Food and Beverage Serving and Related Workers

Summary

Food and beverage workers are employed by restaurants and eateries.

Quick Facts: Food and Beverage Serving and Related Workers
2010 Median Pay	$18,130 per year $8.72 per hour
Entry-Level Education	Less than high school
Work Experience in a Related Occupation	None
On-the-job Training	See How to Become One
Number of Jobs, 2010	4,110,400
Job Outlook, 2010-20	12% (About as fast as average)
Employment Change, 2010-20	491,600

What Food and Beverage Serving and Related Workers Do

Food and beverage serving and related workers perform a variety of customer service, food preparation, and cleaning duties in full-service restaurants, casual dining eateries, and other eating and drinking places.

Work Environment

Food and beverage serving and related workers are employed in restaurants, schools, hospitals, cafeterias, and other dining places. The majority work part time, which often includes early mornings, late evenings, weekends, and holidays.

How to Become a Food and Beverage Serving or Related Worker

Most food and beverage service jobs are entry level and do not require a high school diploma. The majority of workers receive short-term on-the-job training.

Pay

The median hourly wage of food and beverage serving and related workers was $8.72 in May 2010.

Job Outlook

Employment of food and beverage serving and related workers is projected to grow 12 percent from 2010 to 2020, about as fast as the average for all occupations. Job opportunities at most eating and drinking places will be excellent, because many people in these occupations change jobs frequently, resulting in a large number of openings.

Similar Occupations

Compare the job duties, education, job growth, and pay of food and beverage serving and related workers with similar occupations.

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Contacts for More Information

Learn more about food and beverage serving and related workers by contacting these additional resources.

What Food and Beverage Serving and Related Workers Do About this section

Food and beverage workers may work directly with customers.

Food and beverage serving and related workers perform a variety of customer service, food preparation, and cleaning duties in full-service restaurants, casual dining eateries, and other eating and drinking places.

Duties

Food and beverage serving and related workers typically do the following:

• Prepare and clean assigned work areas
• Replenish and stock service stations, cabinets, and tables
• Serve food and drinks to customers from behind a counter
• Greet customers, escort them to their seats, and hand them menus
• Answer customers’ questions about menu items and specials
• Clean tables and dining areas
• Set tables for new customers

Food and beverage serving and related workers are the front line of customer service in full-service restaurants, casual dining eateries, and other food service establishments. Depending on the establishment, they might take customers’ food and drink orders and prepare and serve food and beverages. Most work as part of a team, helping coworkers to improve workflow and customer service.

The job titles of food and beverage serving and related workers vary depending on where they work and what they do. The following are types of food and beverage serving and related workers: 

Combined food preparation and serving workers, including fast food, are employed primarily by fast-food restaurants. They take food and beverage orders, retrieve items when ready, fill drink cups, and accept payment. They also may heat food items and assemble salads and sandwiches.

Counter attendants take orders and serve food over a counter in snack bars, cafeterias, movie theaters, and coffee shops. They fill cups with coffee, soda, and other beverages, and may prepare fountain specialties, such as milkshakes and ice cream sundaes. Counter attendants take carryout orders from diners and wrap or place items in containers. They clean counters, write itemized bills, and sometimes accept payment.

Food servers, nonrestaurant, serve food to patrons outside of a restaurant environment. Many deliver room service meals in hotels or meals to hospital rooms. Some act as carhops, bringing orders to parked cars.

Dining room and cafeteria attendants and bartender helpers—sometimes collectively referred to as bus staff—help waiters, waitresses, and bartenders by cleaning and setting tables, removing dirty dishes, and keeping serving areas stocked with supplies. They also may help waiters and waitresses by bringing meals out of the kitchen, distributing dishes to diners, filling water glasses, and delivering condiments. Cafeteria attendants stock serving tables with food trays, dishes, and silverware. They may carry trays to dining tables for patrons. Bartender helpers keep bar equipment clean and glasses washed. 

Hosts and hostesses welcome customers and keep reservation and waiting lists. They may direct customers to coatrooms, restrooms, or to a waiting area until their table is ready. Hosts and hostesses assign guests to tables suitable for the size of their group, escort patrons to their seats, and provide menus. They also take reservations, arrange parties, and help with other requests.

Work Environment About this section

Food servers bring dishes to customers outside a restaurant.

Food and beverage serving and related workers held about 4.1 million jobs in 2010.

The industries that employed the most workers in 2010 were as follows:

Food and beverage serving and related workers are on their feet most of the time and often carry heavy trays of food, dishes, and glassware. During busy dining periods, they are under pressure to serve customers quickly and efficiently. 

Injuries

Although the work is generally safe, injuries from slips, cuts, and burns can result from hurrying or mishandling sharp tools.

Work Schedules

In 2010, about half of all food and beverage serving and related workers worked part time. Food service and drinking establishments typically have long dining hours and offer flexible and varied work opportunities. Many workers work evenings, weekends, and holidays.

Additionally, long business hours allow for flexible schedules that appeal to many teenagers, who can gain work experience. Compared to all other occupations, a much larger proportion of food and beverage serving and related workers were 16 to 19 years old in 2010.

How to Become a Food and Beverage Serving or Related Worker About this section

Counter attendants take orders and serve food in cafeterias.

Most food and beverage service jobs are entry level and do not require a high school diploma. The majority of workers receive short-term on-the-job training.

Training

All new employees receive some training from their employer. They typically learn basic customer service, kitchen safety, and safe food-handling procedures and sanitation.

Some employers, particularly those in fast-food restaurants, teach new workers using self-study programs, online programs, audiovisual presentations, or instructional booklets that explain food preparation and service skills. But most food and beverage serving and related workers pick up their skills by watching and working with more experienced workers.

Some full-service restaurants also provide new dining room employees with classroom training that alternates with periods of on-the-job work experience. These training programs communicate the operating philosophy of the restaurant, help new employees establish a personal rapport with other staff, teach formal serving techniques, and instill a desire to work as a team.

Advancement

Advancement opportunities are often limited to those who remain on the job for a long period of time. After gaining experience, some dining room and cafeteria attendants and bartender helpers may advance into jobs as a waiter, waitress, or bartender.

Important Qualities

Customer-service skills. Food service establishments rely on good food and customer service to keep customers and succeed in a competitive industry. As a result, workers should be courteous and be able to quickly attend to customers’ requests.

Stamina. Food and beverage serving and related workers must be able to spend much of their work time standing, carrying heavy trays, cleaning work areas, and attending to customers’ needs.

Teamwork. Food serving places can often be fast-paced and hectic during peak dining hours. Food and beverage serving and related workers must be able to work well as a team to ensure that customers feel welcomed and receive prompt service.

Pay About this section

The median hourly wage for food and beverage serving and related workers was $8.72 in May 2010. The median wage is the wage at which half the workers in an occupation earned more than that amount and half earned less. The lowest 10 percent earned less than $7.54 per hour, and the top 10 percent earned more than $11.62 per hour. 

Median hourly wages for food and beverage serving and related workers in May 2010 were as follows:

• $9.34 for food servers, nonrestaurant
• $8.87 for hosts and hostesses, restaurant, lounge, and coffee shop 
• $8.83 for counter attendants, cafeteria, food concession, and coffee shop
• $8.75 for dining room and cafeteria attendants and bartender helpers
• $8.63 for combined food preparation and serving workers, including fast food
• $9.61 for food preparation and serving related workers, all other

Some food and beverage serving workers receive customer tips. In some restaurants, workers contribute all or a portion of their tips to a tip pool, which is distributed among qualifying workers. Tip pools allow workers who do not usually receive tips directly from customers, such as dining room attendants, to be part of a team and to share in the rewards for good service.

Although some workers in this occupation earn tips, the majority get their earnings from hourly wages. Many entry-level or inexperienced workers earn the federal minimum wage ($7.25 per hour as of July 24, 2009). However, many others earn more per hour because they work in states that set minimum wages higher than the federal minimum.

Also, various exceptions to the minimum wage apply under specific circumstances to disabled workers, full-time students, youths under age 20 in their first 90 days of employment, tipped employees, and student learners. Tipped employees are those who customarily and regularly receive more than $30 a month in tips. According to the Fair Labor Standards Act, the employer may consider tips as part of wages, but the employer must pay at least $2.13 an hour in direct wages.

In 2010, about half of all food and beverage serving and related workers worked part time. Food service and drinking establishments typically have long dining hours and offer flexible and varied work opportunities. Many workers work evenings, weekends, and holidays.

Job Outlook About this section

Overall employment of food and beverage serving and related workers is projected to grow 12 percent from 2010 to 2020, about as fast as the average for all occupations. Employment growth will vary by specialty.  

Nonrestaurant servers, such as those who deliver food trays in hotels, hospitals, residential care facilities, and at catered events, are expected to have about as fast as average employment growth. Combined food preparation and serving workers, which includes fast-food workers, will also have about as fast as average employment growth. Because these workers are essential to the operation of a food-serving establishment, they will continue to be in demand.

Employment growth of dining room and cafeteria attendants, counter attendants, and hosts and hostesses is expected to be slower than the average. Despite slower than average employment growth, these workers will still be needed to perform important duties at food-serving establishments as a growing population continues to eat outside of the home.

Job Prospects

Job opportunities for food and beverage serving and related workers are expected to be excellent, because of the large number of workers who need to be replaced.

Workers with related work experience and excellent customer-service skills should have the best job opportunities at upscale restaurants. Still, those seeking positions at these establishments may face competition, as potential earnings from tips are greatest, so the number of job applicants often exceeds the number of job openings.

Contacts for More Information About this section

For more information on food and beverage serving careers, visit

National Restaurant Association