Baker

How to find a baker: bread, croissants, pastries

Updated 31 October 2026

Night shifts, volume and product

Baking is work with its own rhythm. Sourdough bread is baked at night so that it is on the shelf in the morning, and the schedule is built around that. If the job is on night shifts, say so right away, not at the interview. That way you waste neither your time nor the candidate's.

In your request, describe what exactly will be baked: loaf and hearth bread, croissants, puff pastry, pizza, buns. Each needs different skills and equipment.

What to include

• What to bake — bread, croissants, savoury pastries, buns.
• Production volume — for example, 300 kg per shift.
• Type of place — bakery, shop with its own baking, restaurant.
• Place of work — city, for example Johannesburg.
• Schedule — night shifts, 2-on-2-off, early starts.
• Salary — pay per shift, for example R 160 or a fixed rate plus a share of output.
• Employment — formal contract, medical fitness certificate.
• Experience — from 1 year, with or without sourdough.

Example request

“A bakery in Johannesburg needs a baker for night shifts, 2-on-2-off. Sourdough bread and buns, up to 300 kg per shift, convection and deck ovens. Pay R 160 per shift, formal contract. 1+ years of experience, medical fitness certificate required.”

How to check a baker

Dough weight, water temperature, proving time: a baker counts everything. Ask how they judge when dough is ready, what they do when bread does not rise, and how they control the yield. A good answer is specific, not general talk about a “feel”.

Ask about equipment: dough mixer, rotary or deck oven, proofing cabinet. Experience on other equipment can be learned, but it takes time and you should allow for it. Agree on a trial shift and on who places the morning orders for production.

Say separately whether the baker cleans the equipment after the shift or someone else does. It affects the length of the working day.

If bread goes out to shops or for delivery, ask whether the candidate can handle packing and batch labelling.

How it works through BlaBlaPrice

You describe the job in your own words. Before it is shown, it is checked for ads and stray contacts, and you get hints on what else to add. Candidates reply in the chat, telling you about their experience and expected pay. Only the one you choose gets your phone number. A request stays active for 30 days. More in how it works.

If you are a baker looking for work

Register as a service provider, choose this category and your area, and job requests will come to you. If desserts are more your thing, have a look at pastry chef.