Cook (Sunnyside)

Job Number: 3708
Job Type: Casual
Location: 247 Franklin St N - Sunnyside Home
Number of Positions: 1
Division: Community Services
Hours of Work: No guaranteed hours. Shifts can vary.
Union: Unifor 1106
Grade: Unifor 1106 Grade 004
Salary Range: $27.81 - $29.20 per hour
Posting Date: November 27, 2025 @ 12:00 AM
Closing Date: December 4, 2025 @ 11:59 PM

About Us!

The Region of Waterloo is a thriving, diverse community committed to fostering opportunities for current and future generations. Waterloo Region is part of the Dish with One Spoon wampum, a treaty guiding our commitment to:

• Taking only what we need
• Leaving some for others
• Keeping the dish clean

This agreement underpins our vision, mission, and core value, and reinforces our dedication to meaningful reconciliation and equity.

Waterloo Region is home to over 674,000 residents and expected to grow to nearly one million by 2051.

Guided by our 2023-2027 Strategic Plan, “Growing with Care,” we prioritize homes for all, climate aligned growth, equitable services and opportunities and a resilient and future ready organization. Our mission is to provide essential services that enhance the quality of life for all residents, while our core value emphasizes caring for people and the land we share. Join us and be part of a team dedicated to making a meaningful difference in our community.

The Role

Prepares nutritious meals and snacks for residents and staff of Sunnyside Home and others to meet Canada's Food Guide requirements, Regional policies and procedures, and in accordance with long term health care standards and regulations as directed by the Manager, Food Services.

Duties/Responsibilities

• Prepares, portions, and presents meals and snacks to be served to residents, staff, volunteers, visitors, out-reach services, and at special events. Adapts standardized recipes and ensures appropriate amounts of food are prepared to meet menu requirements.
• Prepares special food for therapeutic, texture modification (pureed, minced, or dental soft), and special preference diets.
• Portions food to be distributed to dining areas on residential floors, Senior's Day Care Program, Alzheimer's Day Away Program, Meals On Wheels Program, the cafeteria, and any special catering functions.
• Organizes food preparation schedules to meet meal deadlines.
• Labels, dates, stores, and utilizes leftover food. Disposes of all unusable food.
• Checks and records the temperatures of a walk-in and a reach-in refrigerator and a freezer twice daily.
• Turns on equipment, such as steamers, ovens, fans in the morning. Turns off and checks the condition of same at night.
• Bakes desserts, snacks and items for special functions, as assigned.
• Prepares production estimations and quantity requirements, such as defrosting meat, and requisitions for supplies from the storeroom according to menu requirements.
• Ensures that work area is maintained in a clean and orderly state. Changes oil and filters for the fryers, as required. Sanitizes and stores chef's knives.
• Receives calls and takes messages for the Supervisor, Food Services and/or Manager, Food Services in their absence. Passes information on to appropriate dietary staff, as required, and acts on emergency therapeutic dietary requests.
• Participates in dietary staff and special committee meetings, such as quality assurance, fire safety. Also participates in In-Service training sessions.
• Assists with internal audits or inspections to ensure quality, as assigned.
• Performs other related duties, as assigned.

Knowledge, Skills, and Abilities

• Knowledge of safety and sanitation in food handling and equipment use, normally acquired through the attainment of vocational/technical training, such as two year Community College Diploma in Food Preparation or equivalent, plus Cook (Red Seal) Certification and Safe Food Handling Course, with two years experience in large quantity food preparation in a health care or long term care setting.
• Understanding of therapeutic diets.
• Communication and human relations skills in order to respond pleasantly and professionally to demands; to communicate effectively with staff, residents, and families; to interact appropriately with and have a basic understanding of the geriatric population; and to participate as an effective team member.
• Ability to work independently.
• Ability to follow written and oral instructions in English.
• Ability to make accurate mental calculations for portion sizes and number of dishes required.
• Must provide an acceptable Police Records Check in order to ensure suitability for working with vulnerable populations.
• Ability to support and project values compatible with the organization.

Region of Waterloo is committed to building a workforce through fair, equitable, and accessible hiring practices that allow us to hire qualified staff who reflect the diversity of the community we serve and to promote a respectful, inclusive, and equitable workplace.

We invite all interested individuals to apply and actively encourage applications from members of groups with historical and/or current barriers to equity, including, but not limited to:

• First Nations, Métis and Inuit peoples, and all other Indigenous peoples;
• members of groups that commonly experience discrimination due to race, ancestry, colour, religion and/or spiritual beliefs, or place of origin;
• persons with visible and/or invisible (physical and/or mental) disabilities;
• persons who identify as women; and persons of marginalized sexual orientations, gender identities, and gender expressions

For questions or to request accommodations during your recruitment, onboarding or employment, please contact talentmanagement@regionofwaterloo.ca, or by calling our Service First Contact Centre at phone number (519) 575-4400.

Please note: candidates will be provided an update on their application. Please check your spam or junk folder occasionally as some candidates have noticed our emails in those folders (Gmail and Hotmail in particular).