Food Service Worker Leader

Veterans Health Administration • Iron Mountain, MI

4d

About The Position

This position is in the Nutrition and Food Division at the Oscar G. Johnson VA Medical Center, a Level 3 Complexity VHA Facility. The Food Service Worker Leader understands special procedures for preparing food and serving patients, and leads or guides lower-grade food service workers and production and food service staff in the supervisor’s absence.

The role involves preparing and serving food, delivering patient meal trays, maintaining food service areas, and coordinating daily work. The leader communicates instructions, assigns and adjusts work, trains employees, monitors performance, supports safety and sanitation, and reports problems or equipment needs. Work is performed in kitchen areas that may be hot and humid and involves standing, walking, cleaning, and handling food and supplies.

The position is full-time, with a rotating schedule that includes days, weekends, and holidays, from 11:00 a.m. to 7:30 p.m. No specific length of training or experience is required; applicants must demonstrate training or experience sufficient to show they can perform the work. There is no education qualification requirement. A one-year probationary period or two-year trial period applies.

Requirements

• Must be a U.S. citizen.
• Selective Service registration is required for males born after December 31, 1959.
• Subject to background/security investigation and pre-employment evaluation.
• Must complete the online onboarding process and provide acceptable identification for pre-employment requirements.
• Participation in the seasonal influenza vaccination program is required for VA Health Care Personnel.
• Must serve a one-year probationary period or two-year trial period, as applicable.
• Must demonstrate training or experience of sufficient scope and quality to perform the work; no specific length of training or experience is required.
• Resume must include detailed descriptions supporting the applicant’s knowledge, skills, and ability to perform the duties.
• Qualifications are assessed against job elements including dexterity and safety; interpreting instructions and specifications; leading or supervising; materials; technical practices; use and maintenance of tools and equipment; and work practices.
• Must be able to perform light to moderate physical work and may need to perform heavy work, including scrubbing large cooking utensils and pushing heavy carts and trucks.
• Must be able to stand and walk continuously and frequently stoop, reach, push, pull, and bend.
• Must frequently lift or move objects weighing up to 20 pounds unassisted and occasionally lift or move objects weighing more than 40 pounds with assistance.

Responsibilities

• Set up and break down assigned stations with the correct supplies and food items.
• Portion food into standard serving sizes using proper utensils and specified dishware.
• Select and place correct items on patient trays.
• Decide which food items to serve for common diets and identify obvious discrepancies between prescribed diets and menu items.
• Set up dining room tables, place food and beverages, and replenish items as necessary.
• Deliver meal trays to patients’ bedsides and report patient comments and complaints to a supervisor or dietitian.
• Assist cooks with food preparation, including weighing, measuring, and assembling ingredients according to standardized recipes.
• Prepare fresh fruit, cold salads and dressings, sandwich fillings, cold sandwiches, and simple cold desserts.
• Read and interpret regular or modified menus, individual diet cards, tray tickets, and patient selections.
• Perform heavy-duty cleaning throughout food service and related areas.
• Communicate work instructions and information to employees, and communicate problems and events to supervisors, managers, and employees.
• Maintain knowledge of procedures, policies, written instructions, and other directives to answer employee questions.
• Lead activities in production and service areas.
• Provide on-the-job training to lower-grade food service workers and document the training.
• Complete safety and sanitation inspection checklists, document problems, and initiate corrective action.
• Review daily work assignment sheets and adjust assignments and work sequence as necessary.
• Assign tasks to individual work-group members.
• Observe employees’ daily activities and work performance and provide information to the supervisor for evaluations.
• Enter work-order requests promptly for equipment needing repair.
• Evaluate food before service, including temperature, taste, and appearance.
• Perform other duties as assigned.

Benefits

• Federal employees and their families have access to a comprehensive benefits package; specific benefits depend on position eligibility and should be confirmed with the hiring agency.

What This Job Offers

• Job Type: Full-time
• Career Level: Entry Level
• Education Level: No Education Listed