Restaurants and Food Services Careers Outlook
The National Restaurant Association reports that there are 12.5 million employees in the restaurant industry, making it the largest private-sector employer in the United States. Only the government employs more workers. One-third of all adults in the United States have worked in the restaurant industry at some time during their lives.
In 2004, chefs, cooks, and other kitchen workers held nearly 3.1 million jobs, 892,000 of which were filled by short-order and fast food cooks. Restaurant cooks held 783,000 positions, institutional and cafeteria cooks held 424,000, and food preparation workers and other kitchen workers held 889,000 jobs. Nearly 66 percent of all these employees worked in restaurants and other retail eating and drinking establishments. Almost 20 percent worked in schools, universities, hospitals, and nursing homes. The rest worked in hotels, government and factory cafeterias, grocery stores, private clubs, and other organizations.
Food service managers held about 371,000 jobs in 2004, and food and beverage service workers held over 8.9 million jobs. Waiters held about 1.9 million of these jobs; dishwashers, 390,000; dining room and cafeteria attendants and bartender helpers, 267,000; bartenders, 337,000; and hosts and hostesses, 282,000.
The restaurant industry in general is expected to grow slightly faster than the average for all industries through 2014. There should be plenty of jobs available for chefs, cooks, and other kitchen workers. Fast food restaurants have been suffering from high turnover and labor shortages, and it is expected that recruiting and retaining employees will be a major challenge in the next few years. In all restaurants, food service employees remain among the lowest paid workers in the United States. Many workers earn close to the minimum wage, and even experienced workers often earn very low salaries. Restaurant owners will use improved training and advancement programs, bonuses, scholarships, and profit sharing as methods to attract and keep workers.
Changes in the economy will have an effect on eating and drinking establishments. When consumers are forced to cut spending, one of the first expenditures they cut is dining out. Anyone involved in the restaurant industry must also consider the strong competition for business and for qualified employees. Restaurants open and close at a rapid pace, and turnover will continue to be high.
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Related Careers:
- Bartenders
- Beverage Industry Workers
- Cashiers
- Caterers
- Cooks and Chefs
- Fast Food Workers
- Food Service Workers
- Food Technologists
- Franchise Owners
- Health and Regulatory Inspectors
- Hotel and Motel Managers
- Meatcutters
- Restaurant and Food Service Managers
- Retail Business Owners
- Retail Managers