let our values guide the way we approach crafting our healthy products, solving problems, and working collaboratively together. As a Thistler, you'll help transform the health of people and the planet by living our core values every day. Be Human: We're always willing to learn and aim to empower the people around us. Think Bigger: We're here to do more today than we did yesterday, and we figure it out together. Build the Future: We tackle every day with the positive attitude of someone who can see the future and knows how bright it is. Make a Lot with a Little: We get creative and look for ways our resources can take us as far as possible. Lead with Purpose: We use our mission to guide our decisions and give our work meaning. Diversity, equity, and inclusion are essential values at Thistle. We know we do our best and most impactful work when we feel we are represented and belong. We're proud to actively recruit and hire talented people from a wide variety of backgrounds and experiences. We do not discriminate based on race, religion, color, national origin, gender, sexual orientation, age, marital status, veteran status, or disability status.