# Are there jobs or food service organizations that basically work 8 hours for a shift?



## gopastry (Jan 10, 2018)

I decided to go to college to study baking and pastry when I was 49. I am 51 now. I’ve started to work at a bakery one and half months ago as an intern. I work at pm shift that starts at 10:30am and supposes off at 6:30pm (with half hour rest for lunch), but the reality is that I always have to work overtime every shift for at least 9 hours sometimes 11 hours with standing, that not including the rest time.

I understand that I am a freshman in the food service industry so that I have to do all the manual labour including the cleaning at the end of shift. A lot of physical work but fortunately I haven’t got sick and been late to work so far. I am healthy but not young. I don’t think that I can do a job involved hard physical work like this constantly for another 5 years or even 10 years.

I have never worked for restaurants or hotels. I wonder if there are jobs or food service organizations that basically work 8 hours for a shift (not including time for rest) and won’t work overtime all the time. Actually, I don’t mind work overtime as long as not every shift. It is ok for me occasionally.

I wish I could get some information here for reference for searching job after intern. Thanks.


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## Pat Pat (Sep 26, 2017)

It's always going to be a physical job working in the kitchen.

From what you described, I am assuming that you probably aren't aspire to become a top pastry chef. In this case, there are a lot of options to suit you.

If you want an easy 8-hour shift, you can work at a small café, a supermarket, or a school.

If you want a harder but still an 8-hour shift, you can try a hospital, a casino, or a big hotel.


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## Iceman (Jan 4, 2011)




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## chefross (May 5, 2010)

Check out hotels that are part of a corporation.. (Hyatt, Marriott, Embassy Suites) Some have pastry Chefs.
Other idea, college food service, airline, conference centers...Some utilize house made products.


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## Chef_Aaron_B (Jan 11, 2018)

Hospitals might be a good fit. Definitely more work regulations then independent operations.


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## jimyra (Jun 23, 2015)

Fast food chains. Grocery stores.


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## Beltway Chef (Mar 14, 2018)

I would try a small independent restaurant or café. You might work like a 6-7 hour shift and for the most part they aren't going to want to get stuck paying overtime and things like that.


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## doraima3875 (May 3, 2015)

Work at Hospitals, Hotels and other catering services like Gluckenheimer, Bon Appetit, Aramark and other related fine dining and restaurant group companies. This is probably best to work for 8-hour shifts in my opinion. If you work at independent restaurants - they may ask for you to work overtime, if necessary.


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## capricciosa (May 30, 2015)

A grocery store bakery is probably the best bet. It's still physical, and the hours aren't always 9-5, but most grocery stores (especially Wal-Mart) hate the word overtime.


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## dc1346 (Nov 28, 2014)

gopastry said:


> I decided to go to college to study baking and pastry when I was 49. I am 51 now. I've started to work at a bakery one and half months ago as an intern. I work at pm shift that starts at 10:30am and supposes off at 6:30pm (with half hour rest for lunch), but the reality is that I always have to work overtime every shift for at least 9 hours sometimes 11 hours with standing, that not including the rest time.


You could try teaching. If you're in the States and have a Bachelor's degree you could check out alternative education certification routes by talking to the certification department at your state's Department of Education. You could also try teaching at a community college. There are also adult community education programs that are sometimes run through non-profits that offer culinary training programs to diverse groups that include ex-convicts, troubled youth, etc.

If you have culinary skills beyond cooking and baking, you could free lance as a personal chef. This would allow you to pick and choose jobs and if you were successful, you could build up a loyal clientele many of whom would have set schedules.

I went into the food service industry when I was 41. In 2005, I literally worked all but three days of that entire year. Not only did I pull 84+ hour weeks but there were times when I'd be on the closing shift for one day and then the opening shift for the next day.

I wouldn't have minded so much if I had been an hourly wage earner ... but since I was under contract and since my contract specified a minimum of 50 hours a week, my employer felt free to exploit me.

I could have moved on to another job but I wound up going the alternative certification route and I now teach Culinary Arts at a rural high school.

I'm being paid about 60% more than when I worked in the food service industry. My daily work schedule runs from 7:30 AM to 2:45 PM, Mondays through Friday.


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