Food preparation workers

Add Comparison

Total Workforce

1.08M

Average Age

31.4

Estimated Job Growth

7.88%

10-year projection

Average Salary

$14,005

Average Male Salary

$14,824

Average Female Salary

$13,446

About

Employment

Diversity

Education

Skills

Growth Projections

About

Food preparation workers are most often employed by the Restaurants & Food Services industry. The average yearly wage for Food preparation workers was $14,005 in 2016. The top 3 most similar occupations to Food preparation workers by wage are Combined food preparation & serving workers, including fast food, Miscellaneous food preparation & serving related workers, including dining room & cafeteria attendants & bartender helpers, and Cashiers.

The top 3 locations that employ the most Food preparation workers are Reno City PUMA, NV, Denver City (Southeast) PUMA, CO, and Hawaii County PUMA, HI. The top 3 locations with a relatively high concentration of Food preparation workers are Sarasota County (East) PUMA, FL, Windsor, Windham & Orange Counties PUMA, VT, and Buffalo City (West) PUMA, NY.

Photo by Marjon Melissen

Service OccupationsFood Preparation & Serving Related Occupations

Employment

Information on the businesses and industries that employ Food preparation workers and on wages and locations for those in the field. Restaurants & Food Services is the industry that employs the most Food preparation workers, both by share and by number, though the highest paid industry for Food preparation workers, by average wage, is Air transportation. Food preparation workers are paid most in Douglas County PUMA, GA but are relatively concentrated in Sarasota County (East) PUMA, FL.

Wages

Yearly Wage

$14,005

AVERAGE SALARY

± $368

In 2017, Food preparation workers earned an average of $14,005, $38,060 less than than the average national salary of $52,065.

Combined food preparation & serving workers, including fast food make somewhat more than Food preparation workers while Miscellaneous food preparation & serving related workers, including dining room & cafeteria attendants & bartender helpers make somewhat less. This chart shows the various occupations closest to Food preparation workers as measured by average annual salary in the US.

View Data
Save Image
Add Data to Cart

Wage Distribution

0.399

WAGE GINI

In 2017, Food preparation workers had a wage GINI coefficient of 0.399, which is lower than than the national average of 0.479. In other words, wages are distributed more evenly for Food preparation workers (shown in red) than for the overall labor force (shown in gray).

View Data
Save Image
Add Data to Cart

Wage by Location

HIGHEST PAYING PUMAS

  1. Douglas County PUMA, GA

  2. Ouachita Parish PUMA, LA

  3. Bath City & Brunswick PUMA, ME

This map shows the Public Use Microdata Areas (PUMAs) in the United States shaded by average annual wage for Food preparation workers.

View Data
Save Image
Add Data to Cart

Spatial Concentration

PUMAs with a Relatively High Concentration of Food preparation workers

  1. Buffalo City (West) PUMA, NY

  2. Seattle City (Northeast) PUMA, WA

  3. Noblesville City & Fishers Town (East) PUMA, IN

This map displays which Public Use Microdata Areas (PUMAs) in the United States have a relatively high population of Food preparation workers.

View Data
Save Image
Add Data to Cart

Industries

Most Common

The most common industries employing Food preparation workers, by number of employees, are Restaurants & Food Services, Grocery Stores, and Elementary & secondary schools.

View Data
Save Image
Add Data to Cart
View Data
Save Image
Add Data to Cart

Highest Paying

The highest paying industries for Food preparation workers, by average wage, are Air transportation, Not specified retail trade, and Animal slaughtering & processing.

View Data
Save Image
Add Data to Cart
View Data
Save Image
Add Data to Cart

Industries by Share

1.08M

2017 Workforce

± 25,384

3.69%

1 YEAR GROWTH

± 3.24%

The number of people employed as Food preparation workers has been growing at a rate of 3.69%, from 1,038,540 people in 2016 to 1,076,817 people in 2017.

This graphic shows the share of Food preparation workers employed by various industries. Restaurants & Food Services employs the largest share of Food preparation workers at  74.1%, followed by Grocery Stores with 6.01% and Elementary & secondary schools with 4.3%.

View Data
Save Image
Add Data to Cart

Diversity

Demographic information on Food preparation workers in the US. The average age of male Food preparation workers in the workforce is 29 and of female Food preparation workers is 33.1, and the most common race/ethnicity for Food preparation workers is White.

Gender Composition

436k

MALE WORKFORCE

± 16,195

640k

FEMALE WORKFORCE

± 19,605

59.5% of Food preparation workers are Female, making them the more common gender in the occupation. This chart shows the gender breakdown of Food preparation workers.

View Data
Save Image
Add Data to Cart

Race & Ethnicity

Most Common Race or Ethnicity of Food preparation workers

  1. White

  2. Black

  3. Other

66.8% of Food preparation workers are White, making that the most common race or ethnicity in the occupation. Representing 12.4% of Food preparation workers, Black is the second most common race or ethnicity in this occupation. This chart shows the racial and ethnic breakdown of Food preparation workers.

View Data
Save Image
Add Data to Cart

Age by Gender

29

AVERAGE MALE AGE

± 0.481

33.1

AVERAGE FEMALE AGE

± 0.475

The median age of Food preparation workers is 31.4, and Male employees are generally 4.13 years younger than than their Female counterparts.

View Data
Save Image
Add Data to Cart

Education

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

Majors

ACS PUMS data only shows the major for bachelor's degrees. However, we can filter the data based on highest degree obtained.

MOST COMMON MAJORS

  1. Business

  2. Visual & Performing Arts

  3. Social Sciences

MOST SPECIALIZED MAJORS

  1. Personal & Culinary Services

  2. Visual & Performing Arts

  3. Communication Technologies

View Data
Save Image
Add Data to Cart

Skills

Data on the critical and distinctive skills necessary for Food preparation workers from the Bureau of Labor Statistics. Food preparation workers need many skills, but most especially Active Listening, Time Management, and Speaking. The revealed comparative advantage (RCA) shows that Food preparation workers need more than the average amount of Service Orientation, Time Management, and Quality Control Analysis.

Radar Distribution

View Data
Save Image
Add Data to Cart

Bar Chart

View Data
Save Image
Add Data to Cart

Growth Projections

Projections on wages and job growth for Food preparation workers from the Bureau of Labor Statistics. The ten-year national workforce is projected to grow 7.4%, but Food preparation workers are expected to see a growth of 7.88% over the same period. This occupation is expected to grow higher than the national average.

Job Growth

7.88%

ESTIMATED GROWTH

7.4%

NATIONAL AVERAGE

This line chart shows the 10-year projected employment growth (from 2016 to 2026) for Food preparation workers. This profession is expected to grow faster than 7.4%, the average rate of national job growth.

View Data
Save Image
Add Data to Cart