Labour market information Explore careers by essential skills

• Locate and read labels and symbols relating to the Workplace Hazardous Materials Information System (WHMIS). (1)
• Line cooks read guest checks. (1)
• Read work schedules and read function sheets. (2)
• Complete inventory control cards, requisitions and order forms. (2)
• Prepare waste sheets. (2)

• Write "to do" notes for themselves and co-workers. (1)
• Write incident reports and complete Worker's Compensation Board forms. (2)

Line Cooks

• Prepare guest checks, enter amounts in the cash register and provide change to customers. (1)

• Weigh and measure ingredients when cooking and weigh food to ensure proper portion sizes. (1)
• Convert recipes by multiplying or dividing all ingredients. (2)

• Estimate amounts of food by comparing containers, product sizes and volumes. (1)

• Communicate with supervisors and co-workers to organize and co-ordinate their work and receive instructions. (1)

• Communicate with delivery personnel about where to place supplies. (1)

• Communicate with other food service workers to clarify orders. (1)
• Respond to customer inquiries about particular menu items, including questions about ingredients to which the customer is allergic. (1)

• May encounter problems caused by miscommunication due to their noisy working environment. They must then clarify the information. (1)

• Are sometimes confronted with difficult cleaning jobs where conventional methods do not seem to work. They have to determine how to clean ovens and other equipment, selecting the best cleaner and devising effective cleaning methods. (1)

• Handle customer complaints, using their own judgment and company policy to resolve issues. (2)

• Decide whether supplies received meet the required quality standards and purchasing specifications. This is usually done initially under supervision. (1)
• Select which cleaner to use for particular cleaning tasks. (1)

• Decide how to best juggle multiple tasks so that no customer is kept waiting too long. (2)
• Decide what products may be substituted to fill an order when there is a shortage of the normal food item. (2)

Critical Thinking information was not collected for this profile.

The work of kitchen helpers and line cooks follows a similar basic routine every day. Within that framework, they plan their own activities following guidelines provided for food preparation and responding to variations in customer volume. (2)

• Remember the details of their current orders, such as which steaks are to be rare and which ones well done. They also remember special instructions for a particular function, and last minute changes to these instructions.
• Remember health and safety standards for the care and preparation of food.

• Scan a variety of news media for information about changing weather conditions and upcoming events which could impact the planning of production that week. (2)

• Find out about policies for product specifications by asking their supervisor. (1)

• Look up food preparation information in recipes. (1)

• Use equipment with computerized settings. For example, line cooks may use computerized point of sale equipment when accepting payment. (1)
• Line cooks may get recipes and food specifications from a database. (2)
• Line cooks may use a spreadsheet for recipe conversions. (2)

Kitchen helpers and line cooks work both independently and as part of a team. They participate in formal discussions with co-workers and supervisors on methods for improving work processes or product quality, and on the allocation of responsibilities.

Kitchen helpers and line cooks continue to learn. New procedures, new product information, new menus, recipes, techniques and trends all unite in creating a learning environment.