Food Service Worker - Cook

The Salvation Army North & Central Illinois Division; Topeka (KS); On-site; USD 24,000 - 34,000; Full time

Job summary

The Salvation Army North & Central Illinois Division is seeking a dedicated kitchen worker to plan, prepare and serve nutritious meals in an institutional setting. This role supports daily operations of a food service program while ensuring compliance with safety, nutrition, and licensing standards.

Requirements include a high school diploma, at least one year of institutional cooking experience, ServeSafe certification within 90 days, and a willingness to work irregular hours.

Qualifications

• Education: High school diploma or equivalent.
• Experience: 1 year cooking in an institutional setting; ability to prepare meals independently.
• Certifications/Licenses: ServeSafe within 90 days; First Aid/CPR preferred.

Responsibilities

• Prepares and serves meals.
• Use of basic cooking utensils and equipment.
• Inspects kitchen and dining areas for sanitary standards and licensing compliance.
• Maintains food inventories.
• Prepares and stores food items for storage.
• Operates dishwashing equipment.
• Maintains clean work areas and adheres to sanitary standards and licensing regulations.
• Maintains security for work area and food inventories.
• May train other kitchen staff.

Skills

Institutional cooking

Nutrition literacy

Read recipes & labels

Willingness for irregular hours

Teamwork

Confidentiality & HIPAA

Education

High school diploma or equivalent

ServeSafe Certification (within 90 days)

First Aid/CPR (preferred)

Job description

Job Objective

Plans, prepares and serves nutritious meals and snacks in an institutional setting.

Essential Functions

• Prepares and serves meals
• Use of basic cooking utensils and equipment
• Inspects kitchen and dining areas, kitchen utensils and equipment to ensure sanitary standards are met and licensing requirements are met
• Assists in maintaining food inventories
• Prepares and places food items for storage in designated areas
• Operates dishwashing equipment
• Clean work areas, equipment and utensils, maintain high sanitary standards and meeting licensing regulations
• Maintain security for work area and food inventories
• May train other kitchen staff

Minimum Qualifications

Education: High school academic diploma or equivalent

Experience: Minimum one year cooking experience in an institutional setting; sufficient experience in food preparation to be able to prepare meals independently

Certifications/Licenses: ServeSafe Certification (obtained within 90 days of employment); First Aid and CPR certification preferred, but not required

Skills/Abilities

• Supportive of Salvation Army mission statement, policies and procedures
• Willingness and ability to work irregular or extended hours
• Ability to work in warm and cold environments
• Ability to read, interpret and follow nutritional communications, recipes, product labels
• Ability to work with math figures and keep financial and utilization records
• Must be quality control conscious
• Ability to maintain professionalism in conduct while establishing positive relationship with diverse population
• Ability to maintain appropriate confidentiality, including HIPPA standards and procedures

Supervisory Responsibility

None

Physical Requirements

Include speaking, hearing and vision; manual dexterity; bending, squatting and walking; lifting, pulling, pushing materials up to 80 pounds; standing for extended periods of time. Reasonable accommodation may be made to enable individuals to perform the essential functions of this job.

Travel

None

Driving

None

Working Conditions

Work is performed in a variety of settings, including around warm kitchen areas, refrigerators, and freezers. Work is performed indoors with occasional outdoor events. Will be required to work on weekends.

All Employees Recognize

All employees recognize that The Salvation Army is a church and agree that they will do nothing as an employee of The Salvation Army to undermine its religious mission.

Equal Opportunity Statement

The Salvation Army is an equal opportunity employer. Candidates who are back-to-work, US Veterans, people with disabilities, people who have been impacted by the justice system, and/or people without a college degree are encouraged to apply.