Food Services Assistant

Department: Community Outreach & Services (COS) - Nutrition Services

Status: Full-Time, Hourly, Non-Exempt

Schedule: 5 days/week, rotating with the Food Services Supervisor
Week 1: Monday - Friday | Week 2: Sunday - Thursday

Hours: 30+ hours a week
Salary: $21.00 - $24.00 per hour / depending on experience

Reports To: Food Services Supervisor

About Us


St. Mary's Center is a community of hope, healing, and justice dedicated to serving older adults, preschool families, and individuals experiencing homelessness in Oakland and the surrounding Alameda County community. St. Mary's Center operates transitional housing, a senior center, and preschool and is developing permanent supportive housing as part of a comprehensive, collaborative community development strategy along the San Pablo Avenue corridor. We are proud of an excellent multidisciplinary team delivering high-quality services through which St. Mary's supports vulnerable populations in aging safely, independently, and with dignity.

Nutrition Services Program Overview

Nutrition Services is the food program of the Community Outreach & Services (COS) Department. It keeps older adults fed, safe, and welcomed at the table through daily congregate breakfast and lunch, food sourcing through the Alameda County Community Food Bank, Mercy Brown Bag, USDA commodities, vendors and donations, food safety and inventory systems, and the bi-weekly Community Market food distribution. Nutrition Services is its own reporting group within COS and coordinates closely with Senior Center Activities, Community Services case management, and Primary Prevention.

Position Summary

The Food Services Assistant supports the Food Services Supervisor in delivering daily congregate breakfast and lunch to older adults at the Community Center. The Supervisor cooks the meals; the Assistant preps ingredients, runs beverages, plates to the menu, serves members, receives and stores every delivery, tracks meal counts, and keeps the kitchen and dining room clean and safe, plus other duties as assigned.

Every other week the Assistant works the day the Supervisor is off, opening the kitchen and running and logging the refrigerator and freezer temperature checks as cover. The same duties are required during vacation and any other absence.

Essential Duties & Responsibilities

Kitchen Opening & Prep

• Open the kitchen in order on the daily checklist: hand washing, PPE, room condition, sanitized surfaces, and equipment ready.
• Confirm that the opening refrigerator and freezer temperature reading is on the log before prep begins, and raise it with the Supervisor immediately if it is not.
• Build the tray line in order and set up beverages and the service station for both meals.
• Work the prep list against the day's menu so that everything the Supervisor needs is ready in time for plating to finish by 9:30 AM for breakfast and 12:00 PM for lunch.

Food Preparation & Plating

• Wash, cut, thaw, portion, and stage ingredients for all five menu components.
• Plate and label the reserved special-diet plates and double-check them against the special-diet list before service.
• Prevent cross-contact throughout prep.
• Hold hot food hot and cold food cold from prep through to service.

Deliveries, Storage & Inventory

• Receive deliveries at the door and check temperature, packaging, dents, rust, bulging cans, spoilage, dates, and count against the order before anything is signed for.
• Keep USDA commodities and Community Market leftovers in the designated USDA storage area, separate from purchased and donated stock.
• Rotate all inventory First-In, First-Out, label and date everything without exception, and raise anything short, damaged, or close to its date before walking away from it.
• Count assigned sections accurately on the inventory sheet and support the monthly inventory count and expiration sweep.
• Support food pantry, Mercy Brown Bag, USDA, and Community Market setup and distribution activities as assigned.
• Carry food supplies, equipment, and utensils between storage and the kitchen.

Cleaning, Sanitation & Closing

• Run the transition between breakfast and lunch so lunch service begins on a clean floor.
• Mix and test sanitizer to the correct concentration and observe the contact time stated in the product instructions.
• Work the daily cleaning checklist through the close: prep areas, equipment, serving stations, floors, dish area, and dining hall.
• Wash dishes and work the dish area through rather than leaving it and remove trash and recycling to the designated disposal areas.
• Store leftovers under the food-safety rules or discard them.
• Complete the closing checklist: equipment off, materials and documents secured, facility locked.

Documentation, Temperature Cover & Training

• Record meals served and participant counts as members are served and hand them to the Supervisor for reconciliation before closing.
• Run and log the refrigerator and freezer temperature checks at open and at close as cover on the alternating day the Supervisor is off, during vacation, and during any other absence, with initials and to the same standard as the Supervisor.
• Report anything that happened during the day to the Supervisor the same day, with names, witnesses, and the time noted.
• Maintain ServSafe Food Handler certification.
• Participate in training, the daily 9:00 AM morning huddle, staff meetings, and program development as required.
• Perform other kitchen and food service duties as assigned by the Food Services Supervisor.
• Follow all federal, local, county, and operational compliance standards, policies and procedures.

Qualifications

• ServSafe Food Handler certification, or completion of the online certification by the end of the first day of work and maintained thereafter.
• Knowledge of sanitation and cleaning systems, kitchen tools, and commercial kitchen equipment.
• Ability to follow written checklists, prep lists, and temperature logs accurately and honestly, and to work to a clock.
• Ability to communicate with seniors, preschool families, and community members in an engaging and respectful way.
• Ability to maintain positive working relationships within a multicultural team.
• Experience working with older adults, especially homeless and formerly homeless seniors, preferred.
• Work or volunteer experience in human services, homelessness, or nutrition preferred.
• Experience receiving deliveries and maintaining FIFO inventory in a commercial or institutional kitchen preferred.
• Basic computer competence, including email and Microsoft Office.
• Valid California Driver License preferred, for food bank and grocery pickups as assigned.
• Multilingual abilities are strongly preferred.

Work Environment

This position operates in a commercial kitchen, dining hall, dish area, and food storage environment at the Community Center, including exposure to heat, walk-in refrigeration and freezer units, cleaning chemicals, and wet floors.

General Staff Expectations

• Promote a safe, respectful, and inclusive environment.
• Support the mission and values of St. Mary's Center.
• Maintain professionalism and confidentiality.
• Follow agency policies and procedures.
• Report incidents, injuries, medical emergencies, and suspected elder abuse, neglect, or exploitation in accordance with COS Department Manual Part 6 and mandated reporting requirements.
• Participate in evening and weekend events as required.

Physical Requirements

• Ability to sit, stand, walk, bend, reach, and communicate effectively throughout the workday.
• Ability to stand and walk for up to four hours at a time.
• Ability to occasionally lift and/or move up to 50 pounds.
• Ability to work in a commercial kitchen environment, including exposure to heat, cold storage units, cleaning chemicals, and wet floors.
• Ability to use computers, phones, tablets, and related technology for documentation and communication.

Equal Employment Opportunity

St. Mary's Center is an equal opportunity employer and is committed to an active Equal Employment Opportunity. We celebrate diversity and are committed to an inclusive environment for all employees. All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, national origin, age, disability, genetic information, or veteran status. In compliance with the California Fair Chance Act, St. Mary's Center will consider qualified applicant with a criminal history pursuant to the California Fair Chance Act.