Baker Job Description

Summary :

• Job
• Salary
• Skills
• Training
• Uniform
• Career prospects

This profession is part of the field of craftsmanship, it consists of producing all kinds of bread as well as pastries for a clientele. He prepares his production in advance very early in the morning in order to have his fresh confections to satisfy his customers. This job can be exhausting because of the working hours, but you have to be passionate and not consider this work rhythm as a chore.

It should be noted that there are bakers working in bakeries, but also in large and medium-sized retail stores.

The success of the establishment can greatly influence income levels. It's like in all craftsmanship professions, you have to be a skilled craftsman and stand out as much as possible in order to be able to win new customers with the goal of retaining them afterwards. Everything also depends on your location. In general, the salary of a beginner baker is €1500/month gross on a 35-hour/week basis. Sometimes these hours are exceeded and in this case,

billing is done on overtime hours. In addition, working on Sundays, holidays and at night increases the compensation received.

The baker profession requires certain skills, to guarantee quality work full of know-how. First of all, you must have a creative spirit and be precise, this is a real advantage in daily practice. This activity will require anticipation so as never to be caught off guard. Management and organization are very important to find your way through your tasks, in order to be able to offer a smooth and fast service. But the key to being able to practice this profession in the long term is above all passion.

You have the possibility to start from high school by doing a professional baccalaureate. There is also the CAP bakery, but also training centers, specialized schools in this field, such as the École Française Christian Vabret. These courses are focused on theory and practice to acquire all the necessary skills.

 To provide more details on the possible training programs, here is a detailed listing by level :

CAP Level :

• The CAP baker
• The Specialized Bakery Complementary Mention
• The Baker's Pastry Complementary Mention
• The CQP tourier snaking (to learn how to prepare doughs)

Baccalaureate Level : 

• The Professional Baccalaureate pastry chef (mainly useful for the pastry chef profession)
• The Professional Certificate in baking (2 years after CAP and Complementary Mention)

Bachelor's + 2 Level :

• Master's Certificate in baking accessible through the network of Chambers of Crafts
• University Diploma in Scientific and Technical Studies Production and transformations, specialty Culinary Arts and Crafts.

It should be known that the baker profession is a sector with many traditions. This is why to practice this profession, it is necessary to maintain a clean and professional image. The baker is equipped with a light uniform, allowing good freedom of movement, but also hygienic. You must therefore opt for head protection such as a cap or a toque. There are also jackets that you can pair with a t-shirt, many pants, but also shoe covers or safety shoes. You can also equip yourself with an apron according to your taste. All of these products are offered by the Robur brand.

The profession of baker-pastry chef is very interesting for its career prospects leading to higher levels. As an employer in a bakery, you will have the possibility to work for yourself in order to be more independent and have a higher responsibility. However, if you work in large and medium-sized retail stores, you have a good chance of joining the position of production manager or team leader according to job offers. This does not prevent you from specializing later as a baker/pastry chef in a bakery.