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Food and Tobacco Roasting, Baking, and Drying Machine Operators and Tenders: Career Profile
Operate or tend food or tobacco roasting, baking, or drying equipment, including hearth ovens, kiln driers, roasters, char kilns, and vacuum drying equipment.
What Do Food and Tobacco Roasting, Baking, and Drying Machine Operators and Tenders Do?
The core tasks performed by food and tobacco roasting, baking, and drying machine operators and tenders cover:
- Observe, feel, taste, or otherwise examine products during and after processing to ensure conformance to standards.
- Set temperature and time controls, light ovens, burners, driers, or roasters, and start equipment, such as conveyors, cylinders, blowers, driers, or pumps.
- Observe temperature, humidity, pressure gauges, and product samples and adjust controls, such as thermostats and valves, to maintain prescribed operating conditions for specific stages.
- Observe flow of materials and listen for machine malfunctions, such as jamming or spillage, and notify supervisors if corrective actions fail.
- Record production data, such as weight and amount of product processed, type of product, and time and temperature of processing.
- Weigh or measure products, using scale hoppers or scale conveyors.
- Operate or tend equipment that roasts, bakes, dries, or cures food items such as cocoa and coffee beans, grains, nuts, and bakery products.
- Signal coworkers to synchronize flow of materials.
Key Skills and Knowledge
Successful food and tobacco roasting, baking, and drying machine operators and tenders rely on a mix of skills and domain knowledge.
Most Important Skills
These are the skills most central to this role, rated on an importance scale of 0 to 5:
Top Knowledge Areas
Other Food and Tobacco Roasting, Baking, and Drying Machine Operators and Tenders Job Titles
This career also goes by job titles like:
- Automatic Oven Operator
- Bakery Production Associate
- Bakery Production Worker
- Bakery Worker
- Baking Assistant
- Bean Roaster
- Belt Conveyor Drier
- Bone Char Kiln Operator
Employment and Demand
There are roughly 109,772 food and tobacco roasting, baking, and drying machine operators and tenders working in the United States today. Demand is forecast to grow by +5.5% over the projection horizon.
Salary for Food and Tobacco Roasting, Baking, and Drying Machine Operators and Tenders
| Statistic | Value |
|---|---|
| Annual median | $37,587 |
| Hourly median | $18.07 |
| 10th percentile | $20,746 |
| 25th percentile | $29,167 |
| 75th percentile | $46,007 |
| 90th percentile | $54,427 |
Pay can vary substantially based on experience, location, and industry.
Food and Tobacco Roasting, Baking, and Drying Machine Operators and Tenders Salary by State
| State | Annual median salary |
|---|---|
| Colorado | $59,990 |
| Maryland | $53,940 |
| North Dakota | $52,080 |
| North Carolina | $51,810 |
| Wisconsin | $49,160 |
| Maine | $48,590 |
| Minnesota | $47,850 |
| Montana | $47,320 |
| Massachusetts | $47,160 |
| Nevada | $47,030 |
| Iowa | $45,570 |
| Indiana | $45,550 |
| Missouri | $45,150 |
| California | $45,140 |
| Tennessee | $45,070 |
| Oregon | $44,300 |
| Washington | $44,150 |
| Michigan | $43,770 |
| Virginia | $43,690 |
| South Carolina | $43,650 |
| South Dakota | $43,630 |
| Rhode Island | $43,240 |
| Kentucky | $42,970 |
| Ohio | $42,810 |
| Kansas | $42,450 |
| Connecticut | $42,420 |
| Hawaii | $42,070 |
| Nebraska | $41,430 |
| Illinois | $41,310 |
| Utah | $40,500 |
| Idaho | $40,040 |
| Vermont | $39,670 |
| Arkansas | $39,430 |
| Arizona | $39,400 |
| New Jersey | $37,330 |
| Texas | $37,070 |
| Louisiana | $36,720 |
| Florida | $36,500 |
| Oklahoma | $36,490 |
| New York | $36,190 |
| Georgia | $35,510 |
| New Mexico | $35,000 |
| Pennsylvania | $33,530 |
Where Food and Tobacco Roasting, Baking, and Drying Machine Operators and Tenders Earn the Most
Earnings for food and tobacco roasting, baking, and drying machine operators and tenders differ across the country. The following regions pay the most:
| Region | Median annual wage | Share of U.S. jobs | Location quotient |
|---|---|---|---|
| Rocky Mountains | $49,274 | 5.4% | 1.73 |
| New England | $45,377 | 3.2% | 1.36 |
| Plains States | $45,257 | 18.5% | 2.73 |
| Great Lakes | $45,003 | 16.0% | 1.37 |
| Far Western US | $44,932 | 15.5% | 0.90 |
| Southeast | $43,393 | 21.1% | 1.13 |
| Middle Atlantic | $38,207 | 7.5% | 1.08 |
| Southwest | $36,960 | 12.9% | 1.14 |
Where the Jobs Cluster
| Metro area | State | Median annual wage | Employment |
|---|---|---|---|
| Denver-Aurora-Centennial, CO | CO | $64,670 | |
| Appleton, WI | WI | $56,230 | 90 |
| Sacramento-Roseville-Folsom, CA | CA | $54,540 | 100 |
| Modesto, CA | CA | $52,420 | 90 |
| Portland-South Portland, ME | ME | $51,760 | 50 |
| Columbia, SC | SC | $51,340 | 160 |
| Washington-Arlington-Alexandria, DC-VA-MD-WV | DC | $51,250 | 130 |
| Las Vegas-Henderson-North Las Vegas, NV | NV | $50,970 | 130 |
Which Industries Hire Food and Tobacco Roasting, Baking, and Drying Machine Operators and Tenders
The bulk of food and tobacco roasting, baking, and drying machine operators and tenders work in these industries:
| Industry | Employment | Median annual wage |
|---|---|---|
| Manufacturing | 14,880 | $43,110 |
| Wholesale Trade | 1,970 | $39,890 |
| Accommodation and Food Services | 950 | $45,760 |
| Agriculture, Forestry, Fishing and Hunting | 730 | $39,260 |
| Retail Trade | 700 | $36,170 |
| Administrative and Support and Waste Management and Remediation Services | 220 | $33,280 |
Food and Tobacco Roasting, Baking, and Drying Machine Operators and Tenders work in the following industries:
Software Food and Tobacco Roasting, Baking, and Drying Machine Operators and Tenders Use
- Spreadsheet software: Microsoft Excel (hot technology)
What the Workplace Is Like
Daily working conditions for food and tobacco roasting, baking, and drying machine operators and tenders reflects the following characteristics:
- Wear Common Protective or Safety Equipment such as Safety Shoes, Glasses, Gloves, Hearing Protection, Hard Hats, or Life Jackets
- Spend Time Standing
- Face-to-Face Discussions with Individuals and Within Teams
- Indoors, Not Environmentally Controlled
- Exposed to Sounds, Noise Levels that are Distracting or Uncomfortable
How to Become Food and Tobacco Roasting, Baking, and Drying Machine Operators and Tenders
Entry-level food and tobacco roasting, baking, and drying machine operators and tenders positions require a high school diploma or equivalent as the typical entry-level education. This occupation sits in Some Preparation Needed (Job Zone 2), indicating the level of preparation typically expected.
Other Careers to Consider
Similar Occupations
- Graders and Sorters, Agricultural Products (Primary-Short)
- Agricultural Equipment Operators (Supplemental)
- Bakers (Supplemental)
- Food Batchmakers (Primary-Short)
- Food Cooking Machine Operators and Tenders (Primary-Short)
- Metal-Refining Furnace Operators and Tenders (Supplemental)
- Heat Treating Equipment Setters, Operators, and Tenders, Metal and Plastic (Supplemental)
- Textile Bleaching and Dyeing Machine Operators and Tenders (Supplemental)
Sources
Data on this page comes from the following authoritative sources:
- U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics — Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics (OEWS) for employment and wage data by state and industry.
- BLS Employment Projections for total employment and growth forecasts.
- O*NET (Occupational Information Network) for skills, knowledge, tasks, work activities, work context, technology, and education-zone data.
SOC code: 51-3091.00 (Food and Tobacco Roasting, Baking, and Drying Machine Operators and Tenders).
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