How to hire a cafeteria aide

How to hire a cafeteria aide, step by step

Here's a step-by-step cafeteria aide hiring guide:

• Step 1: Identify your hiring needs
• Step 2: Create an ideal candidate profile
• Step 3: Make a budget
• Step 4: Write a cafeteria aide job description
• Step 5: Post your job
• Step 6: Interview candidates
• Step 7: Send a job offer and onboard your new cafeteria aide
• Step 8: Go through the hiring process checklist

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1. Identify your hiring needs

   The cafeteria aide hiring process starts by determining what type of worker you actually need. Certain roles might require a full-time employee, whereas part-time workers or contractors can do others.

   Determine employee vs contractor status

   Is the person you're thinking of hiring a US citizen or green card holder?

   Yes

   No

   You should also consider the ideal background you'd like them a cafeteria aide to have before you start to hire. For example, what industry or field would you like them to have experience in, what level of seniority or education does the job require, and how much it'll cost to hire a cafeteria aide that fits the bill.

   Here's a comparison of cafeteria aide salaries for various roles:

   Type of Cafeteria Aide	Description	Hourly rate
   Cafeteria Aide	Food and beverage serving and related workers perform a variety of customer service, food preparation, and cleaning duties in restaurants, cafeterias, and other eating and drinking establishments.	$8-15
   Bus Boy	The job of busboys is to assist other staff members at a restaurant by doing varied tasks. These include greeting customers, cleaning and resetting tables, and removing dishes after customers leave... Show more	$7-17
   Bus Person	A Bus Person performs a variety of support while maintaining an active communication line with staff. They typically clean and set tables, unload ingredient deliveries, re-stock tableware and linen, prepare condiments and beverages, and maintain side stations... Show more	$7-17

   Show more

2. Create an ideal candidate profile

   Common skills:

   • Patients
   • Dishes
   • Cleanliness
   • Food Handling
   • Cash Handling
   • Food Safety
   • Tray Line
   • Lunch Periods
   • Food Products
   • Hot Food
   • Portion Control
   • Kitchen Equipment
   • Lunch Room
   • Facilitate Customer Service

   Check all skills

   Responsibilities:

   • Check station before, during, and after shift for proper set-up and cleanliness.
   • Maintain cleanliness within the facility standards and objectives.
   • Organize trays, plates, cups, and flatware into dish washing racks and pass them to dishwasher.
   • Operate a dishwasher; ensures that trays are properly wash and sanitize and return to the serving line.
   • Assist in serving students by following USDA guidelines and ensuring that their needs are recognize and acknowledge.

   More cafeteria aide duties

3. Make a budget

   Including a salary range in your cafeteria aide job description is a great way to entice the best and brightest candidates. A cafeteria aide salary can vary based on several factors:

   • Location. For example, cafeteria aides' average salary in mississippi is 55% less than in washington.
   • Seniority. Entry-level cafeteria aides earn 45% less than senior-level cafeteria aides.
   • Certifications. A cafeteria aide with a few certifications under their belt will likely demand a higher salary.
   • Company. Working for a prestigious company or an exciting start-up can make a huge difference in a cafeteria aide's salary.

   Average cafeteria aide salary

   $12.15hourly

   $25,278 yearly

   ---

   Entry-level cafeteria aide salary

   $18,000 yearly salary

   Updated December 16, 2025

   Average cafeteria aide salary by state

   Rank	State	Avg. salary	Hourly rate
   1	Massachusetts	$30,289	$15
   2	Connecticut	$26,415	$13
   3	Illinois	$25,439	$12
   4	Iowa	$24,826	$12
   5	Indiana	$22,904	$11
   6	Ohio	$22,839	$11
   7	Florida	$22,462	$11
   8	Missouri	$21,889	$11
   9	Tennessee	$20,421	$10
   10	Pennsylvania	$20,082	$10
   11	Alabama	$19,673	$9

   Average cafeteria aide salary by company

   Company

   Rank	Company	Average salary	Hourly rate	Job openings
   1	Cincinnati Hills Christian Academy	$33,224	$15.97	2
   2	Hackensack Meridian Health	$30,444	$14.64	56
   3	Kaiser Permanente	$30,222	$14.53	15
   4	The SOS Group	$29,833	$14.34
   5	Trinity Health	$29,600	$14.23	119
   6	Lowell General Hospital	$29,296	$14.08
   7	Community Health Systems	$29,253	$14.06	5
   8	Kelly Services	$28,924	$13.91	25
   9	Columbia Memorial	$28,651	$13.77
   10	UnityPoint Health	$28,408	$13.66	3
   11	Encompass Health	$28,138	$13.53	272
   12	Catholic Health East	$27,763	$13.35	3
   13	Huntsville Hospital	$27,504	$13.22	15
   14	Memorial Health Systems Corporation	$25,930	$12.47	4
   15	Halifax Health	$25,826	$12.42	4
   16	Damar Services	$25,670	$12.34	2
   17	Springfield City Library	$25,133	$12.08	8
   18	Wallingford Public Library	$24,437	$11.75	3
   19	Francis Howell School District	$23,741	$11.41	5

4. Writing a cafeteria aide job description

   A good cafeteria aide job description should include a few things:

   • Summary of the role
   • List of responsibilities
   • Required skills and experience

   Including a salary range and the first name of the hiring manager is also appreciated by candidates. Here's an example of a cafeteria aide job description:

   Cafeteria aide job description example

   *Prepares cold plates, sandwiches, desserts, salads and salad bar for self serve stations and maintains stock of cold food station back up in the cafeteria roll in refrigerators.
   Slices meat and cheeses for all needed menu items for patient , cafeteria and catering services.
   
   *Sets up equipment in a timely manner to be able to meet service needs. Records refrigeration temps.
   
   *Stocks all stands with appropriate food items such as cereals, chips, cookies, crackers, condiments.
   
   *Fills cold food stations with ice to maintain perishable foods at proper temperatures.
   
   *Prepares and displays all needed entre accompaniments based on menu, e.g. lettuce and tomato for burgers; sour cream for baked potatoes.
   
   *Sets up all stations with adequate re-useable trays and disposables: dishes, bowls, plastic-eating ware, disposable trays; condiment containers and table top salt and pepper, replenish all as needed.
   
   Wipes tables and chairs in the cafeteria as needed.
   
   Returns soiled pans to proper area to be washed..
   
   *Defrosts and cleans refrigerators and freezers as needed.
   
   Removes trash from all receptacles on an as needed basis.
   
   Removes, washes and replenishes re-useable trays to the cafeteria.
   
   Sets up all required marketing materials that accompany a program or product as assigned.
   
   *Takes and records hot and cold food temperatures of assigned items, at each meal period.
   
   *Performs various job tasks for patient service as assigned, e.g., makes sandwiches, serves on trayline, etc.,
   
   **EXPERIENCE/EDUCATION REQUIRED/PREFERRED:**
   
   + High School Diploma or equivalent is preferred, current high school students may be considered.
   
   + Minimum one year cashiering experience, preferably in a food service environment.
   
   + (For Jazzman's) previous espresso based coffee making experience preferred.
   
   **TECHNICAL KNOWLEDGE REQUIRED/PREFERRED:**
   
   + Ability to read, write, speak and comprehend English.
   
   + Ability to perform simple math, e.g. add, subtract, multiply and divide.
   
   + Ability to operate a cash register.
   
   + For Cafeteria - ability to operate a meat slicer preferred.
   
   + For Jazzman's Cart - ability to operate espresso machine preferred.
   
   **Our Commitment to Diversity and Inclusion**
   
   Trinity Health is a family of 115,000 colleagues and nearly 26,000 physicians and clinicians across 25 states. Because we serve diverse populations, our colleagues are trained to recognize the cultural beliefs, values, traditions, language preferences, and health practices of the communities that we serve and to apply that knowledge to produce positive health outcomes. We also recognize that each of us has a different way of thinking and perceiving our world and that these differences often lead to innovative solutions.
   
   Our dedication to diversity includes a unified workforce (through training and education, recruitment, retention, and development), commitment and accountability, communication, community partnerships, and supplier diversity.

   Copy this example

   

5. Post your job

   To find cafeteria aides for your business, try out a few different recruiting strategies:

   • Consider internal talent. One of the most important talent pools for any company is its current employees.
   • Ask for referrals. Reach out to friends, family members, and your current work to ask if they know any cafeteria aides they would recommend.
   • Recruit at local colleges. Attend job fairs at local colleges to recruit entry-level cafeteria aides with the right educational background.
   • Social media platforms. LinkedIn, Facebook, and Twitter have more than 3.5 billion users, and they're a great place for company branding and reaching potential job candidates.

   Post your job online:

   • Post your cafeteria aide job on Zippia to find and recruit cafeteria aide candidates who meet your exact specifications.
   • Use field-specific websites.
   • Post a job on free websites.

6. Interview candidates

   Recruiting cafeteria aides requires you to bring your A-game to the interview process. The first interview should introduce the company and the role to the candidate as much as they present their background experience and reasons for applying for the job. During later interviews, you can go into more detail about the technical details of the job and ask behavioral questions to gauge how they'd fit into your current company culture.

   It's also good to ask about candidates' unique skills and talents. You can move on to the technical interview if a candidate is good enough for the next step.

   The right interview questions can help you assess a candidate's hard skills, behavioral intelligence, and soft skills.

7. Send a job offer and onboard your new cafeteria aide

   Once you have selected a candidate for the cafeteria aide position, it is time to create an offer letter. In addition to salary, the offer letter should include details about benefits and perks that are available to the employee. Ensuring your offer is competitive is vital, as qualified candidates may be considering other job opportunities. The candidate may wish to negotiate the terms of the offer, and it is important to be open to discussion and reach a mutually beneficial agreement. After the offer has been accepted, it is a good idea to formalize the agreement with a contract.

   You should also follow up with applicants who don't get the job with an email letting them know that you've filled the position.

   After that, you can create an onboarding schedule for a new cafeteria aide. Human Resources and the hiring manager should complete Employee Action Forms. Human Resources should also ensure that onboarding paperwork is completed, including I-9s, benefits enrollment, federal and state tax forms, etc., and that new employee files are created.

8. Go through the hiring process checklist

   • Determine employee type (full-time, part-time, contractor, etc.)
   • Submit a job requisition form to the HR department
   • Define job responsibilities and requirements
   • Establish budget and timeline
   • Determine hiring decision makers for the role
   • Write job description
   • Post job on job boards, company website, etc.
   • Promote the job internally
   • Process applications through applicant tracking system
   • Review resumes and cover letters
   • Shortlist candidates for screening
   • Hold phone/virtual interview screening with first round of candidates
   • Conduct in-person interviews with top candidates from first round
   • Score candidates based on weighted criteria (e.g., experience, education, background, cultural fit, skill set, etc.)
   • Conduct background checks on top candidates
   • Check references of top candidates
   • Consult with HR and hiring decision makers on job offer specifics
   • Extend offer to top candidate(s)
   • Receive formal job offer acceptance and signed employment contract
   • Inform other candidates that the position has been filled
   • Set and communicate onboarding schedule to new hire(s)
   • Complete new hire paperwork (i9, benefits enrollment, tax forms, etc.)

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