Wine Grape Grower
A wine grape grower manages vineyard operations including soil preparation, planting, pest and disease management, and harvest coordination to produce grapes for winemaking. They apply horticultural and viticultural knowledge to optimise grape quality and yield whilst managing labour, equipment, and environmental compliance across the vineyard property.
What this job is
A wine grape grower manages vineyard operations including soil preparation, planting, pest and disease management, and harvest coordination to produce grapes for winemaking. They apply horticultural and viticultural knowledge to optimise grape quality and yield whilst managing labour, equipment, and environmental compliance across the vineyard property.
Are employers advertising this role?
Fewer than 50 vacancies were advertised nationally in the latest month. The numbers are too small to draw a reliable trend.
Source: Jobs and Skills Australia, Internet Vacancy Index.
Day-to-day
Monitor soil health through testing and amendment to maintain optimal pH, nutrient levels, and drainage for grape vine cultivation. Plan and oversee planting schedules, rootstock selection, and varietal placement based on site conditions and market demand. Implement integrated pest management programmes to control phylloxera, powdery mildew, downy mildew, and other vineyard pests while minimising chemical use. Manage canopy management practices including pruning, shoot thinning, and leaf removal to optimise grape ripening and quality. Coordinate frost protection measures including wind machines, sprinkler systems, or smoke generators during critical growth periods. Schedule and oversee irrigation systems to deliver appropriate water volumes based on rainfall, vine growth stage, and soil moisture monitoring. Conduct vine health assessments and supervise treatment for diseases such as powdery mildew, botrytis, and trunk diseases. Determine optimal harvest timing through grape sampling, sugar content testing (Baume or Brix), and ripeness assessment.
Who does this now
About 1,200 people worked in this occupation across Australia at the 2021 Census.
What this role asks for
Bachelor degree or higher (ABS skill level 1)
Can employers fill these jobs
Employers hiring for this occupation were generally able to find suitable applicants in 2025. This measures how hard employers found it to fill jobs. It is not a count of jobs, and it does not say whether the occupation is growing.
Source: Jobs and Skills Australia, Training Occupation Pathways dataset, March 2026, version 1.0
Jobs and Skills Australia defines an occupation-ready qualification as:
Completing this qualification will provide the skills and knowledge to undertake this occupation. Further training and experience may be required to meet specific industry requirements including licensing and registration.
Jobs and Skills Australia, Training Occupation Pathways dataset, March 2026, version 1.0
Requirements
The standard entry pathway requires a bachelor degree or higher (ABS Skill Level 1). Specific qualification requirements vary by employer and state. Some employers may accept equivalent experience. Check yourcareer.gov.au for available courses and dewr.gov.au/skills-reform/free-tafe for subsidised training options.
The honest hard part
You're locked into seasonal cycles and weather-dependent outcomes you can't control. A frost, disease outbreak, or drought can wipe out your year's income. You'll also be heavily reliant on winery contracts and grape prices set by buyers, not you, which means your earnings fluctuate wildly. Most growers work 60+ hour weeks during growing season.
Where the jobs are
Realistically, work is entirely regional and site-based: there's no remote option and you need to live on or very near your vineyard. Opportunities exist as both owner-operators and as managers for larger wine companies.
Skills
- Attention to Detailcore
- Basic Arithmetic and Numerical Accuracycore
- Goal Setting and Planningcore
- Inventory Trackingcore
- Problem Solvingcore
- Record Managementcore
- Regulatory and Legislative Awarenesscore
- Research and Analysiscore
- Risk Identificationcore
- Supplier Communicationcore
- Time Management and Prioritisationcore
- Verbal Communicationcore
- Workload Self-Managementcore
- Adaptability and Flexibility
- Continuous Learning and Upskilling
- Digital Literacy
- Incident Reporting
- Invoicing and Billing Administration
- Negotiation
- Process Improvement Identification
- Stock Counting and Stocktake
- Written Communication
Which of these do you have?
Tick the ones you haveCommon questions
Sources
- ABS OSCA 2024, occupation definition and task statements
- ABS, 2021 Census of Population and Housing based on usual place of residence (Custom Report). OSCA Experimental Estimates.
Role data is drawn from official Australian Government sources, and each figure names where it comes from. Where a role is not in the ABS classification, the page shows no government figures for it. Data may not reflect every local variation.
Last updated: 30 October 2026
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