Fast food and counter workers

Detailed Occupation

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2020 Workforce

641k

Average Age

27.5

Average Salary

$13,299

Average Male Salary

$13,725

Average Female Salary

$13,057

About

Fast food and counter workers are most often employed by the Restaurants & Food Services industry. The average yearly wage for Fast food and counter workers was $13,299 in 2016. The top 3 most similar occupations to Fast food and counter workers by wage are Dishwashers, Dining room and cafeteria attendants and bartender helpers, and Lifeguards & other recreational, & all other protective service workers.

Fast food and counter workers are part of the Food Preparation & Serving Related Occupations, along with Chefs & head cooks, Firstline supervisors of food preparation & serving workers, Cooks, Food preparation workers, Bartenders, and 7 more.

The top 3 locations that employ the most Fast food and counter workers are Deschutes County PUMA, OR, Portage County PUMA, OH, and Denver City (Southeast) PUMA, CO. The top 3 locations with a relatively high concentration of Fast food and counter workers are Fulton County (Central)Atlanta City (South) PUMA, GA, Portage County PUMA, OH, and Deschutes County PUMA, OR.

Photo by Dan Keck

Information on the businesses and industries that employ Fast food and counter workers and on wages and locations for those in the field. Restaurants & Food Services is the industry that employs the most Fast food and counter workers, both by share and by number, though the highest paid industry for Fast food and counter workers, by average wage, is Nursing Care Facilities. Fast food and counter workers are paid most in Dallas (Far North) & Richardson (Southwest) Cities PUMA, TX but are relatively concentrated in Fulton County (Central)Atlanta City (South) PUMA, GA.

Yearly Wage

$13,299

AVERAGE SALARY

± $599

In 2020, Fast food and counter workers earned an average of $13,299, $42,655 less than than the average national salary of $55,954.

Dishwashers make somewhat more than Fast food and counter workers while Lifeguards & other recreational, & all other protective service workers make somewhat less. This chart shows the various occupations closest to Fast food and counter workers as measured by average annual salary in the US.

Wage Distribution

0.446

WAGE GINI

In 2019, Fast food and counter workers had a wage GINI coefficient of 0.446, which is lower than than the national average of 0.478. In other words, wages are distributed more evenly for Fast food and counter workers (shown in red) than for the overall labor force (shown in gray).

Wage by Location

HIGHEST PAYING PUMAS

This map shows the Public Use Microdata Areas (PUMAs) in the United States shaded by average annual wage for Fast food and counter workers.

Spatial Concentration

PUMAs with a Relatively High Concentration of Fast food and counter workers

This map displays which Public Use Microdata Areas (PUMAs) in the United States have a relatively high population of Fast food and counter workers.

Most Common

The most common industries employing Fast food and counter workers, by number of employees, are Restaurants & Food Services, Supermarkets and Other Grocery (except Convenience) Stores, Motion pictures & video industries, General merchandise stores, including warehouse clubs and supercenters, Amusement & Recreation, Elementary & secondary schools, Convenience Stores, Specialty food stores, Department stores, Colleges, universities & professional schools, including junior colleges, and Traveler accommodation.

Highest Paying

The highest paying industries for Fast food and counter workers, by average wage, are Nursing Care Facilities, Air transportation, and Building material & supplies dealers.

Industries by Share

641k

2020 Workforce

± 19,616

5.91%

1 YEAR GROWTH

± 4.15%

The number of people employed as Fast food and counter workers has been growing at a rate of 5.91%, from 605,359 people in 2019 to 641,128 people in 2020.

This graphic shows the share of Fast food and counter workers employed by various industries. Restaurants & Food Services employs the largest share of Fast food and counter workers at 75.7%, followed by Supermarkets and Other Grocery (except Convenience) Stores with 11.1% and Motion pictures & video industries with 2.21%.

Diversity

Demographic information on Fast food and counter workers in the US. The average age of male Fast food and counter workers in the workforce is 25.5 and of female Fast food and counter workers is 28.6, and the most common race/ethnicity for Fast food and counter workers is White (Non-Hispanic).

Composition by Sex

232k

MALE WORKFORCE

± 11,819

409k

FEMALE WORKFORCE

± 15,680

63.8% of Fast food and counter workers are Female, making them the more common sex in the occupation. This chart shows the sex breakdown of Fast food and counter workers.

Race & Ethnicity

Most Common Race or Ethnicity of Fast food and counter workers

White (Non-Hispanic)
Black (Non-Hispanic)
White (Hispanic)

57.2% of Fast food and counter workers are White (Non-Hispanic), making that the most common race or ethnicity in the occupation. Representing 13% of Fast food and counter workers, Black (Non-Hispanic) is the second most common race or ethnicity in this occupation. This chart shows the racial and ethnic breakdown of Fast food and counter workers.

Age by Sex

25.5

AVERAGE MALE AGE

± 0.591

28.6

AVERAGE FEMALE AGE

± 0.543

The median age of Fast food and counter workers is 27.5, and Male employees are generally 3.04 years younger than than their Female counterparts.

Education

Data on higher education choices for Fast food and counter workers from The Department of Education and Census Bureau. The most common major for Fast food and counter workers is Business but a relatively high number of Fast food and counter workers hold a major in Personal & Culinary Services.