Production · Holland code RC

Bakers

Mix and bake ingredients to produce breads, rolls, cookies, cakes, pies, pastries, or other baked goods.

Also called: Dough Mixer, Mixer, Pastry Cook, Scaler, Bakery Worker, Bread Baker, Cake Baker, Cake Decorator.

O*NET 51-3011.00

At a glance

US median annual pay: $37,160; Middle half earn $32,660 to $44,360. BLS OEWS, May 2025.
Preparation needed: Job Zone 2 of 5; Some preparation. Zone 1 is little or none; zone 5 is graduate-level.
US employment outlook, 2024 to 2034: +6% · Faster than average; 249,100 jobs in 2024, projected 263,200. BLS Occupational Outlook Handbook, which groups this with similar roles as "Bakers".

What the work involves

The tasks workers in this occupation rate as most important, from the O*NET survey.

Measure or weigh flour or other ingredients to prepare batters, doughs, fillings, or icings, using scales or graduated containers.
Set oven temperatures, and place items into hot ovens for baking.
Check products for quality, and identify damaged or expired goods.
Check equipment to ensure that it meets health and safety regulations, and perform maintenance or cleaning, as necessary.
Adapt the quantity of ingredients to match the amount of items to be baked.
Place dough in pans, molds, or on sheets, and bake in production ovens or on grills.
Observe color of products being baked, and adjust oven temperatures, humidity, or conveyor speeds accordingly.
Set time and speed controls for mixing machines, blending machines, or steam kettles so that ingredients will be mixed or cooked according to instructions.

Skills and knowledge it leans on

Skills

Active Listening3.0 / 5
Reading Comprehension2.9 / 5
Speaking2.9 / 5
Critical Thinking2.9 / 5
Monitoring2.9 / 5
Active Learning2.6 / 5

Knowledge areas

Production and Processing3.3 / 5
Food Production3.1 / 5
Customer and Personal Service2.8 / 5
Administration and Management2.8 / 5
English Language2.8 / 5
Public Safety and Security2.6 / 5

Importance ratings on O*NET’s 1 to 5 scale. Higher means the occupation depends on it more.

Who tends to enjoy it

How strongly this occupation draws on each of the six Holland interest types, which is the same profile the career interests test compares you against.

Realistic88
Investigative11
Artistic23
Social12
Enterprising18
Conventional53

The same work abroad

Other countries classify jobs differently, so these are the closest matches through the international ISCO-08 standard, not exact equivalents.

European occupation titles (ESCO)

bakery shop manager · DE Leiter eines Backwarengeschäftes/Leiterin eines Backwarengeschäftes · FR gérant de boulangerie/gérante de boulangerie
pastry chef · DE Patissier/Patissière · FR chef de partie pâtisserie
head pastry chef · DE Chefkonditor/Chefkonditorin · FR maître pâtissier/maîtresse pâtissière
bakery specialised seller · DE Fachverkäufer für Bäckerei- und Konditoreiwaren/Fachverkäuferin für Bäckerei- und Konditoreiwaren · FR vendeur en boulangerie/vendeuse en boulangerie
baker · DE Bäcker/Bäckerin · FR boulanger/boulangère
chocolatier · DE Fachkraft Süßwarentechnik Schokolade · FR chocolatier/chocolatière

Closest UK occupation groups (SOC 2020)

Chefs (5434)222,700 employed
Managers and directors in retail and wholesale (1150)299,300 employed
Vehicle and parts salespersons and advisers (7115)37,400 employed

Employment is the UK Annual Population Survey for April 2025 to March 2026, all workers in the group, which can be broader than this one occupation.

Pay across Europe, for the whole group

Median annual earnings of all employees in “Craft and related trades workers”. This is the broad ISCO group this occupation falls in, not the occupation itself, so treat it as context for the wage level, not as a salary for this job.

Median annual earnings, Craft and related trades workers, by country
Country	Median pay
Belgium	€40,086
Germany	€38,638
Austria	€38,194
Sweden	€37,856
Netherlands	€37,077
Ireland	€36,098
France	€27,145
Italy	€26,488
Spain	€22,817
Portugal	€11,142
Poland	€10,099

Eurostat Structure of Earnings Survey, businesses with ten or more employees outside public administration, in euro and not adjusted for the cost of living. Reference years differ between sources: the US, Japan and Europe figures on this page come from different survey years, so compare them as rough levels, not to the euro or yen.

Exposure to AI

This occupation sits in the middle third of the 774 occupations scored, with an exposure score of -0.39. The scores are standardized across those occupations, so 0 is the average and a score of 1 is about one standard deviation above it.

Our note on reading it: the dataset links AI applications to the abilities that occupations require, so the score reflects overlap between the two. It is a comparison between occupations, not a forecast about jobs. It does not say whether exposure means tasks are replaced or workers get more done with the tools, and it says little about one employer or one role.

Source: Felten, E., Raj, M., & Seamans, R. (2021). Occupational, industry, and geographic exposure to artificial intelligence: A novel dataset and its potential uses. Strategic Management Journal, 42(12), 2195-2217. Matched to this page by 6-digit SOC code (51-3011).

Is it a fit for you?

Interest is one input, alongside ability, pay and what is hiring near you. The career interests test takes about thirteen minutes and ranks occupations by how closely their profile matches yours.

Take the career interests test