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Food and Tobacco Roasting, Baking, and Drying Machine Operators and Tenders in New Jersey

Thinking about a career as a Food and Tobacco Roasting, Baking, and Drying Machine Operators and Tenders in New Jersey? Here’s what the data says. 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 Make in New Jersey?

For food and tobacco roasting, baking, and drying machine operators and tenders working in New Jersey, wages run about $37,330 per year (or roughly $17.95/hour).Pay can range from $33,900 at the 10th percentile to $46,000 at the 90th percentile.

Wage Statistic	Annual	Hourly
10th percentile	$33,900	$16.30
25th percentile	$35,810	$17.22
Median (50th)	$37,330	$17.95
75th percentile	$42,680	$20.52
90th percentile	$46,000	$22.12

The job concentration index in New Jersey compared to the national average — is 1.48, suggesting that food and tobacco roasting, baking, and drying machine operators and tenders are more concentrated here than the national average.

National Wage Comparison

Nationally, food and tobacco roasting, baking, and drying machine operators and tenders earn a median of $37,587 per year ($18.07/hour), lower than the New Jersey median.

Employment Outlook

National employment for 109,772 food and tobacco roasting, baking, and drying machine operators and tenders in the U.S.. In New Jersey alone, around 790 people work in this role. That puts the state above the typical state, which employs around 370 food and tobacco roasting, baking, and drying machine operators and tenders.

Top States for Food and Tobacco Roasting, Baking, and Drying Machine Operators and Tenders Employment

The table below shows the states where the most food and tobacco roasting, baking, and drying machine operators and tenders work.

State	Number Employed
California	1,780
Texas	1,680
Minnesota	900
Michigan	850
Iowa	820
New Jersey	790
North Carolina	760
Tennessee	700
Missouri	670
Indiana	660
Wisconsin	610
Ohio	590
Virginia	490
Georgia	440
Oklahoma	440
Colorado	420
Pennsylvania	390
Florida	390
Kansas	390
Kentucky	370

Highest-Paying States for Food and Tobacco Roasting, Baking, and Drying Machine Operators and Tenders

Where food and tobacco roasting, baking, and drying machine operators and tenders earn the most: food and tobacco roasting, baking, and drying machine operators and tenders.

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

Skills

Key food and tobacco roasting, baking, and drying machine operators and tenders skills, rated on an importance scale of 0 to 5:

Knowledge Areas

Important knowledge areas for this occupation, rated on an importance scale of 0 to 5:

Abilities

The abilities that matter most for food and tobacco roasting, baking, and drying machine operators and tenders, rated on an importance scale of 0 to 5:

Daily Tasks

Common tasks include:

• 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.
• Read work orders to determine quantities and types of products to be baked, dried, or roasted.
• Fill or remove product from trays, carts, hoppers, or equipment, using scoops, peels, or shovels, or by hand.
• Take product samples during or after processing for laboratory analyses.
• Test products for moisture content, using moisture meters.

Work Activities

• Monitoring Processes, Materials, or Surroundings
• Getting Information
• Making Decisions and Solving Problems
• Controlling Machines and Processes
• Communicating with Supervisors, Peers, or Subordinates
• Inspecting Equipment, Structures, or Materials
• Identifying Objects, Actions, and Events
• Analyzing Data or Information
• Evaluating Information to Determine Compliance with Standards
• Training and Teaching Others
• Performing General Physical Activities
• Processing Information

Tools & Technology

Common tools and software used in this occupation include: Hot technologies: Microsoft Excel

Related Careers

Careers similar to food and tobacco roasting, baking, and drying machine operators and tenders include:

• Graders and Sorters, Agricultural Products
• Agricultural Equipment Operators
• Bakers
• Food Batchmakers
• Food Cooking Machine Operators and Tenders
• Metal-Refining Furnace Operators and Tenders

Also Known As

Automatic Oven Operator, Bakery Production Associate, Bakery Production Worker, Bakery Worker, Baking Assistant, Bean Roaster, Belt Conveyor Drier, Bone Char Kiln Operator, Bun Panner, Buttermilk Drier Operator, Chocolate Temperer, Cocoa Bean Roaster, Cocoa Roaster, Coffee Roaster, Continuous Process Coffee Roaster.

References

• U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics — https://www.bls.gov/oes/
• O*NET Online — https://www.onetonline.org/
• BLS Employment Projections — https://www.bls.gov/emp/
• O*NET-SOC code: 51-3091.00