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Food Preparation Workers in Tennessee

Food Preparation Workers in Tennessee

Considering a career as a Food Preparation Worker in Tennessee?

8.7% Jobs Projection
$20,550 Median Salary
3,110 Job Openings

You’re in luck! Jobs for Food Preparation Workers in Tennessee are projected to grow and these jobs tend to pay higher than average.

  • Projected employment for Food Preparation Workers in Tennessee is growing faster than average.

  • Food Preparation Workers in Tennessee earn lower salaries than the typical U.S. wage earner.

How Many Food Preparation Workers Work in Tennessee?

In Tennessee, there were 18,060 people working as Food Preparation Workers in the year 2018.

There were 17,280 Food Preparation Workers employed in this state in 2017.

That’s growth of 780 jobs between 2017 and 2018.

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The typical state has 8,670 Food Preparation Workers working in it, which means Tennessee has more Food Preparation Workers than average.

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Job Projections for Tennessee

Jobs for Food Preparation Workers in this state are growing at a rate of 8.7% which is faster than the nationwide estimated projection of 7.9%.

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Tennessee Annual Job Openings

The BLS estimates 3,110 annual job openings, and a total of 18,510 jobs for Tennessee Food Preparation Workers in 2026.

Nationwide, the prediction is 157,700 annual jobs and 939,700 total jobs in 2026.

What do Food Preparation Workers Make in Tennessee?

In 2018 wages for Food Preparation Workers ranged from $16,610 to $30,500 with $20,550 being the median annual salary.

Broken down to an hourly rate, workers in this field made anywhere from $7.98 to $14.66. The median hourly rate was $9.88.

Workers in this field were paid a median of $9.66 an hour in 2017.

The hourly rate grew by $0.22.

The median salary in Tennessee is higher than the nationwide median salary.

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Top Tennessee Metros for Food Preparation Workers

The table below shows some of the metros in this state with the most Food Preparation Workers.

Metro Number Employed Annual Median Salary
Nashville-Davidson–Murfreesboro–Franklin, TN 8,510 $21,890
Memphis, TN-MS-AR 3,070 $20,090
Knoxville, TN 2,070 $21,040
Chattanooga, TN-GA 1,840 $19,010
Morristown, TN 580 $19,960
Clarksville, TN-KY 440 $18,660
Johnson City, TN 300 $23,930
Kingsport-Bristol-Bristol, TN-VA 270 $19,280
Jackson, TN 150 $19,440
Cleveland, TN 100 $19,100

Top States for Food Preparation Workers Employment

View the list below to see where most Food Preparation Workers work.

State Number Employed Annual Median Salary
California 102,680 $26,040
Florida 62,010 $23,020
New York 61,600 $26,680
Texas 55,060 $22,730
Louisiana 35,890 $18,350
Georgia 35,360 $20,350
New Jersey 32,960 $22,520
Illinois 32,430 $24,220
Ohio 26,740 $21,040
North Carolina 19,820 $21,660
Virginia 19,640 $20,640
Pennsylvania 19,310 $22,060
Tennessee 18,060 $20,550
Washington 17,380 $28,210
Indiana 16,220 $20,930
Maryland 15,620 $24,220
Massachusetts 15,080 $27,420
Michigan 14,630 $22,530
Arizona 14,220 $24,070
Oregon 14,110 $25,730

Below are the states where Food Preparation Workers get paid the most:

State Annual Median Salary
District of Columbia $29,100
Washington $28,210
Nevada $28,130
Rhode Island $27,910
Massachusetts $27,420
New York $26,680
Alaska $26,540
Connecticut $26,430
Minnesota $26,180
California $26,040

References

More about our data sources and methodologies.

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