Waiters & waitresses

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Total Workforce

2.23M

Average Age

29.9

Average Salary

$18,137

Average Male Salary

$21,588

Average Female Salary

$16,661

About

Employment

Diversity

Education

Skills

About

Waiters & waitresses are most often employed by the Restaurants & Food Services industry. The average yearly wage for Waiters & waitresses was $18,137 in 2016. The top 3 most similar occupations to Waiters & waitresses by wage are Library technicians, Library assistants, clerical, and Cooks.

Waiters & waitresses are part of the Food Preparation & Serving Related Occupations, along with Hosts & hostesses, restaurant, lounge, & coffee shop, Chefs & head cooks, Firstline supervisors of food preparation & serving workers, Cooks, Food preparation workers, and 7 more.

The top 3 locations that employ the most Waiters & waitresses are Spring Valley & Summerlin South PUMA, NV, Elmhurst & South Corona PUMA, NY, and Riverside City (West) PUMA, CA. The top 3 locations with a relatively high concentration of Waiters & waitresses are Elmhurst & South Corona PUMA, NY, Between Loop TX-1604 & Loop I-410 PUMA, TX (79500US4805910), and Between Loop I-610 & Beltway TX-8 PUMA, TX (79500US4804613).

Photo by Marjon Melissen

Service Occupations Food Preparation & Serving Related Occupations Food Preparation & Serving Related Occupations

Employment

Information on the businesses and industries that employ Waiters & waitresses and on wages and locations for those in the field. Restaurants & Food Services is the industry that employs the most Waiters & waitresses, both by share and by number, though the highest paid industry for Waiters & waitresses, by average wage, is Other personal services. Waiters & waitresses are paid most in Malden & Medford Cities PUMA, MA but are relatively concentrated in Elmhurst & South Corona PUMA, NY.

Wages

Yearly Wage

$18,137

AVERAGE SALARY

± $318

In 2018, Waiters & waitresses earned an average of $18,137, $35,751 less than than the average national salary of $53,888.

Cooks make somewhat more than Waiters & waitresses while Library technicians make somewhat less. This chart shows the various occupations closest to Waiters & waitresses as measured by average annual salary in the US.

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Wage Distribution

0.409

WAGE GINI

In 2018, Waiters & waitresses had a wage GINI coefficient of 0.409, which is lower than than the national average of 0.479. In other words, wages are distributed more evenly for Waiters & waitresses (shown in red) than for the overall labor force (shown in gray).

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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 Waiters & waitresses.

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Spatial Concentration

PUMAs with a Relatively High Concentration of Waiters & waitresses

This map displays which Public Use Microdata Areas (PUMAs) in the United States have a relatively high population of Waiters & waitresses.

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Industries

Most Common

The most common industries employing Waiters & waitresses, by number of employees, are Restaurants & Food Services, Traveler accommodation, and Amusement & Recreation.

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Highest Paying

The highest paying industries for Waiters & waitresses, by average wage, are Travel arrangements & reservation services, Other personal services, Traveler accommodation, Traveler accommodation, Miscellaneous general merchandise stores, and Amusement & Recreation.

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Industries by Share

2.23M

2018 Workforce

± 36,420

0.0669%

1 YEAR GROWTH

± 2.3%

The number of people employed as Waiters & waitresses has been growing at a rate of 0.0669%, from 2,232,456 people in 2017 to 2,233,949 people in 2018.

This graphic shows the share of Waiters & waitresses employed by various industries. Restaurants & Food Services employs the largest share of Waiters & waitresses at 91.3%, followed by Traveler accommodation with 2.74% and Amusement & Recreation with 2.29%.

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Diversity

Demographic information on Waiters & waitresses in the US. The average age of male Waiters & waitresses in the workforce is 29.3 and of female Waiters & waitresses is 30.1, and the most common race/ethnicity for Waiters & waitresses is White (Non-Hispanic).

Gender Composition

669k

MALE WORKFORCE

± 20,041

1.56M

FEMALE WORKFORCE

± 30,549

70% of Waiters & waitresses are Female, making them the more common gender in the occupation. This chart shows the gender breakdown of Waiters & waitresses.

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Race & Ethnicity

Most Common Race or Ethnicity of Waiters & waitresses

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

57.8% of Waiters & waitresses are White (Non-Hispanic), making that the most common race or ethnicity in the occupation. Representing 14.5% of Waiters & waitresses, White (Hispanic) is the second most common race or ethnicity in this occupation. This chart shows the racial and ethnic breakdown of Waiters & waitresses.

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Age by Gender

29.3

AVERAGE MALE AGE

± 0.35

30.1

AVERAGE FEMALE AGE

± 0.247

The median age of Waiters & waitresses is 29.9, and Male employees are generally 0.86 years younger than than their Female counterparts.

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Education

Data on higher education choices for Waiters & waitresses from The Department of Education and Census Bureau. The most common major for Waiters & waitresses is Business but a relatively high number of Waiters & waitresses hold a major in Communication Technologies.

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

MOST SPECIALIZED MAJORS

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Skills

Data on the critical and distinctive skills necessary for Waiters & waitresses from the Bureau of Labor Statistics. Waiters & waitresses need many skills, but most especially Active Listening, Service Orientation, and Social Perceptiveness. The revealed comparative advantage (RCA) shows that Waiters & waitresses need more than the average amount of Service Orientation, Social Perceptiveness, and Coordination.