How to become a Baker

Bakers make bread, cakes and pastries using flour and other ingredients.

Personal requirements for a Baker

  • Enjoy practical work
  • Good hand-eye coordination
  • Good health, with no skin allergies or chest complaints
  • Able to cope with the physical demands of the job
  • Neat and clean
  • Good literacy and numeracy skills
  • Good organisational skills

Education & Training for a Baker

To become a baker you usually have to complete an apprenticeship or traineeship. Entry requirements may vary, but employers generally require Year 10.


Duties & Tasks of a Baker

Bakers:

  • Check that equipment meets health and safety regulations
  • Check the quality of raw materials and weigh ingredients
  • Mix dough and batters by hand or machine, then place in tins or trays
  • Load tins or trays into ovens, keeping an eye on the oven temperatures and the appearance of the bread, cake or pastry
  • Unload ovens when the bread and other products are baked, take products out of trays and put aside to cool
  • Glaze or decorate cakes and pastries with icing or cream
  • Order baking supplies from wholesalers
  • Operate slicing and wrapping machines
  • Serve customers.

Tasks

  • Empties, cleans and greases baking trays, tins and other cooking equipment.
  • Implements appropriate baking techniques.
  • Glazes buns and pastries, and decorating cakes with cream and icing.
  • Operating machines which roll and mould dough and cut biscuits.
  • Checks the cleanliness of equipment and operating site to ensure compliance with health and safety regulation.
  • Prepares pastry fillings.
  • Checks quality of raw materials and weighs ingredients.
  • Co-ordinates the forming, loading, baking, unloading, de-panning and cooling of batches of breads, rolls and pastry products.
  • Monitors oven temperature and products appearance.

Working conditions for a Baker

The increased use of machinery has reduced heavy work for bakers. However, they still have to stand a lot of the time. Most bakers work full time, and they often work late at night or early in the morning. They may also work on weekends and public holidays. Conditions in the bakery are usually hot and humid.


Employment Opportunities for a Baker

Bakers are employed in factories producing baked products, specialty cake stores, 'in-house' bakeries in supermarkets and independent or franchise bakeries. Bakers with sufficient start-up money may set up their own businesses.


Specializations

Baker

Bakers make bread, cakes and pastries using flour and other ingredients.

  • Average age
    Average age
    34 years
  • Future Growth
    Future Growth
    Strong
  • Gender Share
    Gender Share
    23% female
  • Average full-time
    Average full-time
    44 hours
  • Weekly Pay
    Weekly Pay
    $996
  • Skill level rating
    Skill level rating
    Medium skill
  • Unemployment
    Unemployment
    Lower unemployment
  • Full-Time Share
    Full-Time Share
    73% Full-Time
  • Employment Size
    Employment Size
    17,300 workers
  • Employment Size
    Employment by state
    ACT: 1.1%
    NSW: 29.6%
    NT: 0.6%
    QLD: 18.8%
    SA: 9.1%
    TAS: 2.9%
    VIC: 28.2%
    WA: 9.6%
  • Employment Size
    Age brackets
    15-19: 6.2%
    20-24: 14.2%
    25-34: 29.9%
    35-44: 21.7%
    45-54: 17.3%
    55-59: 5.9%
    60-64: 3.3%
    65 and Over: 1.6%
  • Employment Size
    Education level
    Advanced Diploma/Diploma: 7.2%
    Bachelor degree: 6.8%
    Certificate III/IV: 42.9%
    Post Graduate/Graduate Diploma or Graduate Certificate: 1.6%
    Year 10 and below: 16.4%
    Year 11: 4.9%
    Year 12: 20.1%
Is the information on this page correct? Request update

Become a member

Already a member? LoginForgot password?

Join the conversation