OCCUPATION: CHOCOLATE MAKER

Name: Teesha Carloss

Company: Trops, the Chocolate People

Thumbs up: “We make everything here. I like using my hands. And I like seeing what I make being sold. I really enjoy my job. All of us here get along well. We’re like one big, happy family.”

Thumbs down: “Sometimes it’s frustrating when the chocolate is not at the right temperature; that makes the cocoa butter rise to the top, and it causes white streaks.”

Next step: “I hope to eventually have my own cake decorating business.”

Advice: “Stick with it and be positive about it. You can go to confectionery school, but it’s very expensive. There are classes that teach cake decorating, but making chocolates mostly is on-the-job training. Go in there and learn everything you can, and them some.”

Salary range: From $6 to $12 hourly.

Hours: Flexible; full or part time.

Educational and training requirements: On-the-job training.

Size of work force: There are fewer than two dozen candy makers in Orange County.

Job description: Melt sheets of chocolate; roll it or form it into candies, brownies, or specialty items such as chocolate boxes and bags. In smaller businesses, candy makers may also do some cashier and front-counter work, as well as develop new recipes and new retail items.

Major employing industries: Candy-making enterprises and some small candy shops that make their own candy.

Advancement: Can move up to store manager. But candy makers often move into a related field such as the baking profession.

For more information: Call or visit the job service window at any office of the state Employment Development Department. In Orange County, the offices are at 900 E. Pacifico Ave. in Anaheim, (714) 978-7421; 233 E. Commonwealth Ave., in Fullerton (714) 680-7800; and 1001 S. Grand Ave. in Santa Ana (714) 558-4294.

Source: Trops, the Chocolate People