Marketplace Assistant

Organizational Overview

Black Yield Institute (BYI) is a Pan-African power institution addressing food apartheid. We work collaboratively with black people and entities, along with other institutions, in pursuit of Black Land and Food Sovereignty. We are organizing to build independent power by establishing an action network and serving as an incubator for ideas and projects. We are on a mission to create a self-determined and selfreliant community of Black institutions and people of African Descent in Baltimore’s poor and Black food environments. Black Yield Institute is a fiscally sponsored institution.

For more information, please visit BYI’s website at www.blackyieldinstitute.org.

Position Description

The Marketplace Assistant is a contractual, part-time position at Black Yield Institute that holds responsibility for ensuring great customer experiences at Black Yield Marketplace sites. The Marketplace Assistant will help with the stocking, handling goods, processing goods, and the delivery and reception of food.. The Marketplace Assistant reports to and works closely with the Marketplace Organizer, Inventory.

Responsibilities

• Engage with customers that include problem solving, resource sharing, and other customer relations activities
• Set up equipment, supplies, and food items for customer engagement
• Receive and safely store food and other items
• Provide high quality customer service and communication
• Carry, lift, and load/unload packages of up to 50 lbs with assistance
• Assist with community engagement and sharing of organizational information during operations
• Provide feedback that assists in improve of work conditions during regular meetings
• Support with Mutual Aid Market offerings
• Assist with food deliveries and pickups
• Attend and participate in associated training and other continued education opportunities
• Participate in other political education and operations meetings, as needed
• Help with other related organizational functions outside, as needed

Qualifications

Required

• Minimum of two years doing community-based work where engaging with people was the primary context of the experience
• Minimum of two years of customer service experience
• Great skills at engaging people with a personable demeanor
• A track record of prompt attendance and high quality performance in all work assignments
• Evidence of prompt communication when an absence and/or lateness is likely to occur
• Strong knowledge of community engagement and capacity building
• Proficient in Google Workspace project management and data analysis tools
• Excellent oral and written communication skills
• Ability to work within a team
• Ability to work independently and a tendency to be self-motivated
• Ability to work under pressure and meet deadlines
• Strong work ethic and integrity, with a willingness to learn
• Ability to pick up items weighing up to 50 pounds pounds
• Ability to arrive to commitments on time (reliable means of transportation)

Preferred

• Commitment to Black Liberation, social justice, and racial equity
• Understanding of and a deep commitment to building power and moving toward land and food sovereignty
• Knowledgeable of community resources and how to access resources
• Familiarity with point of sale systems

Term & Compensation

The Marketplace Assistants will be required to work up to 20 hours per week; work requires evening and weekend commitments. The position is one year with the possibility of renewal after 12 months; this position is funded through grant funds and renewal is contingent upon successful fundraising. This is a contractual position that does not come with fringe benefits. Compensation is $25/hour.