Detention Cook

Position Information

The Sonoma County Sheriff's Office is looking for a food service professional to join their team!

Starting salary up to $31.93/hour ($ 66,641 /year), plus a competitive total compensation package!*

What We Offer

Working at the County of Sonoma offers expansive opportunities for growth and development, the ability to be a part of a challenging and rewarding work environment, and the satisfaction of knowing you're working to better our communities. You can also look forward to flexible work arrangements and excellent benefits* including:

• Salary Advancement - A salary increase after 1,040 hours (6 months when working full-time) for good work performance; eligibility for a salary increase for good performance every year thereafter, until reaching the top of the salary range
• Paid Time Off - Competitive vacation and sick leave accruals, 12 paid holidays, and an additional 8 floating holiday hours per year
• County Paid Health Premium Contributions - 100% premium contribution for the majority of employee-only and employee + family health plan options
• Staff Development/Wellness Pay - Annual benefit allowances of up to $500 and ongoing education/training opportunities
• Post-Retirement Health Reimbursement Arrangement - County contributions to help fund post-retirement employee health insurance/benefits
• Retirement - A pension fully integrated with Social Security
• Paid Parental Leave - May be eligible for up to 8 weeks (320 hours) after 12 months of County employment
• Student Loan Debt Relief - County employees may be eligible for Public Service Loan Forgiveness through the U.S. Department of Education

Join the Sheriff's Office Family

Do you have experience cooking with industrial-sized equipment in large facilities, and:

• Are willing to work alongside inmates, provide guidance to them, and exercise your leadership skills?
• Come to work with a positive attitude, work with confidence, and know how to be a team player?

If you can answer "Yes" to these questions, the Sonoma County Sheriff's Office is looking for you!

Detention Cooks provide a valuable service to the Sonoma County Sheriff's Office. Whether it is cooking and serving large quantities of nutritious food, preparing special meals for medically-restricted diets, and/or creating new recipes or meal plans for staff meals/events, working at the County provides a variety of challenges that will help you advance your culinary expertise.

The Sonoma County Sheriff's Office offers the opportunity to become a member of a strong work family that makes a difference in our community. For additional information about our community and the services we provide, please visit www.sonomacountyconnections.org and the Sheriff's Office website .

The ideal candidate will possess many of the following:

• Institutional kitchen experience
  
• Experience working on/leading a team and working with a wide range of personalities
  
• Strong communication, conflict resolution, and customer service skills
  
• The ability to communicate via phone and computer
  
• Food Handler’s Certification and/or Food Manager’s Certification
  
• Basic knowledge of Microsoft Office
  
  Note: Detention Cooks are required to lift, push, and pull heavy equipment and supplies. Additionally, they may work for long periods of time, while standing, under conditions of high temperature. As a condition of employment, individuals are required to undergo and maintain a Sheriff's Office background clearance, and must be willing to work all shifts, including days, evenings, nights, weekends, and holidays.
  

This recruitment is currently being conducted to fill a Detention Cook position. This employment list may also be used to fill future full-time, part-time, or extra-help (temporary) positions as they occur during the active status of the list. County employees who wish to be considered for future positions should consider applying to this recruitment . The Civil Service title for this position is Cook.

*Salary is negotiable within the established range. Benefits described herein do not represent a contract and may be changed without notice. Additional information can be found in the Service Employees International Union Local 1021 Memorandum Of Understanding (SEIU MOU) and our Employee Benefits Directory .

APPLICATION SUBMISSIONS REQUIRE THE SUPPLEMENTAL QUESTIONNAIRE BE COMPLETED.

Minimum Qualifications

Experience: Any combination of experience which would provide an opportunity to acquire the knowledge and abilities listed. Normally, two years of recent experience in the preparation and cooking of a variety of foods in a large-scale institutional or commercial setting, such as a medium sized hospital or detention facility, would provide such opportunity.

Education: The ability to speak, read and write English and make simple arithmetical calculations commensurate with the knowledge and abilities listed. Successful completion of special courses in institutional food preparation is highly desirable.

Knowledge, Skills, and Abilities

Working knowledge of: the methods, procedures and equipment involved in the large scale preparation of foods; the health and safety hazards in institutional food preparation; the necessary safety precautions.

Some knowledge of: the basic principles and practices of dietetics and nutrition.

Ability to: follow detailed oral and written instructions; prepare and cook food in large quantities; prepare modified diet items; supervise the work of assigned staff and inmates; establish and maintain effective working relationships with coworkers, inmates or wards, supervisors and staff of other departments; work early morning shifts, evenings, holidays and weekends; work for long periods of time while standing and under conditions of high temperature; lift, push and pull heavy equipment and supplies; make simple arithmetical calculations; operate kitchen equipment.

Selection Procedure & Some Helpful Tips When Applying

• Your application information and your responses to the supplemental questions are evaluated and taken into consideration throughout the entire selection process.
• You should list all employers and positions held within the last ten years in the work history section of your application. Be as thorough as possible when responding to the supplemental questions.
• You may include history beyond ten years if related to the position for which you are applying. If you held multiple positions with one employer, list out each position separately.
• Failure to follow these instructions may impact your competitiveness in this process or may result in disqualification.

Please visit Getting a Job with the County of Sonoma to review more detailed information about the hiring process, including the application process, examination steps, and department selection process.

APPLICATION SUBMISSIONS REQUIRE THE SUPPLEMENTAL QUESTIONNAIRE BE COMPLETED.

Responses to supplemental questions will be scored using position-specific criteria. Please provide specific and detailed responses of a reasonable length to allow for a thorough assessment of your qualifications. Responses that state, "See Resume" or "See Application" may be considered insufficient and therefore may not be scored.

The selection procedure will consist of the following examination:

An Application & Supplemental Questionnaire Appraisal Examination (weight 100%) will be conducted to evaluate each applicant's application and supplemental questionnaire for satisfaction of minimum qualifications (pass/not pass); and for educational coursework, training, experience, knowledge, and abilities which relate to this position. Each applicant will be evaluated based on the following criteria:

• Relevance of work history, related experience, and achieved level of education and/or training as described in the application and responses to the supplemental questions.

Candidates demonstrating possession of the minimum qualifications will be placed on an employment list in order of most qualified to least qualified based on the achieved score received in the Application & Supplemental Questionnaire Appraisal Examination which evaluates the education, training, experience, skills, knowledge, abilities, and other qualifications that you demonstrate in your application and/or response to the supplemental questionnaire. Please be aware that resumes and cover letters are not typically evaluated in the Application & Supplemental Questionnaire Appraisal Examination. Scores may be adjusted based on such factors as the number of candidates, anticipated vacancies, past practice, and natural breaks in the scores achieved by this group of candidates.

BACKGROUND PROCESS

Being part of the Sheriff's Office and being expected to keep the public safe requires a thorough background investigation process. This process includes an assessment of prior work history, verifying educational experiences, court reports, public records searches, and understanding past patterns relating to drug usage, financial patterns, etc. This entails gathering a significant amount of information from job candidates and speaking to former employers, friends, family members, etc. Polygraphs, drug tests, and medical and physical examinations are also part of this process. Candidates must be honest and forthcoming about information that may arise during the background process. Deception during any portion of this process is grounds for disqualification, even after employment. This process can take anywhere from 3-5 months. Many factors are taken into consideration and one should not assume a credit issue or prior drug use is automatically disqualifying. Candidates will be given the opportunity to present mitigating information they feel should be considered. You are encouraged to be as responsive as possible while this process is taking place to help expedite the timeline, and we encourage you to stay patient and interested in this great career opportunity while this process is taking place.

You may also review the Job Classification Screening Schedule to determine the requirements for this position.

Please read the Sheriff's Office Pre-Employment Drug Use Guidelines for further information.

HOW TO APPLY

Applications are accepted online at www.yourpath2sonomacounty.org . Paper applications may be submitted by person, fax (707-565-3770), email, or through the mail. All applications and appropriate supplemental information as outlined in the job bulletin must be RECEIVED by the time and date specified on the first page of this job announcement. Applications received after the recruitment closes will not be accepted.

The County of Sonoma values diversity and is dedicated to creating a workplace environment that provides individuals with a sense of belonging. We are committed to having a diverse workforce that is representative of the communities we serve. The County is proud to be an Equal Opportunity Employer where all aspects of employment are based on merit, competence, performance, and business need.

HR Analyst: JL
HR Technician: EV

IMPORTANT NOTE: Benefits described herein do not apply to Extra Help positions.

COUNTY OF SONOMA BENEFITS: GENERAL*

These are some of the excellent benefits the County offers:

Paid Time Off :Competitive vacation and sick leave accruals; 12 paid holidays, and an additional 8 floating holiday hours per year; and may be eligible for up to 8 weeks (320 hours) of Paid Parental Leave after 12 months of County employment.

Health Plan : Choose from nine health plans (three HMOs, three deductible HMOs, and three HSA-qualifying plans) with a generousCounty contribution to the premium (the contribution amount varies by bargaining unit). For more information, please see the appropriate MOU.

Retirement :Fully integrated with Social Security.For more information regarding eligibility, retirement contributions, and reciprocity with prior public service, please visit https://scretire.org/active-/-deferred/when-you-are-hired .

IRS 457 Plan : Pre-tax employee contribution up to the IRS annual maximum.

Retiree Medical :County contribution to a Health Reimbursement Arrangement to help fund post-retirement employee health insurance/benefits.

Student Loan Debt Relief :County employees may be eligible for Public Service Loan Forgiveness through the U.S. Department of Education.

Plus excellent dental, vision, disability, life insurance, professional development, and more.

For answers to specific questions regarding the employment process and more details about benefits or retirement, please contact Human Resources at (707) 565-2331.Additional details about benefit and compensation packages can be found in the MOUs located at https://sonomacounty.ca.gov/administrative-support-and-fiscal-services/human-resources/divisions-and-units/employee-relations/labor-agreements-and-salary-resolution . For specific information about health and welfare benefits including plan options, coverage, and premium amounts go to https://sonomacounty.ca.gov/administrative-support-and-fiscal-services/human-resources or, contact the Human Resources' Risk Management-Benefits Office at benefits@sonoma-county.org or (707) 565-2900.

*IMPORTANT NOTES: Benefits described herein do not represent a contract and may be changed without notice.

Closing Date/Time: 2/26/2025 11:59 PM Pacific

• 

• County of Sonoma

• 707-565-8059

Show more