How to hire a food packer

How to hire a food packer, step by step

Here's a step-by-step food packer hiring guide:

• Step 1: Identify your hiring needs
• Step 2: Create an ideal candidate profile
• Step 3: Make a budget
• Step 4: Write a food packer job description
• Step 5: Post your job
• Step 6: Interview candidates
• Step 7: Send a job offer and onboard your new food packer
• Step 8: Go through the hiring process checklist

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1. Identify your hiring needs

   Before you start hiring a food packer, identify what type of worker you actually need. Certain positions might call for a full-time employee, while others can be done by a part-time worker or contractor.

   Determine employee vs contractor status

   Is the person you're thinking of hiring a US citizen or green card holder?

   Yes

   No

   A food packer's background is also an important factor in determining whether they'll be a good fit for the position. For example, food packers from different industries or fields will have radically different experiences and will bring different viewpoints to the role. You also need to consider the candidate's previous level of experience to make sure they'll be comfortable with the job's level of seniority.

   This list shows salaries for various types of food packers.

   Type of Food Packer	Description	Hourly rate
   Food Packer	Hand laborers and material movers manually move freight, stock, or other materials. Others feed or remove material to and from machines, clean vehicles, pick up unwanted household goods, and pack materials for moving.	$10-17
   Wrapper	A wrapper is defined as a program utilized in transmission control protocol to give a layer of security by stopping calls to computer services and identifying whether the service is permitted to execute. It provides the needed security against the hostname and host address imitation... Show more	$13-18
   Bagger	A bagger is responsible for packing the customers' items and assisting them in bringing it to their vehicles as needed. Typically, grocery stores and supermarkets employ baggers to assist in daily operations, especially during high-volume customer days... Show more	$12-20

   Show more

2. Create an ideal candidate profile

   Common skills:

   • Pallets
   • GMP
   • Customer Orders
   • Food Products
   • Food Packages
   • Assembly Line
   • Customer Service
   • Food Orders
   • Package Processing Equipment
   • Expiration Dates
   • Drive-Thru
   • Food Containers
   • Label Containers
   • Prep Food

   Check all skills

   Responsibilities:

   • Accept orders at drive-thru station.
   • Participate in packaging, assembling and labeling boxes, and placing them on pallets.
   • Forecast manpower requirements base on daily workload and company targets.
   • Attach burners on the top castings with clips.

   More food packer duties

3. Make a budget

   Including a salary range in the food packer job description is a good way to get more applicants. A food packer salary can be affected by several factors, such as the location of the job, the level of experience, education, certifications, and the employer's prestige.

   For example, the average salary for a food packer in Tennessee may be lower than in Washington, and an entry-level engineer typically earns less than a senior-level food packer. Additionally, a food packer with lots of experience in the field may command a higher salary as a result.

   Average food packer salary

   $13.58hourly

   $28,254 yearly

   ---

   Entry-level food packer salary

   $22,000 yearly salary

   Updated December 16, 2025

   Average food packer salary by state

   Rank	State	Avg. salary	Hourly rate
   1	New York	$34,166	$16
   2	New Jersey	$32,437	$16
   3	Iowa	$32,372	$16
   4	Wisconsin	$32,062	$15
   5	Illinois	$31,290	$15
   6	California	$30,876	$15
   7	Idaho	$30,448	$15
   8	Colorado	$30,371	$15
   9	Ohio	$29,695	$14
   10	Indiana	$28,963	$14
   11	Arizona	$26,737	$13
   12	New Mexico	$25,879	$12
   13	Georgia	$25,642	$12
   14	North Carolina	$24,913	$12
   15	Texas	$24,391	$12
   16	Tennessee	$23,638	$11
   17	Alabama	$23,411	$11
   18	Florida	$23,345	$11

   Average food packer salary by company

   Company

   Rank	Company	Average salary	Hourly rate	Job openings
   1	Ajinomoto	$32,740	$15.74
   2	United Natural Foods	$31,214	$15.01	1
   3	AVI Foodsystems	$30,161	$14.50	212
   4	IES	$29,866	$14.36
   5	Kelly Services	$29,834	$14.34	54
   6	G A Foods	$29,762	$14.31
   7	Great Work! Employment Services Co	$29,672	$14.27
   8	ManpowerGroup	$29,650	$14.25	36
   9	Caliper Family of Companies	$29,107	$13.99
   10	Winona Foods	$29,024	$13.95
   11	PeopleReady	$28,603	$13.75	35
   12	Aerotek	$28,508	$13.71	58
   13	Remedy Intelligent Staffing	$28,417	$13.66
   14	Staffmark	$28,241	$13.58
   15	Taher, Inc. Professional Food Service Management	$28,132	$13.53	132
   16	Alternative Staffing	$28,059	$13.49
   17	Good Eggs	$28,040	$13.48
   18	Adecco	$28,037	$13.48	62
   19	Randstad North America, Inc.	$27,807	$13.37	6
   20	Rpc	$27,794	$13.36	2

4. Writing a food packer job description

   A good food packer job description should include a few things:

   • Summary of the role
   • List of responsibilities
   • Required skills and experience

   Including a salary range and the first name of the hiring manager is also appreciated by candidates. Here's an example of a food packer job description:

   Food packer job description example

   Gain great experience in the food production industry! Doherty Staffing Solutions is partnering with a food production company in the Le Center, MN area to find candidates to work as Packers on 2nd shift, Monday-Friday 6:00am - 2:30pm. Compensation for these roles is $16.00 per hour. Interested? Read below!

   Company Summary
   We create seasonal and everyday sweets, snacks, mixes and food gifts for retail partners and specialty stores nationwide. And, because innovation and sustainability are as fundamental as quality and taste, most of our day-to-day operations culminate in a wind-powered factory.

   What a Packer Does:

   • Handle packages of different types of candy and food products
   • Package product into boxes or single packaged goods
   • Palletize the products
   • Box the products for shipment

   What You Need to be a Packer:

   • Ability to lift up to 20 pounds with or without reasonable accommodation
   • Ability to stand for entire shift with or without reasonable accommodation
   • Must be willing to work with marshmallows and gummy candy that is made with gelatin (gloves are provided)
   • Assembly experience

   What are you waiting for? Join this dynamic team today! Click APPLY NOW to complete our mobile-friendly, online application. For questions or further information on the Packer position in a food production environment, please email us at .

   As an equal opportunity employer, Doherty Staffing Solutions welcomes candidates of all backgrounds and experiences to apply. If this position sounds like the right opportunity for you, we encourage you to take the next step and connect with us. We look forward to meeting you!

   Referrals wanted; earn unlimited $100 rewards!

   Copy this example

   

5. Post your job

   To find food packers for your business, try out a few different recruiting strategies:

   • Consider internal talent. One of the most important talent pools for any company is its current employees.
   • Ask for referrals. Reach out to friends, family members, and your current work to ask if they know any food packers they would recommend.
   • Recruit at local colleges. Attend job fairs at local colleges to recruit entry-level food packers with the right educational background.
   • Social media platforms. LinkedIn, Facebook, and Twitter have more than 3.5 billion users, and they're a great place for company branding and reaching potential job candidates.

   Post your job online:

   • Post your food packer job on Zippia to find and recruit food packer candidates who meet your exact specifications.
   • Use field-specific websites.
   • Post a job on free websites.

6. Interview candidates

   Your first interview with food packer candidates should focus on their interest in the role and background experience. As the hiring process goes on, you can learn more about how they'd fit into the company culture in later rounds of interviews.

   It's also good to ask about candidates' unique skills and talents. You can move on to the technical interview if a candidate is good enough for the next step.

   The right interview questions can help you assess a candidate's hard skills, behavioral intelligence, and soft skills.

7. Send a job offer and onboard your new food packer

   Once you have selected a candidate for the food packer position, it is time to create an offer letter. In addition to salary, the offer letter should include details about benefits and perks that are available to the employee. Ensuring your offer is competitive is vital, as qualified candidates may be considering other job opportunities. The candidate may wish to negotiate the terms of the offer, and it is important to be open to discussion and reach a mutually beneficial agreement. After the offer has been accepted, it is a good idea to formalize the agreement with a contract.

   It's also good etiquette to follow up with applicants who don't get the job by sending them an email letting them know that the position has been filled.

   To prepare for the new food packer first day, you should share an onboarding schedule with them that covers their first period on the job. You should also quickly complete any necessary paperwork, such as employee action forms and onboarding documents like I-9, benefits enrollment, and federal and state tax forms. Finally, Human Resources must ensure a new employee file is created for internal record keeping.

8. Go through the hiring process checklist

   • Determine employee type (full-time, part-time, contractor, etc.)
   • Submit a job requisition form to the HR department
   • Define job responsibilities and requirements
   • Establish budget and timeline
   • Determine hiring decision makers for the role
   • Write job description
   • Post job on job boards, company website, etc.
   • Promote the job internally
   • Process applications through applicant tracking system
   • Review resumes and cover letters
   • Shortlist candidates for screening
   • Hold phone/virtual interview screening with first round of candidates
   • Conduct in-person interviews with top candidates from first round
   • Score candidates based on weighted criteria (e.g., experience, education, background, cultural fit, skill set, etc.)
   • Conduct background checks on top candidates
   • Check references of top candidates
   • Consult with HR and hiring decision makers on job offer specifics
   • Extend offer to top candidate(s)
   • Receive formal job offer acceptance and signed employment contract
   • Inform other candidates that the position has been filled
   • Set and communicate onboarding schedule to new hire(s)
   • Complete new hire paperwork (i9, benefits enrollment, tax forms, etc.)

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