Kitchen worker vs kitchen cook

The differences between kitchen workers and kitchen cooks can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. Additionally, a kitchen cook has an average salary of $31,452, which is higher than the $28,720 average annual salary of a kitchen worker.

The top three skills for a kitchen worker include cleanliness, food handling and kitchen equipment. The most important skills for a kitchen cook are dishes, food handling, and cleanliness.

Kitchen worker vs kitchen cook overview

	Kitchen Worker	Kitchen Cook
Yearly salary	$28,720	$31,452
Hourly rate	$13.81	$15.12
Growth rate	2%	16%
Number of jobs	86,773	250,354
Job satisfaction	-	-
Most common degree	High School Diploma, 44%	High School Diploma, 44%
Average age	37	38
Years of experience	-	4

Kitchen worker vs kitchen cook salary

Kitchen workers and kitchen cooks have different pay scales, as shown below.

	Kitchen Worker	Kitchen Cook
Average salary	$28,720	$31,452
Salary range	Between $22,000 And $36,000	Between $25,000 And $38,000
Highest paying City	Santa Rosa, CA	Boston, MA
Highest paying state	Washington	Massachusetts
Best paying company	Kemps	Hilltop Ski Area
Best paying industry	Education	Retail

Differences between kitchen worker and kitchen cook education

There are a few differences between a kitchen worker and a kitchen cook in terms of educational background:

	Kitchen Worker	Kitchen Cook
Most common degree	High School Diploma, 44%	High School Diploma, 44%
Most common major	Business	Business
Most common college	-	-

Kitchen worker vs kitchen cook demographics

Here are the differences between kitchen workers' and kitchen cooks' demographics:

	Kitchen Worker	Kitchen Cook
Average age	37	38
Gender ratio	Male, 61.0% Female, 39.0%	Male, 65.8% Female, 34.2%
Race ratio	Black or African American, 10.9% Unknown, 4.8% Hispanic or Latino, 16.3% Asian, 7.0% White, 60.0% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.9%	Black or African American, 8.5% Unknown, 4.7% Hispanic or Latino, 17.7% Asian, 9.1% White, 58.8% American Indian and Alaska Native, 1.1%
LGBT Percentage	6%	6%

Differences between kitchen worker and kitchen cook duties and responsibilities

Kitchen worker example responsibilities.

Ensure cleanliness of surroundings and sterilization/sanitation of kitchen prep area and food trays.
Clean floors, dishes, stoves and pots.
Prepare for opening the next morning by cleaning and shutting down fryers and broiler.
Work well with other employees-Maintain cleanliness of areas assigned-perform a variety of services-follow property policies and procedures-oversee own responsibilities
Remove wash dishware, flatware, and glassware from dishwasher and stack them according to size and likeness for future use.
Sanitize heavy equipment including dishwasher, mixer and slicer.

Kitchen cook example responsibilities.

Operate mixers and manage ingredients to meet product quality and uniformity standards.
Inspect clean and utilize ovens, grills, fryers, mixers, etc.
Experience on grills, fryers, knife handling and slicers.
Experience with fryers, weigh machines, slicers and other similarities.
Used electric ovens and electric stoves.
Regulate temperature of ovens, broilers, grills, and roasters.

Kitchen worker vs kitchen cook skills

Common kitchen worker skills

Cleanliness, 17%
Food Handling, 13%
Kitchen Equipment, 12%
Food Service, 10%
Customer Service, 8%
Patients, 8%

Common kitchen cook skills

Dishes, 13%
Food Handling, 11%
Cleanliness, 8%
Math, 8%
Basic Math, 8%
Culinary, 7%

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Kitchen Worker vs Kitchen Cook

Updated January 8, 2025

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