Lead Food Service Worker- Culinary and Nutrition Irvine- FT Variable Shift

University of California, Irvine; Irvine (CA); On-site; USD 60,000 - 82,000; Full time

Job summary

UCI Health is seeking a Medical Center Lead Food Service Worker to direct daily patient meal operations in Culinary and Nutrition Services. You will oversee tray preparation, accuracy, and timely delivery, while guiding staff and ensuring safety standards are met.

Responsibilities include supervising meal service, assisting with audits, and driving quality improvements in a dynamic hospital setting. This role requires leadership and strong organization.

Qualifications

• Knowledge of kitchen sanitation control techniques.
• Understanding therapeutic diets and nutrition.
• Excellent English communication skills, both verbal and written.
• Experience with MS Word, Excel and Outlook.
• Ability to train and supervise staff and manage shift schedules.

Responsibilities

• Direct and prioritize daily workflow for patient services in Culinary and Nutrition Services.
• Assemble, sign-off, and verify safety of high-risk patient meal trays.
• Prioritize VIP and RUSH trays during delivery process.
• Orientate, train, and schedule new Food Service Workers; ensure adequate staffing.
• Support audits, document processes, and participate in quality/workflow improvement projects.

Skills

Kitchen sanitation

Therapeutic diets

Planning & problem solving

Communication

Staff management

Customer service

Food preparation

MS Office (Word, Excel, Outlook)

Basic math

Adaptability

Education

Associate’s degree in Business/Management or related field

Tools

MS Office

Job description

Who We Are

UCI Health is one of California's largest academic health systems and the clinical enterprise of the University of California, Irvine. Established on July 1, 1976, UCI Health has grown into a 1,461-bed health system that includes UCI Health - Orange, UCI Health - Irvine, four Community Network hospitals and a growing network of ambulatory care centers across Orange and Los Angeles counties. As Orange County’s only academic health systems, UCI Health is home to the only National Cancer Institute-designated comprehensive cancer center based in the county, the region’s only American College of Surgeons-verified Level I adult and Level II pediatric trauma center, American College of Emergency Physicians Gold Level 1 Geriatric Emergency Department and a nationally recognized regional burn center verified by the American Burn Association. Powered by UC Irvine, UCI Health serves 5.6 million people across Orange County, western Riverside County and southeast Los Angeles County through excellence in patient care, research and medical education.

Your Role on the Team

Position Summary

Reporting to the Patient Services Manager, the Medical Center Lead Food Service Worker will support management and operations by directing and prioritizing daily workflow for patient services within Culinary and Nutrition Services to provide food service that is safe, accurate, timely, and responsive to customer and patient needs. The Lead Food Service Worker will assemble, sign-off, and verify the safety of high-risk patient meal trays while ensuring meals are produced timely. Under the general guidance of management, responsibilities include prioritizing and verifying VIP and RUSH trays throughout the hospital and delivery process; assisting with orientating, training, and scheduling new Food Service Workers; ensuring adequate staffing; supporting staff and monitoring operations; and problem resolution to meet departmental standards. Responsibilities also include assisting with department audits and documentation, troubleshooting general day-to-day operational issues, and participation in projects to support quality and workflow improvement.

What It Takes to be Successful

Required Qualifications

• Working knowledge and understanding of kitchen sanitation control techniques
• Thorough knowledge and understanding of therapeutic diets and nutrition
• Strong planning, problem solving, critical thinking, and organization skills
• Strong listening skills and ability to communicate and convey information in a clear, concise manner
• Must possess the skill, knowledge, and ability essential to the successful performance of assigned duties
• Must demonstrate customer service skills appropriate to the job
• Minimum of 4 years prior food preparation/service experience
• Minimum of 1 year of demonstrated effective formal or informal food service leadership experience
• Knowledge of applicable federal, state, and local regulations and policies and procedures for hospital
• Knowledge of HACCP rules
• Excellent verbal and written English communication skills
• Demonstrated knowledge and understanding of MS Office products (Word, Excel, Outlook)
• Demonstrated basic accounting and mathematical computation skills
• Basic computer skills
• Ability to work variable shifts including evenings, nights, weekends, and holidays
• Ability to maintain a work pace appropriate to the workload
• Ability to establish & maintain effective working relationships across the Health System
• Ability to apply sound judgment in ambiguous situations and effectively manage change

Preferred Qualifications

• Knowledge of University and Medical Center organizations, policies, procedures and forms
• Associate’s degree in Business, Management, or related field

Total Rewards

We offer a wealth of benefits to make working at UCI even more rewarding. These benefits may include medical insurance, sick and vacation time, retirement savings plans, and access to a number of discounts and perks. Please utilize the links listed here to learn more about our compensation practices and benefits.

Conditions of Employment

The University of California, Irvine (UCI) seeks to provide a safe and healthy environment for the entire UCI community. As part of this commitment, all applicants who accept an offer of employment must comply with the following conditions of employment:

• Background Check and Live Scan
• Employment Misconduct*
• Legal Right to Work in the United States
• Vaccination Policies
• Smoking and Tobacco Policy
• Drug Free Environment

*Misconduct Disclosure Requirement: As a condition of employment, the final candidate who accepts a conditional offer of employment will be required to disclose if they have been subject to any final administrative or judicial decisions within the last seven years determining that they committed any misconduct; received notice of any allegations or are currently the subject of any administrative or disciplinary proceedings involving misconduct; have left a position after receiving notice of allegations or while under investigation in an administrative or disciplinary proceeding involving misconduct; or have filed an appeal of a finding of misconduct with a previous employer.

The following additional conditions may apply, some of which are dependent upon business unit or job specific requirements.

• California Child Abuse and Neglect Reporting Act
• E-Verify
• Pre-Placement Health Evaluation

Details of each policy may be reviewed by visiting the following page: https://hr.uci.edu/new-hire/conditions-of-employment.php

Closing Statement

The University of California is an Equal Opportunity Employer. All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, national origin, disability, age, protected veteran status, or other protected categories covered by the UC Anti-Discrimination Policy. We are committed to attracting and retaining a diverse workforce along with honoring unique experiences, perspectives, and identities. Together, our community strives to create and maintain working and learning environments that are inclusive, equitable, and welcoming. UCI provides reasonable accommodations for applicants with disabilities upon request. For more information, please contact UCI's Employee Experience Center (EEC) at [e-mail] or at [phone], Monday - Friday from 8:30 a.m. - 5:00 p.m.

Consideration for Work Authorization Sponsorship

Must be able to provide proof of work authorization