Food Preparation and Serving Related Occupations
BLS May 2025 wages High openings flow SOC 35-1012

First-Line Supervisors of Food Preparation and Serving Workers

About 183,900 projected annual openings shape how to read First-Line Supervisors of Food Preparation and Serving Workers against Cooks, Private Household, Fast Food and Counter Workers, Cooks, Restaurant, Cooks, Short Order.

Full salary details → About this data

Same-major-group titles next to First-Line Supervisors of Food Preparation and Serving Workers: Cooks, Private Household ($48K) , Fast Food and Counter Workers ($31K) , Cooks, Restaurant ($37K) , Cooks, Short Order ($36K) . Hash-ordered per card so residual SOC siblings do not share an identical peer sentence.

What First-Line Supervisors of Food Preparation and Serving Workers publish as work

O*NET task statements for SOC 35-1012 - occupation-level descriptions, not every employer's posting. Sibling cards diverge here because the task set is entity-keyed.

  1. 1. Compile and balance cash receipts at the end of the day or shift
  2. 2. Forecast staff, equipment, and supply requirements, based on a master menu
  3. 3. Assess nutritional needs of patients, plan special menus, supervise the assembly of regular and special diet trays, and oversee the deliv…
  4. 4. Resolve customer complaints regarding food service
  5. 5. Record production, operational, and personnel data on specified forms
  6. 6. Perform personnel actions, such as hiring and firing staff, providing employee orientation and training, and conducting supervisory activ…
  7. 7. Estimate ingredients and supplies required to prepare a recipe
  8. 8. Train workers in food preparation, and in service, sanitation, and safety procedures
  9. 9. Assign duties, responsibilities, and work stations to employees in accordance with work requirements
  10. 10. Present bills and accept payments
  11. 11. Purchase or requisition supplies and equipment needed to ensure quality and timely delivery of services
  12. 12. Perform food preparation and serving duties, such as carving meat, preparing flambe dishes, or serving wine and liquor

First-Line Supervisors of Food Preparation and Serving Workers: O*NET ranks Management of Personnel Resources first

Importance-ranked O*NET profile for SOC 35-1012 - lead skill Management of Personnel Resources at 4.0 ; lead knowledge Customer and Personal Service. Sibling cards diverge here even when peer titles overlap.

Top skills

  1. 1. Management of Personnel Resources 4.0
  2. 2. Speaking 3.9
  3. 3. Monitoring 3.9
  4. 4. Coordination 3.9
  5. 5. Active Listening 3.8
  6. 6. Instructing 3.8
  7. 7. Service Orientation 3.6
  8. 8. Reading Comprehension 3.3

Knowledge areas

  1. 1. Customer and Personal Service 4.1
  2. 2. Administration and Management 3.6
  3. 3. Food Production 3.5
  4. 4. English Language 3.5
  5. 5. Production and Processing 3.3
  6. 6. Sales and Marketing 3.3
Projected annual openings
183,900
growth + transfers + exits
National median $44,080/yr
$44K
National median
↑ +6%
Growth 2024-2034
1,223,240
Estimated US jobs
Cooks, Private Household
Highest-pay peer · $48K

Typical Entry and Preparation Assignments

Entry education High school diploma or equivalent
Related experience Less than 5 years

Top Paying States for First-Line Supervisors of Food Preparation and Serving Workers

1. Delaware $48,120
2. Washington $59,400
3. New Hampshire $49,710
4. District of Columbia $57,170
5. Vermont $49,820
6. New Jersey $48,420
7. Hawaii $48,880
8. Connecticut $52,940
9. Rhode Island $48,400
10. Colorado $50,550

Other Food Preparation and Serving Related Occupations titles

  1. 1. Cooks, Restaurant $37,390
  2. 2. Cooks, Short Order $35,880
  3. 3. Fast Food and Counter Workers $31,200
  4. 4. Dishwashers $34,810
  5. 5. Cooks, Private Household $47,940
  6. 6. Cooks, All Other $37,690

Roughly 183,900 projected annual openings (growth, transfers, exits) are the scale signal for First-Line Supervisors of Food Preparation and Serving Workers. Median pay is $44,080 in Food Preparation and Serving Related Occupations.

Employment Projections expect +6% change between 2024 and 2034 (faster than average vs baseline 3.1%). BLS assigns High school diploma or equivalent as typical education needed for entry and less than 5 years as the typical related-work-experience category. These are occupation-level assignments, not universal requirements. BLS does not publish a separate occupation-specific safety rate for this role; its broad SOC-group rate is excluded from this career card's grade.

Highest published state median in this ranking: Delaware at $48,120. The table records differences without proving causes. Highest-pay peer shown here: Cooks, Private Household at $47,940. Compare the same statistic in the relevant local wage area before treating the national median as a personal benchmark; OEWS excludes employer benefits.

First-Line Supervisors of Food Preparation and Serving Workers pay-rank #3 in Food Preparation and Serving Related Occupations

Among 17 detailed Food Preparation and Serving Related Occupations with a published OEWS median, First-Line Supervisors of Food Preparation and Serving Workers is pay-rank #3, the upper third of that major group. The order is ROW_NUMBER on national median (title as tiebreak), not a worker-level percentile.

Other upper-third titles · closest medians

Full Salary Details Compare this role

Data from U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics (OEWS), May 2025. Projections from BLS Employment Projections program, 2024-2034.

SOC 35-1012 · national median $44,080 · upper third of Food Preparation and Serving Related Occupations (#3/17). Open the full OEWS map or a named state before treating the card median as a local ask.

First-Line Supervisors of Food Preparation and Serving Workers salary map

State, metro, and percentile for SOC 35-1012

Delaware · top state for First-Line Supervisors of Food Preparation and Serving Workers

$48K published median

Washington · #2 state pay

$59K · behind Delaware

Cooks, Private Household

Highest-pay peer vs First-Line Supervisors of Food Preparation and Serving Workers · $48K

Fast Food and Counter Workers

Lower-pay peer beside First-Line Supervisors of Food Preparation and Serving Workers · $31K

Compare First-Line Supervisors of Food Preparation and Serving Workers

Head-to-head OEWS medians with another SOC
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Openings and labor-flow next reads

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Frequently Asked Questions

Which Food Preparation and Serving Related Occupations titles sit near First-Line Supervisors of Food Preparation and Serving Workers at the top of the pay table? ▼
First-Line Supervisors of Food Preparation and Serving Workers is pay-rank #3 of 17 detailed Food Preparation and Serving Related Occupations with an OEWS median, upper third. Nearest upper-third titles: Cooks, Private Household ($48K), Cooks, All Other ($38K), Cooks, Institution and Cafeteria ($37K), Cooks, Restaurant ($37K). Rank is ROW_NUMBER on national median.
What do first-line supervisors of food preparation and serving workers do day to day? ▼
O*NET lists published task statements for First-Line Supervisors of Food Preparation and Serving Workers. Leading ones include: Compile and balance cash receipts at the end of the day or shift; Forecast staff, equipment, and supply requirements, based on a master menu; Assess nutritional needs of patients, plan special menus, supervise the assembly of regular and special diet trays, and oversee the deliv…; Resolve customer complaints regarding food service. These are occupation-level task descriptions, not every employer's job description.
Which O*NET skills rank highest for first-line supervisors of food preparation and serving workers? ▼
For SOC 35-1012, O*NET importance scores lead with Management of Personnel Resources (4.0), Speaking (3.9), Monitoring (3.9), Coordination (3.9). Knowledge areas emphasize Customer and Personal Service, Administration and Management, Food Production. These are occupation-level profiles, not a hiring checklist for every employer.
What is the OEWS national median for First-Line Supervisors of Food Preparation and Serving Workers? ▼
May 2025 OEWS reports $44,080 as the national median for First-Line Supervisors of Food Preparation and Serving Workers. The published 10th-90th range is $29,940 to $65,570. Beside Cooks, Private Household ($47,940), this is the occupation-level national figure, not a local offer.
What employment change does BLS publish for First-Line Supervisors of Food Preparation and Serving Workers? ▼
The 2024-2034 projection for First-Line Supervisors of Food Preparation and Serving Workers is +6%. Projected annual openings: about 183,900. Relative to the current all-occupations baseline of 3.1%: faster than average.
Which three states show the highest OEWS medians for First-Line Supervisors of Food Preparation and Serving Workers? ▼
Delaware ($48,120), Washington ($59,400), New Hampshire ($49,710) lead this ranking. The table does not identify why those state estimates differ.

Source data and WageDex calculations are identified in context on this page. Wage and state figures use BLS OEWS May 2025; growth and education use BLS Employment Projections for 2024-2034; safety fields cite BLS CFOI/SOII; task statements cite O*NET where shown. See our editorial standards & corrections policy, the methodology behind these numbers, or report a data error.

Disclaimer: Wage and outlook figures on this page are provided for informational purposes only and do not constitute career, financial, or salary-negotiation advice. Actual pay varies by employer, experience, and local conditions; consult a career counselor or the hiring employer for guidance specific to your situation.

Source: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, OES Occupational wage estimates by area and industry · 2025

Federal sources on this First-Line Supervisors of Food Preparation and Serving Workers card
  • BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics (OEWS / OES) - national median and percentiles for SOC 35-1012. bls.gov/oes
  • O*NET OnLine - task and skill statements for First-Line Supervisors of Food Preparation and Serving Workers. onetcenter.org
  • BLS Employment Projections - 2024-2034 change and openings for this occupation. bls.gov/emp
  • U.S. Census Bureau ACS - demographic and labor-force context for state and metro geography. census.gov/programs-surveys/acs
  • IRS Statistics of Income (SOI) - payroll-tax aggregate context for wage comparisons. irs.gov/statistics