Cooks, Fast Food
Food Preparation and Serving Related · SOC 35-2011
AI exposure from the Anthropic Economic Index (2025); salary from BLS; skills from O*NET. See /sources.
Decision card
Career Evidence Passport
SOC 35-2011 evidence across exposure, wages, projections, postings, certified LCAs, skills, and transitions.
- SOC exposure
- 0.0%
- Low · Anthropic AEI
- Automation friction
- 40/100
- Moderate friction; broad SOC seed ORS job-requirements coverage.
- Wages
- $30,890
- No H-1B offered-wage row for this SOC.
- Projected openings
- 63,000
- BLS EP 2024–2034; employment change -13.5%.
- Observed/proxy demand
- 0
- FY2025 certified LCAs; 69,594 postings in 2025.
Skill evidence
Transition context
- H-1B values are certified Labor Condition Applications, not visa approvals.
- Job postings are seed-static / seed-derived; treat as provider-ready proxy coverage until observed provider data is wired in.
- Transition matches are directional skill-overlap context, not placement guarantees.
- This release is a FutureGrid broad-SOC seed derived from public BLS ORS requirement concepts and categories, not direct occupation-level ORS survey estimates. It describes job requirements, not worker ability, AI capability, or displacement probability. Automation friction is a FutureGrid derived score and should be read alongside exposure, demand, wage, and projection signals.
AI Exposure Analysis
Across AI measures
Multiple exposure lenses for this occupation.
Top Skills
H-1B Visa Sponsorship Demand
View full H-1B trends →Certified H-1B Labor Condition Applications naming this occupation, FY2016–FY2025. A descriptive high-skill labor-demand signal — employer filings, not visa approvals or individual outcomes. Note: one LCA can cover multiple worker positions.
O*NET occupation profile
What this work involves
Prepare and cook food in a fast food restaurant with a limited menu. Duties of these cooks are limited to preparation of a few basic items and normally involve operating large-volume single-purpose cooking equipment.
Common titles: Cook, Deep Fat Fryer Operator, Fast Food Cook, Fry Cook, Fryer, Grill Cook
Representative Tasks
- •Order and take delivery of supplies.
- •Cook the exact number of items ordered by each customer, working on several different orders simultaneously.
- •Prepare specialty foods, such as pizzas, fish and chips, sandwiches, or tacos, following specific methods that usually require short preparation time.
- •Operate large-volume cooking equipment, such as grills, deep-fat fryers, or griddles.
- •Wash, cut, and prepare foods designated for cooking.
Detailed Work Activities
- •Order materials, supplies, or equipment.
- •Cook foods.
- •Prepare foods for cooking or serving.
- •Clean food preparation areas, facilities, or equipment.
- •Serve food or beverages.
Tools & Technologies
Employment Projections & AI Exposure
Employment & Wage Trend
BLS OEWS, 2019–2025
Source: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics (OEWS). See /sources.
Sector Comparison
| Metric | This Career | Sector Average |
|---|---|---|
| AI Exposure | 0.0% | 0.9% |
| Outlook | Average | 60% Bright |
| Median Salary | $30,890 | N/A |
| AI Resiliency | 100/100 | N/A |