Chefs & head cooks

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2019 Workforce

506k

Average Age

Estimated Job Growth

6.32%

10-year projection

Average Salary

$36,165

Average Male Salary

$38,465

Average Female Salary

$28,270

About

Chefs & head cooks are most often employed by the Restaurants & Food Services industry. The average yearly wage for Chefs & head cooks was $36,165 in 2016. The top 3 most similar occupations to Chefs & head cooks by wage are Cabinetmakers & bench carpenters, Industrial truck & tractor operators, and Cutting, punching, and press machine setters, operators, and tenders, metal and plastic.

Chefs & head cooks are part of the Food Preparation & Serving Related Occupations, along with Chefs & head cooks, Firstline supervisors of food preparation & serving workers, Cooks, Food preparation workers, Bartenders, and 7 more.

The top 3 locations that employ the most Chefs & head cooks are Sunset Park & Windsor Terrace PUMA, NY, Flushing, Murray Hill & Whitestone PUMA, NY, and Elmhurst & South Corona PUMA, NY. The top 3 locations with a relatively high concentration of Chefs & head cooks are Sunset Park & Windsor Terrace PUMA, NY, Lauderhill & Lauderdale Lakes Cities PUMA, FL, and Elmhurst & South Corona PUMA, NY.

Service Occupations Food Preparation & Serving Related Occupations

Information on the businesses and industries that employ Chefs & head cooks and on wages and locations for those in the field. Restaurants & Food Services is the industry that employs the most Chefs & head cooks, both by share and by number, though the highest paid industry for Chefs & head cooks, by average wage, is Water transportation. Chefs & head cooks are paid most in Huntington Beach City PUMA, CA but are relatively concentrated in Sunset Park & Windsor Terrace PUMA, NY.

Wages

Yearly Wage

$36,165

AVERAGE SALARY

± $1,025

In 2019, Chefs & head cooks earned an average of $36,165, $19,359 less than than the average national salary of $55,524.

Cutting, punching, and press machine setters, operators, and tenders, metal and plastic make somewhat more than Chefs & head cooks while Cabinetmakers & bench carpenters make somewhat less. This chart shows the various occupations closest to Chefs & head cooks as measured by average annual salary in the US.

Wage Distribution

0.34

WAGE GINI

In 2015, Chefs & head cooks had a wage GINI coefficient of 0.34, which is lower than than the national average of 0.478. In other words, wages are distributed more evenly for Chefs & head cooks (shown in red) than for the overall labor force (shown in gray).

Wage by Location

HIGHEST PAYING PUMAS

This map shows the Public Use Microdata Areas (PUMAs) in the United States shaded by average annual wage for Chefs & head cooks.

Spatial Concentration

PUMAs with a Relatively High Concentration of Chefs & head cooks

This map displays which Public Use Microdata Areas (PUMAs) in the United States have a relatively high population of Chefs & head cooks.

Industries

Most Common

The most common industries employing Chefs & head cooks, by number of employees, are Restaurants & Food Services, Traveler accommodation, Amusement & Recreation, Residential care facilities, except skilled nursing facilities, Supermarkets and Other Grocery (except Convenience) Stores, General medical and surgical hospitals, and specialty (except psychiatric and substance abuse) hospitals, Nursing Care Facilities, Elementary & secondary schools, Colleges, universities & professional schools, including junior colleges, Lessors of real estate, and offices of real estate agents and brokers, and Child day care services.

Highest Paying

The highest paying industries for Chefs & head cooks, by average wage, are Water transportation, Management, scientific & technical consulting services, and Seafood & other miscellaneous foods, n.e.c. .

Industries by Share

506k

2019 Workforce

± 17,438

10.3%

1 YEAR GROWTH

± 4.53%

The number of people employed as Chefs & head cooks has been growing at a rate of 10.3%, from 458,983 people in 2018 to 506,184 people in 2019.

This graphic shows the share of Chefs & head cooks employed by various industries. Restaurants & Food Services employs the largest share of Chefs & head cooks at 70.5%, followed by Traveler accommodation with 6.56% and Amusement & Recreation with 4.54%.

Diversity

Demographic information on Chefs & head cooks in the US. The average age of male Chefs & head cooks in the workforce is 40.1 and of female Chefs & head cooks is 39.6, and the most common race/ethnicity for Chefs & head cooks is White (Non-Hispanic).

Gender Composition

392k

MALE WORKFORCE

± 15,351

114k

FEMALE WORKFORCE

± 8,294

77.4% of Chefs & head cooks are Male, making them the more common gender in the occupation. This chart shows the gender breakdown of Chefs & head cooks.

Race & Ethnicity

Most Common Race or Ethnicity of Chefs & head cooks

White (Non-Hispanic)
Asian (Non-Hispanic)
White (Hispanic)

43.7% of Chefs & head cooks are White (Non-Hispanic), making that the most common race or ethnicity in the occupation. Representing 16.5% of Chefs & head cooks, Asian (Non-Hispanic) is the second most common race or ethnicity in this occupation. This chart shows the racial and ethnic breakdown of Chefs & head cooks.

Age by Gender

40.1

AVERAGE MALE AGE

± 0.478

39.6

AVERAGE FEMALE AGE

± 0.985

The median age of Chefs & head cooks is 40, and Male employees are generally 0.439 years older than than their Female counterparts.

Education

Data on higher education choices for Chefs & head cooks from The Department of Education and Census Bureau. The most common major for Chefs & head cooks is Business but a relatively high number of Chefs & head cooks hold a major in Personal & Culinary Services.

Majors

ACS PUMS data only shows the major for bachelor's degrees. However, we can filter the data based on highest degree obtained.

MOST COMMON MAJORS

MOST SPECIALIZED MAJORS

Skills

Data on the critical and distinctive skills necessary for Chefs & head cooks from the Bureau of Labor Statistics. Chefs & head cooks need many skills, but most especially Monitoring, Coordination, and Speaking. The revealed comparative advantage (RCA) shows that Chefs & head cooks need more than the average amount of Management of Financial Resources, Management of Material Resources, and Management of Personnel Resources.

Radar Distribution

Bar Chart

Projections

Projections on job growth for Chefs and Head Cooks from the Bureau of Labor Statistics. The 10-year national workforce is projected to grow 3.71%, but Chefs and Head Cooks are expected to see a growth of 6.32% over the same period. This occupation is expected to grow more than the national average.

Job Growth

For growth projections, the closest comparible industry reported by the Bureau of Labor Statistics is Chefs and Head Cooks.

6.32%

Estimated Job Growth

10-year Projection

3.71%

National Growth

10-year Projection

This line chart shows the projected 10-year growth in the number of jobs for Chefs and Head Cooks. This profession is expected to grow more than than 3.71%, the average rate of national job growth.