Saskatchewan JobFutures

Nature of Work

Butchers prepare standard cuts of meat, poultry, fish and shellfish for sale in retail or wholesale food establishments. Bakers prepare bread, rolls, muffins, pies and cakes for sale in the same establishments or in bakeries, restaurants or supermarkets. Butchers and bakers may work as employees, or they may be self-employed.

Nature of Work

Butchers prepare standard cuts of meat, poultry, fish and shellfish for sale in retail or wholesale food establishments. Bakers prepare bread, rolls, muffins, pies and cakes for sale in the same establishments or in bakeries, restaurants or supermarkets. Butchers and bakers may work as employees, or they may be self-employed.

Duties

Butchers and meat cutters, retail and wholesale, perform a variety of duties related to the preparation of food. They cut, trim and otherwise prepare standard cuts of meat, poultry, fish and shellfish for sale at self-serve counters. They also prepare specialty foods according to customers' orders. Butchers and meat cutters also grind meats and slice cooked meats using powered grinders and slicing machines. Other duties in this field include preparing special displays of meat, poultry, fish and shellfish, and shaping, lacing, tying and wrapping roasts and other meats, poultry or fish. Butchers and meat cutters may also be responsible for supervising other butchers or meat cutters.

Bakers prepare dough for pies, bread and rolls and sweet goods, and prepare batters for muffins, cookies, cakes,

icings and frostings according to recipes or special customer orders. Their regular work duties include baking mixed doughs and batters, frosting and decorating cakes or other baked goods, and purchasing baking supplies. Bakers are also responsible hiring and training baking personnel, overseeing sales and merchandising of baked goods, scheduling production, and determining the type and quantity of goods to produce.

Example Titles

Butchers and meat cutters, retail and wholesale:

• supermarket meat cutter
• butcher apprentice
• butcher, retail and wholesale
• head butcher, retail and wholesale
• meat cutter, retail and wholesale

Bakers:

• baker
• baker apprentice
• bakery supervisor
• head baker

Training Paths

Butchers and bakers generally receive their training on the job. However, SIAST offers a Retail Meat Cutting certificate program for those wishing more formal training in the field. Related training is available through the Professional Cooking certificate program, offered through SIAST at Palliser Campus in Moose Jaw, Woodland Campus in Prince Albert and Parkland Regional College in Melville. As well, the Cook/Apprenticeship program is available in Saskatchewan, with the technical in-school training program delivered at SIAST, Kelsey Campus in Saskatoon and SIAST, Palliser Campus in Moose Jaw. Training for these occupations may take place through on-the-job training provided by the employer.

Trends and Outlooks

The employment prospects for this occupation are: fair

Employment numbers have dropped significantly both for butchers and for bakers. In fact, there were close to 300 fewer workers in these occupations in 2005 than there were in 2000; a 14% drop in just over 5 years. The work forces for these occupations are similar in age. Only 35% of all butchers and bakers in the province were 45 years of age or older. Consequently, not many job openings will result from retirement in the next few years. Most of the employment opportunities in the next few years will arise from new or replacement positions, left open by the leave or transfer of bakers and butchers currently working in the province. Despite the drop in employment for Bakers, Saskatchewan Institute for Applied Science and Technology receives frequent employer requests for qualified bakers, suggesting ongoing demand for this trade.

Neither butchers nor bakers are well paid in Saskatchewan. In 2005, the average full-time income for bakers was $26,200 per year. The average income that year for butchers wasn't much better ($28,900 per year). Each of these average incomes is well below the provincial full-time average for all occupations ($42,300 per year).

Many butchers and bakers earned more or less than the average income for these occupations. In 2005, butchers in Saskatchewan earned as much as $45,600. The same year, annual incomes for bakers ranged from $6,907 to $40,800. Butchers and bakers working in or around Regina and Saskatoon tend to earn more than their counterparts elsewhere in the province.

In Saskatchewan, employment for these occupations is divided evenly between men and women; just under 60% of all butchers and bakers in the province were male in 2006. That same year, 42% of all butchers and bakers in the province worked in or around Regina or Saskatoon. A slight majority of butchers and bakers in Saskatchewan are employed part time--45% were employed on a part-time basis in 2005. While not unheard of, self-employment is rare among butchers and bakers. Employment for butchers and bakers is moderately sensitive to overall economic conditions and generally not seasonal.

Butchers and bakers who have completed an apprenticeship program may have an advantage over others seeking employment in these fields of works.

Professional Associations

Related Occupations

Butchers and meat cutters, retail and wholesale:

• Industrial Butchers and Meat Cutters, Poultry Preparers and Related Workers (9462)

Bakers:

• Baking machine operators (in 9461 Process Control and Machine Operators, Food and Beverage Processing)
• Pastry chefs (in 6241 Chefs)