Food Preparation Workers

Summary

Food preparation workers cut fresh ingredients.

Quick Facts: Food Preparation Workers
2010 Median Pay	$19,100 per year $9.18 per hour
Entry-Level Education	Less than high school
Work Experience in a Related Occupation	None
On-the-job Training	Short-term on-the-job training
Number of Jobs, 2010	813,700
Job Outlook, 2010-20	10% (About as fast as average)
Employment Change, 2010-20	84,100

What Food Preparation Workers Do

Food preparation workers perform many routine tasks under the guidance of cooks or food supervisors. They prepare cold foods, slice meat, peel and cut vegetables, brew coffee or tea, and do many other tasks.

Work Environment

Food preparation workers are employed in restaurants, hotels, and other places where food is served, such as grocery stores, schools, hospitals, and cafeterias. They often work early mornings, late evenings, weekends, or holidays. The majority work part time.

How to Become a Food Preparation Worker

Short-term on-the-job training is the most common way to learn the skills necessary for food preparation workers. No formal education or previous work experience is required.

Pay

The median hourly wage of food preparation workers was $9.18 in May 2010.

Job Outlook

Employment of food preparation workers is projected to grow 10 percent from 2010 to 2020, about as fast as the average for all occupations. Job opportunities are expected to be good because of the need to replace the large number of workers who leave the occupation each year.

Similar Occupations

Compare the job duties, education, job growth, and pay of food preparation workers with similar occupations.

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Contacts for More Information

Learn more about food preparation workers by contacting these additional resources.

What Food Preparation Workers Do

Food preparation workers wear gloves for safe food handling.

Food preparation workers perform many routine tasks under the guidance of cooks or food supervisors. They prepare cold foods, slice meat, peel and cut vegetables, brew coffee or tea, and do many other tasks. 

Duties

Food preparation workers typically do the following:

• Clean and sanitize work areas, equipment, utensils, and dishes
• Weigh or measure ingredients, such as meat and cheeses
• Prepare fresh condiments, including lettuce, tomatoes, and onions
• Cut and grind meats, poultry, and seafood to prepare for cooking
• Mix ingredients for salads
• Store food in designated containers and storage areas to prevent spoilage
• Take and record temperatures of food and food storage areas
• Place food trays over food warmers for immediate service

Food preparation workers perform routine, repetitive tasks under the direction of cooks or food supervisors. To help cooks and other kitchen staff, they prepare ingredients for complex dishes by slicing and dicing vegetables and by making salads and cold items.

Although most help prepare food, some are also responsible for retrieving cooking utensils, pots, and pans, or for cleaning and storing other kitchen equipment. Other common duties include keeping salad bars and buffet tables stocked and clean.

Those who work at hotels or full-service restaurants often use soda machines, coffee makers, and espresso and cappuccino machines to prepare beverages for customers. In fast food restaurants, food preparation workers may take customer orders and process payments using cash registers.

In some kitchens, food preparation workers use a variety of commercial kitchen equipment, such as commercial dishwashers, blenders, slicers, grinders, and ovens.

Work Environment

Workers are employed in restaurants, cafeterias, and grocery stores.

Food preparation workers held about 813,700 jobs in 2010. 

The industries that employed the most food preparation workers in 2010 were as follows:

Food preparation workers are employed in restaurants, hotels, and other places where food is served, such as grocery stores, schools, hospitals, and cafeterias.

The work is often strenuous and tiring. Food preparation workers may stand or walk for hours at a time while cleaning or preparing ingredients. Some may be required to lift and carry heavy pots or unload heavy food supplies.

Depending on the type of establishment where they work and the type of food items they handle, they may have to wear protective gloves, hairnets, or aprons.

Work Schedules

About 53 percent of food preparation workers worked part time. Because many food service establishments are open for many hours a day, food preparation workers often must work early mornings, late evenings, weekends, or holidays. Those who work in school cafeterias have more regular hours and may work only during the school year, which is usually 9 or 10 months. Similarly, resorts usually offer seasonal employment only.

Injuries

Although injuries and illnesses are seldom serious in this occupation, hazards may include slips, falls, cuts, and burns from hot ovens. As a result, food preparation workers experience a rate of injuries and illnesses that is higher than the average for all occupations.

How to Become a Food Preparation Worker

Many food preparation workers assist cooks in a kitchen.

Short-term on-the-job training is the most common way to learn the skills necessary for food preparation workers. No formal education or previous work experience is required.  

Training

Most food preparation workers obtain their skills through short-term on-the-job training, which often lasts several weeks. Many start as kitchen helpers and progress into food preparation positions as they learn basic knife skills. Training generally starts with basic sanitation and workplace safety regulations and continues with instructions on how to handle, prepare, and cook food.

Advancement

Advancement opportunities for food preparation workers depend on their training, work experience, and ability to do more refined tasks. Many food preparation workers move into assistant or line cook positions as they learn basic cooking techniques.

Important Qualities

Listening skills. To help cooks, food preparation workers must be able to understand specific orders and follow directions.

Manual dexterity. Because food preparation workers chop vegetables, cut meat, and do other tasks with sharp knives, they must have good hand control.

Stamina. Food preparation workers must be able to spend most of their work time on their feet as they prepare foods, clean work areas, or lift heavy pots from the stove.

Teamwork. The fast-paced environment in kitchens can be hectic and stressful, especially during peak dining hours. Food preparation workers must be able to work well as part of a team to ensure that dishes are prepared properly, quickly, and efficiently.

Pay

The median hourly wage of food preparation workers was $9.18 in May 2010. The median wage is the wage at which half the workers in an occupation earned more than that amount and half earned less. The lowest 10 percent earned less than $7.65 per hour, and the top 10 percent earned more than $13.68 per hour.

Pay for food preparation workers varies by region and employer. Pay is usually highest for workers in elementary and secondary schools, and in major metropolitan and resort areas.

About 53 percent of food preparation workers worked part time. Because many food service establishments are open for many hours each day, food preparation workers often must work early mornings, late evenings, weekends, or holidays. Those who work in school cafeterias have more regular hours and may work only during the school year, which is usually 9 or 10 months. Similarly, resorts usually offer seasonal employment only.

Job Outlook

Employment of food preparation workers is expected to grow 10 percent from 2010 to 2020, about as fast as the average for all occupations.

People will continue to eat out and take carry-out meals home. In response, more restaurants will open and nontraditional food service operations, such as those found inside grocery stores, will serve more prepared food dishes. In addition, because preparing fresh and made-from-scratch meals is labor intensive, many chefs at upscale restaurants will require the help of food preparation workers.  

However, a growing number of fast-food restaurants and school and hospital cafeterias are customizing their food orders from wholesalers and distributors in an effort to lower costs. As more food service establishments use these cost-saving strategies, the need for food preparation workers to wash, portion, and season ingredients should be diminished.

Job Prospects

Job opportunities for food preparation workers are expected to be good because of the need to replace the large number of workers who leave the occupation each year. Because many of these jobs are part time and pay relatively low wages, turnover in the occupation is fairly high.

Those with related work experience should have the best job opportunities at large or upscale restaurants. However, individuals seeking full-time positions at these kinds of restaurants may face stiff competition, as the number of job applicants usually is greater than the number of job openings.

Contacts for More Information

For more information about job opportunities, contact local employers and local offices of the state employment service.

For information on becoming a food preparation worker, visit

National Restaurant Association