FOOD SERVICE TECHNICIAN
Midwest Food Equipment Service - Grandville or Kalamazoo, Michigan
Full-Time | Monday–Friday, 8 AM–5+ PM | $20–$36/hr based on experience and placement
ABOUT US
Founded in 1970, Midwest Food Equipment Service is a family-owned commercial kitchen equipment company with over 50 years in the food service industry and more than 200 years of combined certified technician experience on our team. We provide service, parts, and installation solutions for commercial cooking equipment across all of Michigan — from Grand Rapids to Kalamazoo and everywhere in between. Our customers include restaurants, schools, hospitals, and commercial kitchens of all kinds. When their equipment goes down, we are who they call. We are a CFESA-certified service company and an authorized warranty provider for over 100 major manufacturers.
We are a close-knit team that takes pride in doing things right, treating people well, and building real long-term relationships — with our customers, our vendors, and each other.
ABOUT THE ROLE
We are looking for mechanically inclined individuals who want to build a real career in the food service equipment trade. This posting is open to all experience levels — from candidates who have never touched a commercial oven to those who have spent years working in the trades. Your starting level and pay are determined during the interview based on your background and what you bring in the door. What matters most at every level is that you are driven, coachable, and genuinely want to do this work well.
Our technicians travel across Michigan servicing commercial kitchen equipment for restaurants, schools, hospitals, and businesses of all kinds. This is hands-on field work — physical, technical, and customer-facing. If that sounds like your kind of day, we want to hear from you.
STARTING LEVELS & PAY
We place all incoming technicians into one of three starting levels based on experience. Each level is described below so you can identify where you fit before your interview.
- Food Service Technician Level I — $20/hr
- Food Service Technician Level II — $22/hr
- Food Service Technician Level III — $24/hr
- Technician Orientation Track — $24 - $36/hr
Level I — No Relevant Experience
You are new to the trades or coming from an unrelated field. You are mechanically curious, coachable, and ready to learn from the ground up. We will provide full training and the time to develop the right way under experienced technicians. The most important things at this level are drive, attention to detail, and the willingness to show up ready to learn every single day.
Level II — Related Background
You have some hands-on experience in maintenance, mechanical work, electrical, appliance repair, HVAC, refrigeration, or a similar field. You are not starting from zero but you have not necessarily worked on commercial kitchen equipment before. You understand how systems work and can apply that foundation here. We will build on what you already know.
Level III — Direct Trade Experience
You have real hands-on experience in a trade — HVAC, commercial kitchen equipment, refrigeration, or a licensed trade background. You are not starting from scratch and your development timeline to running independent calls will be shorter as a result. You still go through our process, but you come in with something and we recognize that from day one.
Orientation Track — For Candidates with Advanced Experience
Candidates who demonstrate advanced trade skills during the interview process may be placed directly into a Technician tier position, bypassing the standard development period entirely. This track requires only an orientation covering how MFE operates — our systems, processes, customers, and equipment expectations — before you are running calls independently. Pay for orientation track placements begins at the floor of the applicable technician tier. If you have the experience, we will not slow you down.
WHAT YOU'LL DO
- Service, diagnose, and repair a wide range of commercial kitchen equipment
- Travel to customer locations across Michigan to perform service calls
- Work alongside experienced technicians during your development period
- Communicate professionally with customers on site and over the phone
- Complete work orders, documentation, and parts requests accurately and on time
- Progress toward running independent service calls as your skills develop
- Participate in the on-call rotation beginning at the Junior Technician level
WHAT WE'RE LOOKING FOR
- Mechanical aptitude and genuine curiosity about how things work — this is the foundation everything else is built on
- A strong desire to learn and grow in a skilled trade — we invest in the right people
- Any hands-on background in mechanical, electrical, maintenance, automotive, HVAC, refrigeration, or trade work is a plus at any level
- CFESA certification or trade school coursework is valued — we actively support continuing certification for our team
- Valid driver's license and clean driving record — travel across Michigan is a consistent part of this role
- Physical ability to perform field service work in commercial kitchen environments — lifting, bending, working in tight spaces
- Reliable, punctual, and accountable
- Strong attention to detail and commitment to accurate documentation
- Professional and comfortable communicating with customers on site
YOUR CAREER PATH AT MFE
This is not a job with a ceiling. Every technician who joins MFE enters a defined structure with a clear path forward. Advancement is based on demonstrated skill and performance — not just time on the job.
- Food Service Technician Level I — $20/hr, band to $28/hr
- Food Service Technician Level II — $22/hr, band to $28/hr
- Food Service Technician Level III — $24/hr, band to $28/hr
- Orientation Track — Applicable Technician band floor, based on placement
- Junior Technician — $24 to $32/hr
- Technician — $26 to $36/hr
- Senior Technician — $34 to $46/hr
- Lead Technician — $42 to $50/hr
Every employee receives a guaranteed minimum 3% annual raise every year. Annual performance-based raises are based on quarterly reviews on top of that. Advancement between tiers is formalized and documented — when you move up, your pay moves with you.
WHAT WE OFFER
- Starting pay: $20–$36/hr based on experience and placement
- Guaranteed minimum 3% annual raise — every employee, every year
- Annual performance-based raises on top of that, performance reviewed quarterly
- Defined advancement path with pay increases at every tier
- On-call rotation beginning at Junior Technician with additional compensation
- Full-time, Minimum Monday through Friday, 8 AM to 5 PM with overtime opportunities
- Direct deposit, bi-weekly payroll
- 401k plan after 60 days
- Health insurance options
- Bonuses and incentives throughout the year
- A family-owned company where you are known by name, not a number
