Food Service Workers

Because work schedules can be flexible, part-time work is often available, and because people need little or no training to do this work, the food service industry employs a substantial number of people. Additionally, the demand for restaurants and other eateries continues to grow as our population grows. In particular, the large and growing population of senior citizens, who often prefer to dine at restaurants offering table service from waiters, should mean a steady demand for those in this field. According to the U.S. Department of Labor (DOL), employment for food and beverage serving and related workers should grow about as fast as the average for all careers from 2023 through 2033. Opportunities are expected to be good because of the high turnover in this profession. Those with previous work experience and top-notch customer-service skills will have the best job opportunities.

The DOL provides the following employment outlooks (through 2033) for various food service workers:

• dining room and cafeteria attendants and bartender helpers: +8 (faster than the average for all careers)
• fast food and counter workers: +6 (faster than the average)
• food servers, nonrestaurant: +5 (about as fast as the average)
• waiters and waitresses: +1 percent (slower than the average)
• hosts and hostesses, restaurant, lounge, and coffee shop: +0 (little or no change)

Overall, job opportunities in the field will be excellent. Many job openings will come from the need to replace workers who have left the field. Turnover is high in these jobs for a number of reasons, including the low pay, the long hours, and the large number of students and others who do this work on a temporary basis before moving on to other occupations. Some food service workers look for seasonal job opportunities in summer or winter resort areas. They may prefer to move with the seasonal trade because they can take advantage of the benefits the vacation area offers.

Jobs for beginning workers will be more plentiful in lower-priced restaurants, where employees usually work only a short time. More expensive and formal restaurants tend to hire only experienced workers. Because of the higher pay, better tips, and other benefits, the job turnover rate is lower in these establishments, which increases the competition for job openings.

The health of the economy and some world events also affect the health of this industry. In economic downturns, people tend to eat out less frequently and go to less expensive restaurants. Some events, such as the Olympics, can draw many visitors to an area and cause a small boom for eating establishments there. Other events, such as the threat of terrorism or civil unrest, can cause people in that area to dine out less frequently for a time. Both such positive and negative events, however, generally have only a short-term effect on the industry.