Occupational Employment and Wages, May 2017

35-2012 Cooks, Institution and Cafeteria

Prepare and cook large quantities of food for institutions, such as schools, hospitals, or cafeterias.


National estimates for this occupation
Industry profile for this occupation
Geographic profile for this occupation

National estimates for this occupation: Top

Employment estimate and mean wage estimates for this occupation:

Employment (1) Employment
RSE (3)
Mean hourly
wage
Mean annual
wage (2)
Wage RSE (3)
404,120 0.7 % $13.20 $27,450 0.3 %

Percentile wage estimates for this occupation:

Percentile 10% 25% 50%
(Median)
75% 90%
Hourly Wage $8.85 $10.19 $12.43 $15.29 $18.80
Annual Wage (2) $18,400 $21,190 $25,860 $31,810 $39,110


Industry profile for this occupation: Top

Industries with the highest published employment and wages for this occupation are provided. For a list of all industries with employment in this occupation, see the Create Customized Tables function.

Industries with the highest levels of employment in this occupation:

Industry Employment (1) Percent of industry employment Hourly mean wage Annual mean wage (2)
Elementary and Secondary Schools 125,210 1.48 $12.37 $25,720
Special Food Services 53,530 7.71 $13.72 $28,550
Nursing Care Facilities (Skilled Nursing Facilities) 45,700 2.82 $12.73 $26,490
Continuing Care Retirement Communities and Assisted Living Facilities for the Elderly 38,930 4.26 $13.21 $27,480
General Medical and Surgical Hospitals 31,230 0.57 $14.87 $30,920

Industries with the highest concentration of employment in this occupation:

Industry Employment (1) Percent of industry employment Hourly mean wage Annual mean wage (2)
Special Food Services 53,530 7.71 $13.72 $28,550
Rooming and Boarding Houses 720 6.14 $14.72 $30,620
Continuing Care Retirement Communities and Assisted Living Facilities for the Elderly 38,930 4.26 $13.21 $27,480
Nursing Care Facilities (Skilled Nursing Facilities) 45,700 2.82 $12.73 $26,490
Child Day Care Services 18,890 2.14 $11.48 $23,890

Top paying industries for this occupation:

Industry Employment (1) Percent of industry employment Hourly mean wage Annual mean wage (2)
Federal Executive Branch (OES Designation) 2,620 0.13 $20.61 $42,860
Deep Sea, Coastal, and Great Lakes Water Transportation 620 1.72 $19.24 $40,020
State Government, excluding schools and hospitals (OES Designation) 4,910 0.22 $17.27 $35,920
Electronic Shopping and Mail-Order Houses 40 0.01 $16.39 $34,090
Fruit and Vegetable Preserving and Specialty Food Manufacturing 100 0.06 $16.00 $33,280


Geographic profile for this occupation: Top

States and areas with the highest published employment, location quotients, and wages for this occupation are provided. For a list of all areas with employment in this occupation, see the Create Customized Tables function.





States with the highest employment level in this occupation:

State Employment (1) Employment per thousand jobs Location quotient (9) Hourly mean wage Annual mean wage (2)
Texas 35,220 2.96 1.04 $11.93 $24,800
California 29,650 1.78 0.63 $16.61 $34,540
Pennsylvania 19,650 3.40 1.20 $13.55 $28,180
Ohio 17,430 3.24 1.14 $12.60 $26,210
Illinois 17,230 2.91 1.03 $13.15 $27,350




States with the highest concentration of jobs and location quotients in this occupation:

State Employment (1) Employment per thousand jobs Location quotient (9) Hourly mean wage Annual mean wage (2)
West Virginia 5,330 7.75 2.73 $11.31 $23,520
Mississippi 7,230 6.46 2.28 $9.78 $20,330
South Dakota 2,580 6.15 2.17 $12.22 $25,420
Oklahoma 9,550 6.07 2.14 $10.07 $20,940
Arkansas 7,200 6.00 2.12 $10.23 $21,280




Top paying States for this occupation:

State Employment (1) Employment per thousand jobs Location quotient (9) Hourly mean wage Annual mean wage (2)
Alaska 1,120 3.51 1.24 $18.39 $38,250
Hawaii 1,480 2.33 0.82 $17.97 $37,370
Connecticut 3,600 2.18 0.77 $17.57 $36,540
District of Columbia 1,770 2.50 0.88 $17.44 $36,280
Massachusetts 7,510 2.13 0.75 $17.40 $36,180



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Metropolitan areas with the highest employment level in this occupation:

Metropolitan area Employment (1) Employment per thousand jobs Location quotient (9) Hourly mean wage Annual mean wage (2)
New York-Jersey City-White Plains, NY-NJ Metropolitan Division 9,650 1.44 0.51 $16.85 $35,050
Chicago-Naperville-Arlington Heights, IL Metropolitan Division 7,680 2.10 0.74 $14.00 $29,110
Los Angeles-Long Beach-Glendale, CA Metropolitan Division 7,300 1.65 0.58 $15.71 $32,670
Houston-The Woodlands-Sugar Land, TX 6,300 2.15 0.76 $12.33 $25,650
Atlanta-Sandy Springs-Roswell, GA 6,100 2.33 0.82 $12.25 $25,490
Dallas-Plano-Irving, TX Metropolitan Division 5,390 2.16 0.76 $12.98 $27,000
St. Louis, MO-IL 5,280 3.89 1.37 $12.92 $26,870
Washington-Arlington-Alexandria, DC-VA-MD-WV Metropolitan Division 4,570 1.81 0.64 $16.29 $33,880
Minneapolis-St. Paul-Bloomington, MN-WI 4,380 2.27 0.80 $15.87 $33,010
Seattle-Bellevue-Everett, WA Metropolitan Division 4,200 2.55 0.90 $16.55 $34,430


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Metropolitan areas with the highest concentration of jobs and location quotients in this occupation:

Metropolitan area Employment (1) Employment per thousand jobs Location quotient (9) Hourly mean wage Annual mean wage (2)
Enid, OK 260 10.13 3.57 $9.05 $18,810
Pueblo, CO 580 9.64 3.40 $11.85 $24,640
Sumter, SC 320 8.71 3.07 $8.77 $18,250
Dover, DE 530 8.37 2.95 $15.17 $31,560
Hot Springs, AR 290 8.07 2.85 $9.74 $20,270
Pine Bluff, AR 240 7.72 2.72 $9.54 $19,840
Decatur, IL 370 7.64 2.70 $11.34 $23,590
Florence-Muscle Shoals, AL 410 7.63 2.69 $9.56 $19,890
Beckley, WV 320 7.56 2.67 $11.10 $23,090
Wheeling, WV-OH 460 7.53 2.66 $11.21 $23,320


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Top paying metropolitan areas for this occupation:

Metropolitan area Employment (1) Employment per thousand jobs Location quotient (9) Hourly mean wage Annual mean wage (2)
Oakland-Hayward-Berkeley, CA Metropolitan Division 1,780 1.56 0.55 $20.86 $43,390
Kahului-Wailuku-Lahaina, HI 110 1.55 0.55 $20.28 $42,190
El Centro, CA 100 1.64 0.58 $19.75 $41,080
Vallejo-Fairfield, CA 400 2.93 1.03 $19.39 $40,330
Barnstable Town, MA 220 2.12 0.75 $19.33 $40,200
New Haven, CT 570 2.10 0.74 $19.08 $39,680
San Francisco-Redwood City-South San Francisco, CA Metropolitan Division 2,280 2.04 0.72 $18.49 $38,460
Boston-Cambridge-Newton, MA NECTA Division 3,690 2.01 0.71 $18.35 $38,170
Salinas, CA 390 2.27 0.80 $18.01 $37,460
Hartford-West Hartford-East Hartford, CT 1,360 2.34 0.83 $17.88 $37,190

Nonmetropolitan areas with the highest employment in this occupation:

Nonmetropolitan area Employment (1) Employment per thousand jobs Location quotient (9) Hourly mean wage Annual mean wage (2)
Northeast Mississippi nonmetropolitan area 1,660 7.16 2.53 $9.64 $20,050
North Northeastern Ohio non-metropolitan area (non-contiguous) 1,530 4.62 1.63 $11.08 $23,040
Southeast Oklahoma nonmetropolitan area 1,500 8.86 3.12 $9.27 $19,280
South Central Kentucky nonmetropolitan area 1,340 8.02 2.83 $11.07 $23,030
South Central Wisconsin nonmetropolitan area 1,340 6.45 2.28 $12.83 $26,690

Nonmetropolitan areas with the highest concentration of jobs and location quotients in this occupation:

Nonmetropolitan area Employment (1) Employment per thousand jobs Location quotient (9) Hourly mean wage Annual mean wage (2)
Central Montana nonmetropolitan area 440 13.41 4.73 $11.58 $24,080
East Kentucky nonmetropolitan area 1,260 12.53 4.42 $10.44 $21,710
Southern West Virginia nonmetropolitan area 910 12.24 4.32 $11.06 $23,010
West South Dakota nonmetropolitan area 650 10.63 3.75 $12.55 $26,090
East Arkansas nonmetropolitan area 700 10.39 3.66 $9.50 $19,770

Top paying nonmetropolitan areas for this occupation:

Nonmetropolitan area Employment (1) Employment per thousand jobs Location quotient (9) Hourly mean wage Annual mean wage (2)
Hawaii / Kauai nonmetropolitan area 190 1.88 0.66 $20.04 $41,670
Balance of Alaska nonmetropolitan area 430 6.11 2.15 $19.69 $40,960
Northern Mountains Region of California nonmetropolitan area 260 4.06 1.43 $18.08 $37,610
Nantucket Island and Martha's Vineyard nonmetropolitan area 40 2.32 0.82 $17.94 $37,320
Mother Lode Region of California nonmetropolitan area 150 3.50 1.23 $17.69 $36,800


About May 2017 National, State, Metropolitan, and Nonmetropolitan Area Occupational Employment and Wage Estimates

These estimates are calculated with data collected from employers in all industry sectors, all metropolitan and nonmetropolitan areas, and all states and the District of Columbia. The top employment and wage figures are provided above. The complete list is available in the downloadable XLS files.

The percentile wage estimate is the value of a wage below which a certain percent of workers fall. The median wage is the 50th percentile wage estimate--50 percent of workers earn less than the median and 50 percent of workers earn more than the median. More about percentile wages.


(1) Estimates for detailed occupations do not sum to the totals because the totals include occupations not shown separately. Estimates do not include self-employed workers.

(2) Annual wages have been calculated by multiplying the hourly mean wage by a "year-round, full-time" hours figure of 2,080 hours; for those occupations where there is not an hourly wage published, the annual wage has been directly calculated from the reported survey data.

(3) The relative standard error (RSE) is a measure of the reliability of a survey statistic. The smaller the relative standard error, the more precise the estimate.

(9) The location quotient is the ratio of the area concentration of occupational employment to the national average concentration. A location quotient greater than one indicates the occupation has a higher share of employment than average, and a location quotient less than one indicates the occupation is less prevalent in the area than average.


Other OES estimates and related information:

May 2017 National Occupational Employment and Wage Estimates

May 2017 State Occupational Employment and Wage Estimates

May 2017 Metropolitan and Nonmetropolitan Area Occupational Employment and Wage Estimates

May 2017 National Industry-Specific Occupational Employment and Wage Estimates

May 2017 Occupation Profiles

Technical Notes

 

Last Modified Date: March 30, 2018