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Occupational Employment Statistics
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Occupational Employment and Wages, May 2019

35-2021 Food Preparation Workers

Perform a variety of food preparation duties other than cooking, such as preparing cold foods and shellfish, slicing meat, and brewing coffee or tea.

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)
863,740 1.3 % $12.41 $25,820 0.4 %

Percentile wage estimates for this occupation:

Percentile 10% 25% 50%
(Median) 		75% 90%
Hourly Wage $8.76 $10.00 $11.92 $14.26 $17.07
Annual Wage (2) $18,220 $20,800 $24,800 $29,650 $35,500

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)
Restaurants and Other Eating Places 439,240 4.06 $11.86 $24,660
Food and Beverage Stores (4451 and 4452 only) 189,980 6.53 $12.72 $26,470
Special Food Services 52,200 7.11 $13.06 $27,160
Elementary and Secondary Schools 25,600 0.30 $14.65 $30,470
Nursing Care Facilities (Skilled Nursing Facilities) 16,950 1.06 $11.74 $24,410

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 52,200 7.11 $13.06 $27,160
Food and Beverage Stores (4451 and 4452 only) 189,980 6.53 $12.72 $26,470
Restaurants and Other Eating Places 439,240 4.06 $11.86 $24,660
Vending Machine Operators 1,360 3.40 $11.95 $24,850
Rooming and Boarding Houses 320 2.73 $12.78 $26,570

Top paying industries for this occupation:

Industry Employment (1) Percent of industry employment Hourly mean wage Annual mean wage (2)
Colleges, Universities, and Professional Schools 2,970 0.10 $16.02 $33,320
Educational Support Services 50 0.03 $15.88 $33,020
Sugar and Confectionery Product Manufacturing 30 0.04 $15.70 $32,650
General Medical and Surgical Hospitals 13,250 0.24 $15.04 $31,280
Business, Professional, Labor, Political, and Similar Organizations 140 0.03 $14.98 $31,160

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)
California 109,410 6.29 1.07 $13.95 $29,010
Florida 65,620 7.46 1.27 $12.07 $25,100
New York 59,850 6.28 1.07 $14.64 $30,460
Texas 59,330 4.77 0.81 $11.86 $24,670
New Jersey 37,100 9.08 1.54 $12.28 $25,550




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)
Louisiana 36,620 19.06 3.24 $9.18 $19,080
Hawaii 9,290 14.62 2.49 $14.65 $30,470
Maine 8,360 13.68 2.33 $13.30 $27,660
Alaska 3,840 12.11 2.06 $14.88 $30,940
Tennessee 35,940 11.95 2.03 $10.09 $20,990




Top paying States for this occupation:

State Employment (1) Employment per thousand jobs Location quotient (9) Hourly mean wage Annual mean wage (2)
District of Columbia 3,780 5.22 0.89 $16.17 $33,620
Washington 15,820 4.77 0.81 $15.47 $32,180
Massachusetts 16,370 4.52 0.77 $15.11 $31,440
Alaska 3,840 12.11 2.06 $14.88 $30,940
Rhode Island 3,450 7.14 1.21 $14.72 $30,610





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-Newark-Jersey City, NY-NJ-PA 72,160 7.47 1.27 $14.13 $29,390
Los Angeles-Long Beach-Anaheim, CA 42,140 6.75 1.15 $13.37 $27,810
Chicago-Naperville-Elgin, IL-IN-WI 26,200 5.60 0.95 $13.09 $27,230
Atlanta-Sandy Springs-Roswell, GA 21,390 7.80 1.33 $11.03 $22,950
Miami-Fort Lauderdale-West Palm Beach, FL 20,950 7.93 1.35 $12.26 $25,500
Washington-Arlington-Alexandria, DC-VA-MD-WV 16,040 5.05 0.86 $13.43 $27,920
Houston-The Woodlands-Sugar Land, TX 15,870 5.20 0.88 $11.94 $24,830
San Francisco-Oakland-Hayward, CA 14,640 5.92 1.01 $15.30 $31,820
Nashville-Davidson--Murfreesboro--Franklin, TN 13,800 13.81 2.35 $10.70 $22,260
Philadelphia-Camden-Wilmington, PA-NJ-DE-MD 12,700 4.41 0.75 $11.96 $24,880