Production
Cooling and freezing equipment operators and tenders
Operate or tend equipment such as cooling and freezing units, refrigerators, batch freezers, and freezing tunnels, to cool or freeze products, food, blood plasma, and chemicals.
Median pay
$41,330
Growth to 2035
+6%
about as fast as average
Openings a year
800
Time to qualify*
6 months
* From a bachelor's degree in an unrelated field.
Pay
Cooling and freezing equipment operators and tenders
Getting in
- Typical entry education
- High school diploma or equivalent
- On-the-job training
- Moderate-term on-the-job training
- Prior experience
- None
Calculate your switch to cooling and freezing equipment operators and tenders
What the work is like
Dealing with the public
Unpleasant or angry people
Time pressure
Cost of a mistake
Freedom to make decisions
Repeating the same tasks
Time sitting
Time standing
Outdoors in all weather
Hazardous conditions
Cooling and freezing equipment operators and tenders: 50% usually work over 40 hours a week
Core tasks
- Record temperatures, amounts of materials processed, or test results on report forms.
- Monitor pressure gauges, ammeters, flowmeters, thermometers, or products, and adjust controls to maintain specified conditions, such as feed rate, product consistency, temperature, air pressure, and machine speed.
- Read dials and gauges on panel control boards to ascertain temperatures, alkalinities, and densities of mixtures, and turn valves to obtain specified mixtures.
- Start machinery, such as pumps, feeders, or conveyors, and turn valves to heat, admit, or transfer products, refrigerants, or mixes.
- Correct machinery malfunctions by performing actions such as removing jams, and inform supervisors of malfunctions as necessary.
- Assemble equipment, and attach pipes, fittings, or valves, using hand tools.
Also called: Certified Refrigeration Operator · Compressor Operator · Engine Room Operator · Freezer Operator · Freezer Person · Ice Cream Maker · Machine Operator · Refrigeration Operator
Outlook and AI
Cooling and freezing equipment operators and tenders held 7,700 jobs in 2025. BLS projects 8,100 by 2035 (+6%, about as fast as average; all jobs: +3.5%).
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