Can Agents Work?

Jobs / Food service, cleaning, and personal care / 35-2015.00

Cooks, Short Order

Prepare and cook to order a variety of foods that require only a short preparation time. May take orders from customers and serve patrons at counters or tables.

US jobs
138,650
Median wage
$35,880 a year
Job family
Food service, cleaning, and personal care

Can agents do the work of cooks, short order?

We read the evidence for the whole job family, Food service, cleaning, and personal care: Not yet (first measured in the last 12 months)

Direct benchmarks exist, but agents complete less than 20% of their tasks.

Evidence: BEHAVIOR Challenge 2025, 12.4% of tasks fully completed (Full task success rate).

0% of this occupation's work, by O*NET work activities, is measured by a direct benchmark.

  • 38%Prepare foods or beveragesNot measured
  • 24%Clean tools, equipment, facilities, or work areasNot measured
  • 9%Direct organizational operations, activities, or proceduresNot measured
  • 9%Stock supplies or productsNot measured
  • 6%Execute financial transactionsNot measured
  • 6%Replenish inventories of materials, equipment, or productsNot measured
  • 5%Provide food or beverage servicesNot measured
  • 3%Purchase goods or servicesNot measured

Benchmarks for the job family

These cover work in food service, cleaning, and personal care, not always this occupation's tasks.

Direct evidence

Work benchmarks mapped primary to this family. They set the step when they report how many tasks agents complete.

Also relevant

These benchmarks cover part of this family's work, or have no result yet. They do not set its step.

Typical tasks

From O*NET 31.0. Core tasks first. Few of these tasks have a benchmark today.

  • Clean food preparation equipment, work areas, and counters or tables.
  • Restock kitchen supplies, rotate food, and stamp the time and date on food in coolers.
  • Complete orders from steam tables, placing food on plates and serving customers at tables or counters.
  • Plan work on orders so that items served together are finished at the same time.
  • Grill, cook, and fry foods such as french fries, eggs, and pancakes.
  • Perform food preparation tasks, such as making sandwiches, carving meats, making soups or salads, baking breads or desserts, and brewing coffee or tea.
  • Perform general cleaning activities in kitchen and dining areas.
  • Take orders from customers and cook foods requiring short preparation times, according to customer requirements.
  • Grill and garnish hamburgers or other meats, such as steaks and chops.
  • Order supplies and stock them on shelves.
  • Accept payments, and make change or write charge slips as necessary.
Other job titles for this occupation (29)

Broiler Cook · Cook · Deli Cook (Delicatessen Cook) · Food and Beverage Attendant · Grill Cook · Line Cook · Pizza Maker · Prep Cook (Preparation Cook) · Short Order Cook · Snack Bar Cook · Barbecue Cook · Bed and Breakfast Cook (B&B Cook) · Breakfast Cook · Breakfast Line Cook · Chuck Wagon Cook · Food Clerk · Griddle Attendant · Griddle Cook · Grill Associate · Grill Attendant · Grill Line Cook · Grill Person · Grill Prep Cook (Grill Preparation Cook) · Hash Slinger · Hasher · Pizza Cook · Prepared Foods Clerk · Sandwich Artist · Short Order Fry Cook