Los Angeles County / Fire Department / Senior Cook
Job-title file
Carry out the duties of this position in support of the agency's public mission.
2 employees hold this title in Fire Department. Median total compensation for the role is $152,185, below the department median of $226,568.
Compared with the local labor market
Across all employers in the Los Angeles-Long Beach-Anaheim, CA area, the median wage for Cooks, Institution and Cafeteria — about 9,860 people — is $45,400. Fire Department pays a median base salary of $56,874 for this role, 25% above that figure — about the 86th percentile of local pay for the occupation.
The bar is the range of annual wages for Cooks, Institution and Cafeteria across every employer in the Los Angeles-Long Beach-Anaheim, CA area, from the 10th to the 90th percentile, with the middle 50% highlighted. The marker shows Fire Department’s median base salary for this role. Both figures are base pay only.
And across the country
Nationwide, the median wage for Cooks, Institution and Cafeteria — about 441,050 people — is $37,450. Fire Department’s median base salary is 52% above that national figure, above the 90th percentile of pay for the occupation nationally.
Local and national wages differ for reasons beyond how well a job pays — cost of living, the mix of employers, and local demand for the occupation all move the Los Angeles-Long Beach-Anaheim, CA range relative to the national one.
Median total compensation for this role at Fire Department is $152,185, which includes overtime and employer-paid benefits. The benchmark above excludes both, so total compensation is deliberately not compared against it.
Benchmark: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics (May 2025). BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics (OEWS) covers all employers in the area — private, non-profit, and government alike — so this is a comparison against the whole local labor market for the occupation, not against private-sector pay. OEWS wages are straight-time pay and exclude overtime, shift differentials, and employer-paid benefits, so the government figure shown here is base pay on the same basis. Total compensation is not comparable to it. Job titles are matched to the closest standard occupation, so the comparison is between similar work rather than an identical job classification.
Compare departments
Senior Cook is held in 3 Los Angeles County departments. In Fire Department, the median of $152,185 ranks #1 of 3.
Median total compensation for the Senior Cook role in other Los Angeles Countydepartments (highest first). Each bar links to that department’s page for this role.
Compare jurisdictions
This role is reported in 3 jurisdictions. In Los Angeles County, the median of $124,448 ranks #1 of 3. See Senior Cook across all of Los Angeles County →
Median total compensation for comparable Senior Cook roles in other jurisdictions. Titles are matched by normalized name across sources, not identical job classification, and pay is not cost-of-living adjusted. Each bar links to that jurisdiction’s page for the role.
Record list
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Senior Cook/Fire Department
Michael Mendoza works as a Senior Cook for Fire Department. Michael earned $157,665 in 2025.
Senior Cook/Fire Department
At Fire Department, John Bergendahl serves as a Senior Cook. Their 2025 pay totaled $146,705.