Occupational Employment and Wages, 2002

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
State profile for this occupation
Metropolitan area 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)
836,540 1.4 % $8.27 $17,200 0.4 %

Percentile wage estimates for this occupation:

Percentile 10% 25% 50%
(Median)
75% 90%
Hourly Wage $5.96 $6.72 $7.85 $9.43 $11.37
Annual Wage (2) $12,390 $13,980 $16,330 $19,610 $23,650

Industry profile for this occupation: Top

Industries with the highest levels of employment in this occupation:

Industry Employment Hourly mean wage Annual mean wage Employment rank Wage rank
Full-service restaurants 176,860 $7.95 $16,530 1 77
Limited-service eating places 154,760 $7.29 $15,150 2 100
Grocery stores 109,860 $9.02 $18,750 3 25
Elementary and secondary schools 77,870 $8.91 $18,530 4 29
Nursing care facilities 56,410 $8.28 $17,230 5 58

Top paying industries for this occupation:

Industry Employment Hourly mean wage Annual mean wage Employment rank Wage rank
Legal services 110 $13.20 $27,450 80 1
Other financial investment activities 40 $12.16 $25,290 95 2
Other miscellaneous store retailers (6) $11.71 $24,360 (6) 3
Scientific research and development services 40 $11.49 $23,910 93 4
Other professional and technical services (6) $11.39 $23,690 (6) 5

State profile for this occupation: Top

States with the highest concentration of workers in this occupation:

State Employment Hourly mean wage Annual mean wage Percent of State employment Wage rank within State
Louisiana 20,590 $6.79 $14,120 1.123% 629
Mississippi 11,920 $6.64 $13,810 1.097% 602
Maine 6,300 $8.32 $17,300 1.061% 530
South Dakota 3,810 $7.42 $15,420 1.047% 481
Hawaii 5,330 $10.50 $21,850 0.968% 431

Top paying States for this occupation:

State Employment Hourly mean wage Annual mean wage Percent of State employment Wage rank within State
Hawaii 5,330 $10.50 $21,850 0.968% 431
Alaska 2,280 $10.32 $21,470 0.796% 408
District of Columbia 2,600 $9.96 $20,720 0.437% 391
Connecticut 12,940 $9.92 $20,630 0.788% 552
Massachusetts 21,670 $9.54 $19,840 0.677% 623

Metropolitan area profile for this occupation: Top

Metropolitan areas with the highest concentration of workers in this occupation:

MSA Employment Hourly mean wage Annual mean wage Percent of MSA employment
Salem, OR PMSA 2,310 $8.92 $18,550 1.706%
Newburgh, NY-PA PMSA 2,140 $7.88 $16,400 1.568%
Flagstaff, AZ-UT MSA 860 $7.01 $14,590 1.563%
Alexandria, LA MSA 840 $6.66 $13,860 1.540%
Champaign-Urbana, IL MSA 1,450 $6.95 $14,460 1.457%

Top paying Metropolitan areas for this occupation:

MSA Employment Hourly mean wage Annual mean wage Percent of MSA employment
Stamford-Norwalk, CT PMSA 900 $11.15 $23,200 0.450%
Danbury, CT PMSA 840 $11.14 $23,160 0.949%
Honolulu, HI MSA 3,800 $10.51 $21,860 0.945%
Fargo-Moorhead, ND-MN MSA 740 $10.27 $21,370 0.754%
New Haven-Meriden, CT PMSA 2,040 $10.19 $21,200 0.809%

About 2002 National, State, and Metropolitan Area Occupational Employment and Wage Estimates

To see profiles of other occupations, select from the major groups below:

These estimates are calculated with data collected from employers in all industry sectors in metropolitan and non-metropolitan areas in every State and the District of Columbia. The top five employment and wage figures are provided above. The complete list is available in the downloadable Excel files(XLS).

Percentile wage estimates show the percentage of workers in an occupation that earn less than a given wage and the percentage that earn more. 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) Data for detailed occupations does not sum to the totals because the totals include data for 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 mean 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.

(6) Estimates not released.

All Food Preparation and Serving Related Occupations

2002 State Occupational Employment and Wage Estimates

2002 Metropolitan Area Occupational Employment and Wage Estimates

2002 National Industry-Specific Occupational Employment and Wage Estimates

List of Occupations in SOC Code Number Order

List of Occupations in Alphabetical Order

Download 2002 Occupational Employment and Wage Estimates in Zipped Excel files

Technical notes

 

Last Modified Date: November 26, 2003