Cooks
Job description
These individuals prepare meals offered on an establishment’s menu independently. They work in:
- Restaurants
- Tourist accommodation establishments
- Hospitals and other health care facilities
- Food Services
- Educational institutions
- Ships
- Grocery stores
- Building sites
- Tourist places and event organization companies
- Golf clubs and ski resorts
Environment
- Controlled ambient temperature
- Equipment, machinery, tools
- Odours
- Humidity
- Fire, steam, hot surfaces
Main tasks
- Maintain an inventory of food, supplies, and equipment and place orders as required.
- Organize and supervise buffets, as required.
- Determine supplies and ingredients available.
- Break down and assign the work to be done.
- Prepare recipes according to the instructions of the dietician or chef.
- Perform service.
- Prepare food.
- Ensure food preservation.
- Maintain the workstation, tools, and equipment.
- Apply hygiene and food safety rules.
Advancement and mobility
- Qualified Cooks receive a Red Seal endorsement upon successful completion of the Interprovincial Examination.
- Experience and additional training may lead to supervisory or management positions.
- These individuals may specialize in the preparation and cooking of ethnic or special dishes.
Hourly wage
The hourly wage is calculated by averaging wages from 2022 to 2024.- Minimum
- $16.10
- Median
- $18.00
- Maximum
- $25.00
Job prospects for 2024-2028
Job prospects for 2024-2028
Job prospects
All of Québec
All of Québec
Total jobs for 2023
All of Québec
All of Québec
Gender distribution
All of Québec
- 43.2% Female
- 56.8% Male
- 43.2% Female
- 56.8% Male
Job types
All of Québec
- Full time
- Part time
- Full time
- Part time
Yearly wage on 2020
All of Québec
All of Québec
Other characteristics
All of Québec
- None
All of Québec
- None
Sectors of activity
All of Québec
-
NAICS 7269% of jobs
-
NAICS 621, 622, 62311% of jobs
-
NAICS 44, 456% of jobs
-
NAICS 6245% of jobs
-
NAICS 311, 3121% of jobs
-
Others8% of jobs
All of Québec
-
NAICS 7269% of jobs
-
NAICS 621, 622, 62311% of jobs
-
NAICS 44, 456% of jobs
-
NAICS 6245% of jobs
-
NAICS 311, 3121% of jobs
-
Others8% of jobs
Training and requirements
Formation
Most training programs are offered in French only.
Secondary
DVS in cuisine
Placement rate: 74.4%
19.9% of graduates pursue further studies
AVS in cuisine du marché
Placement rate: 83.3%
13.7% of graduates pursue further studies
AVS in pâtisserie de restauration contemporaine
Placement rate: 82.9%
3.7% of graduates pursue further studies
Main skills and characteristics
Skills
- Data collection
- Coordination
- Time management
- Information processing
- Mathematics
- Result evaluation
- Quality control analysis
- Reading comprehension
- Oral expression
- Judgment and decision-making
- Service oriented
- Monitoring operations
- Active learning
- Critical thought
- Solving complex problems
Abilities
- Oral comprehension
- Basic numeracy
- Information organization
- Colour perception and distinction
- Mathematical reasoning
- Awareness of issues
- Near vision
- Reaction time
- Speech clarity
- Manual dexterity
- Time sharing
- Hand-arm stability
- Memorization
- Selective attention
- Written comprehension
- Verbal skills
- Deductive reasoning
- Inductive reasoning
- Speech recognition
Knowledge and attributes
- Capacity to work under pressure
- Leadership
- Sense of responsibility
- Knowledge of customer and personalized services
- Capacity to work in a team
- Tolerance to stress
- Respect standards and regulations
- Commitment to quality
- Availability
- Timeliness
Interests
- Work in hotels, restaurants, and tourism
- Work manually
Personality profiles (RIASEC)
- Realistic
- People with this profile prefer carrying out concrete tasks and being physically involved in what they do.
- Investigative
- People with this profile prefer relying on theoretical knowledge before acting. They like observation, analysis and problem solving.
- Social
- People with this profile prefer to be in contact with others, in particular to entertain, help or teach them.
Official name of the NOC 63200
Cooks
Job titles
- Restaurant cook
- First cook
- Cook
- Assistant cook
- Apprentice cook
- Journeyman/woman cook
- Licensed cook
- Pastry cook
- Cook - canadian armed forces
- Ship's cook
- Line cook
- Hospital cook
- Institutional cook
- Banquet cook
- Construction camp cook
- Fishing and merchant vessel cook
- Cafeteria cook
- Camp cook
- Logging camp cook
- Short order cook
- Railway cook
- Special order cook - hospital
- Mess cook
- Ethnic food cook
- Kosher foods cook
- Small establishment cook
- Breakfast cook
- Pizza cook
- Therapeutic diet cook
- Dietary cook
- Diet kitchen cook
- Domestic cook
- Caterer cook
- Broiler cook
- Second cook
- Third cook
Skill type
Sales and service
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Last update: January 29, 2026