Cooks, short order
SOC Code: 35-2015
Cooks, short order carries a 29% AI exposure score (Medium automation risk), with a median annual wage of $35,620 and -5.6% projected employment growth from 2024 to 2034 (BLS), affecting approximately 151,100 workers. Full task breakdown, skills, and employer data are below.
Proportion of tasks susceptible to AI automation (O*NET analysis)
At 29% AI exposure, Cooks, short order sits 8 points below the 37.2% average across 832 U.S. occupations - more exposed than 27% of them. Most of its core tasks still require human judgment.
Career outlook score
28/100
Cooks, short order, weighted across 3 of 3 tracked dimensions
A weighted composite of median wage, projected growth, and AI-automation security (inverted exposure), each benchmarked against every other tracked occupation. It describes this occupation's standing across those three dimensions, not a guarantee of future outcomes.
- Median wage F $35,620
Annual median wage, percentile rank vs all tracked occupations
- Projected growth F -5.6%
Projected employment change, 2024-2034, BLS Employment Projections
- AI exposure (inverted) B 29% exposure
Lower O*NET task-automability scores lower risk; this dimension scores security, not exposure
Home health and personal care aides is #1 of 832 occupations by employment (4.3M, AI exposure rank #392 at 35%) vs. Bookkeeping, accounting, and auditing clerks #1 by AI task exposure (95%, employment rank #17 at 1.6M).
Automation-risk inventory
Exclusive cut of 832 occupations by PlainWorkforce automation-risk band. Orthogonal to the continuous AI-exposure distribution chart below and to this occupation's single risk badge, this is the corpus band mix, with Cooks, short order in the Medium band.
Credential × growth standing
Open entry on a declining BLS line
Typical entry is No credential (109/832) while growth is Declining (111/832). This is the crowded high-risk corner of the map - automation and headcount pressure compound without a degree moat.
Where Cooks, short order sits among all occupations
AI-exposure score distribution across 832 U.S. occupations (O*NET task analysis). This occupation is marked in rose.
Where Cooks, short order sits by AI exposure
AI-exposure score distribution across U.S. occupations (O*NET task analysis)
29% Lower than most lower than 73% of 832 occupations
Occupations, banded by AI-exposure score
Each bar is a band; taller bars hold more occupations. The dashed line + filled bar mark this entry. Hover or tap any bar for its full count and share, and where it sits relative to this entry.
Source O*NET task data (U.S. Department of Labor) · BLS 2024–2034
Source: O*NET task data (U.S. Department of Labor); AI-exposure scores are PlainWorkforce's analysis. As of BLS 2024–2034.
Cooks, short order vs. its occupational neighbors
AI exposure (horizontal) vs projected 2024–2034 growth (vertical) for occupations in the same SOC group. Cooks, short order is marked in rose; the top-left corner is the most future-proof.
Source: BLS Employment Projections 2024–2034 (growth) and O*NET (AI-exposure analysis by PlainWorkforce).
Employment Projections
Where This Score Comes From
Cooks, short order's Medium automation-risk tier is computed from O*NET Database 30.0 task-level analysis, where each documented task the occupation performs is evaluated against current generative AI, robotic process automation, and machine-learning capabilities. A score below 40% reflects tasks anchored in physical dexterity, unstructured environments, or high-touch human interaction that current AI cannot reliably replicate.
The employment, wage, and education figures above come from a second, separate federal source: BLS Employment Projections 2024–2034, matched to the O*NET task data by Standard Occupational Classification (SOC 35-2015) code, with the wage figure cross-validated against the BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics (OEWS) May 2024 survey. BLS figures are presented exactly as published, with no adjustment on our part; the SOC-code match is what lets Cooks, short order be compared directly against every other tracked occupation on the same basis, not just roles that happen to share a job title.
For career planners, this profile should be read alongside the task, skill, and knowledge breakdowns below and the list of employers whose workforce composition includes Cooks, short order. Adjacent occupations shown further down offer lateral moves that preserve industry knowledge while potentially reducing exposure.
Education & Entry Requirements
Top Tasks (O*NET)
- 1. Clean food preparation equipment, work areas, and counters or tables.
- 2. Grill and garnish hamburgers or other meats, such as steaks and chops.
- 3. Restock kitchen supplies, rotate food, and stamp the time and date on food in coolers.
- 4. Complete orders from steam tables, placing food on plates and serving customers at tables or counters.
- 5. Plan work on orders so that items served together are finished at the same time.
- 6. Grill, cook, and fry foods such as french fries, eggs, and pancakes.
- 7. Perform food preparation tasks, such as making sandwiches, carving meats, making soups or salads, baking breads or desserts, and brewing coffee or tea.
- 8. Perform general cleaning activities in kitchen and dining areas.
- 9. Take orders from customers and cook foods requiring short preparation times, according to customer requirements.
- 10. Order supplies and stock them on shelves.
Key Skills Required
- Reading Comprehension
- Active Listening
- Time Management
- Speaking
- Coordination
- Service Orientation
- Critical Thinking
- Monitoring
- Social Perceptiveness
- Complex Problem Solving
Knowledge Areas
- Food Production
- Customer and Personal Service
- English Language
- Production and Processing
- Communications and Media
- Chemistry
- Public Safety and Security
- Foreign Language
- Mathematics
- Computers and Electronics
Frequently Asked Questions
Will AI replace Cooks, short order?
Cooks, short order has an AI exposure score of 29%, indicating a medium level of automation risk. The majority of tasks in this role require human judgment, creativity, or physical presence that AI cannot easily replicate.
What is the job outlook for Cooks, short order?
According to BLS Employment Projections 2024-2034, Cooks, short order is projected to decline by 5.6% over the decade. Current employment stands at approximately 151,100 workers.
What skills are needed for Cooks, short order?
Key skills for Cooks, short order include Reading Comprehension, Active Listening, Time Management, and others. Typical entry-level education is No formal educational credential.
How much do Cooks, short order earn?
The median annual wage for Cooks, short order is $35,620, according to BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics (May 2024). Actual earnings vary by location, experience, industry, and employer. The BLS publishes detailed wage percentiles by region in its Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics program.
What education is required for Cooks, short order?
The typical entry-level education for Cooks, short order is No formal educational credential. Employers generally expect None of related work experience. On-the-job training typically involves Short-term on-the-job training. Requirements can vary by employer and specialization.
Which companies employ Cooks, short order?
Cooks, short order roles exist across many industries and employers. Workforce composition is estimated from BLS industry-occupation employment distributions matched to SEC-registered public companies.
AI Exposure Rating
Medium automation risk based on 10 analyzed tasks. Most tasks require human judgment and are resistant to automation.
Nationwide occupations with similar workforce profiles
Two data-derived peer sets for Cooks, short order: AI-exposure neighbors and BLS 2034 growth neighbors (distinct comparison neighborhoods, cross-occupation).
Similar AI exposure score
Nearest O*NET task-automability scores nationwide (29% here).
- Anesthesiologists · AI exposure 29%
- Elevator and escalator installers and repairers · AI exposure 29%
- Fence erectors · AI exposure 29%
- First-line supervisors of landscaping, lawn service, and groundskeeping workers · AI exposure 29%
Similar projected growth (2024–2034)
Nearest BLS employment change rates nationwide (-5.6% here).
- Electrical and electronics drafters · growth -5.6%
- Broadcast announcers and radio disc jockeys · growth -5.5%
- Customer service representatives · growth -5.5%
- Jewelers and precious stone and metal workers · growth -5.5%
Peers are nearest-neighbor matches on published BLS + O*NET metrics among occupations with ≥10,000 workers in 2024; corpus ranks above sort the full tracked set.
Related Occupations
Showing 6 of 11 occupations with a comparable automation-risk profile.
What to do with this
Use Cooks, short order's numbers above to compare, not just read in isolation.
- Compare Cooks, short order side by side against another occupation on wage, growth, and AI exposure. Workforce comparison tool
- Understand how the AI exposure score above is actually calculated before treating it as a verdict. Reading AI exposure scores
- See the full ranked list of occupations with the lowest automation exposure nationwide. Safest occupations from AI
AI exposure scores estimate task automatability from O*NET data; they are not a certainty of job loss, and BLS growth projections are estimates, not guarantees.
Data sources: Bureau of Labor Statistics Employment Projections 2024–2034 and O*NET Database 30.0. Employment figures are rounded. Wage data from BLS Occupational Employment Statistics (OES).