Tennessee / Mental Health / Cook 2
Job-title file
Carry out the duties of this position in support of the agency's public mission.
3 employees hold this title in Mental Health. Median total compensation for the role is $35,916, below the department median of $52,260.
Compared with the local labor market
Across all employers in Tennessee, the median wage for Cooks, Institution and Cafeteria — about 10,680 people — is $35,570. Mental Health pays a median base salary of $31,944 for this role, 10% below that figure — about the 33rd percentile of local pay for the occupation.
The bar is the range of annual wages for Cooks, Institution and Cafeteria across every employer in Tennessee, from the 10th to the 90th percentile, with the middle 50% highlighted. The marker shows Mental Health’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. Mental Health’s median base salary is 15% below that national figure, about the 23rd 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 Tennessee range relative to the national one.
Median total compensation for this role at Mental Health is $31,944, 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
Cook 2 is held in 4 Tennessee departments. In Mental Health, the median of $35,916 ranks #4 of 4.
Median total compensation for the Cook 2 role in other Tennesseedepartments (highest first). Each bar links to that department’s page for this role.
Compare jurisdictions
This role is reported in 20 jurisdictions. In Tennessee, the median of $36,480 ranks #10 of 20. See Cook across all of Tennessee →
Median total compensation for comparable Cookroles 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
Page 1
Cook 2/Mental Health
Source-specific fields
Bradwick Lax works as a Cook 2 for Mental Health within Food Production. Their status is full-time. Bradwick earned $37,932 in 2026.
Cook 2/Mental Health
Source-specific fields
At Mental Health, Charidy Daniel serves as a Cook 2 within Food Production. They work full-time. Their 2026 pay totaled $35,916.
Cook 2/Mental Health
Source-specific fields
Latoya Buggs works as a Cook 2 for Mental Health within Food Production. Their status is full-time. Latoya earned $35,832 in 2026.