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Occupational Employment Statistics
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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