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What does a deli assistant do?

Updated January 8, 2025
5 min read

A deli assistant performs support tasks to maintain the smooth flow of operations at deli shops. Among their responsibilities include packing products, weighing and labeling, arranging products at shelves, and keeping items fresh in adherence to the health and safety standards. They also assist customers by answering inquiries, offering suggestions, and processing orders and payments. Moreover, a deli assistant also performs clerical tasks such as answering calls, preparing and processing documents, and running errands as needed.

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Deli assistant responsibilities

Here are examples of responsibilities from real deli assistant resumes:

  • Open and close deli; schedule work hour coverage; manage and monitor deli cleanliness code; customer service.
  • Cut and chop food items and cook in fryers.
  • Handle multiple transactions for groceries via debit card, credit card, and cash.
  • Execute POS displays in store to generate impulse shopping purchases along with points of interruption.
  • Prepare food; serve customers; cleaning duties; bag groceries; stock; assist customers.
  • Maintain a clean environment by ensuring meat slicers are cleaned after each use and washing area at end of shift.
  • Monitor and control monetary distribution through POS transactions
  • Exemplify a model of excellent customer service in keeping with Publix's orientation towards ensuring customer satisfaction.
  • Control freshness by rotating and coding all products legibly according to Walmart policies and procedures.

Deli assistant skills and personality traits

We calculated that 31% of Deli Assistants are proficient in Party Trays, Cleanliness, and Customer Service. They’re also known for soft skills such as Listening skills, Physical strength, and Dexterity.

We break down the percentage of Deli Assistants that have these skills listed on their resume here:

  • Party Trays, 31%

    Prepared, packaged and labeled meals, entrees, salads, party trays, rotisserie chicken, ribs, sushi.

  • Cleanliness, 21%

    Maintain cleanliness of cooking utensils, cookware and deli counter.

  • Customer Service, 8%

    Maximize sales by providing extraordinary customer service and minimizing shrink through proper utilization of Standard Practices.

  • Inventory Control, 7%

    Greeted customers and assisted in providing deli orders, general operation of the deli department including inventory control.

  • Customer Orders, 6%

    Managed customer orders ensuring accuracy in both product and timing.

  • Slicers, 4%

    Maintained a clean environment by ensuring meat slicers were cleaned after each use and washing area at end of shift.

Common skills that a deli assistant uses to do their job include "party trays," "cleanliness," and "customer service." You can find details on the most important deli assistant responsibilities below.

All deli assistant skills

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Compare different deli assistants

Deli assistant vs. Food clerk

Food clerks are skilled employees who work either in grocery stores or supermarkets to assist customers with their food needs. In grocery stores, food clerks are required to scan food items for their customers and process their purchases as well as ensure that they have found everything they needed. They must assist in the store's inventory management by organizing and storing food merchandise in the backroom. Food clerks must also use their product knowledge to assist customers with questions and maintain customer satisfaction.

The annual salary of food clerks is $486 higher than the average salary of deli assistants.While the two careers have a salary gap, they share some of the same responsibilities. Employees in both deli assistant and food clerk positions are skilled in customer service, inventory control, and customer orders.

While similarities exist, there are also some differences between deli assistants and food clerk. For instance, deli assistant responsibilities require skills such as "party trays," "cleanliness," "making sandwiches," and "deli food." Whereas a food clerk is skilled in "wine," "basic math," "taking care," and "store shelves." This is part of what separates the two careers.

Food clerks tend to make the most money working in the retail industry, where they earn an average salary of $33,240. In contrast, deli assistants make the biggest average salary, $31,095, in the retail industry.On average, food clerks reach similar levels of education than deli assistants. Food clerks are 0.4% less likely to earn a Master's Degree and 0.1% more likely to graduate with a Doctoral Degree.

Deli assistant vs. Bakery clerk

A bakery clerk is an employee who is responsible for running the bakery department of supermarkets, boutique bakeries, or baking facilities. Bakery clerks are usually tasked to manage the bakery's cash register, bagging baked goods and then taking customers' payments. They ensure that the display cases inside the bakery are fully stocked with fresh bread and other baked goods. They also assist bakers with baking tasks such as measuring ingredients, mixing dough, or pouring batter.

Bakery clerk positions earn lower pay than deli assistant roles. They earn a $830 lower salary than deli assistants per year.Only some things about these jobs are the same. Take their skills, for example. Deli assistants and bakery clerks both require similar skills like "cleanliness," "customer service," and "slicers" to carry out their responsibilities.

While some skills are similar in these professions, other skills aren't so similar. For example, resumes show us that deli assistant responsibilities requires skills like "party trays," "inventory control," "customer orders," and "making sandwiches." But a bakery clerk might use other skills in their typical duties, such as, "basic math," "math," "food safety," and "help support."

On average, bakery clerks earn a lower salary than deli assistants. Some industries support higher salaries in each profession. Interestingly enough, bakery clerks earn the most pay in the retail industry with an average salary of $30,395. Whereas deli assistants have higher pay in the retail industry, with an average salary of $31,095.bakery clerks earn similar levels of education than deli assistants in general. They're 0.5% less likely to graduate with a Master's Degree and 0.1% more likely to earn a Doctoral Degree.

Deli assistant vs. Food service worker

Foodservice workers are employees at restaurants, food trucks, or any outlet that provides food to customers. They may be assigned to welcome customers, take food orders, prepare food orders in the kitchen, serve food, handle customer payments, clean up the tables once the guests leave, or maintain the whole store's cleanliness. They may also be assigned to manage inventories, handle stocks and deliveries, and other activities related to the restaurant's successful operations. Foodservice workers must always be hygienic and maintain the sanitation of the area to ensure food safety.

On average scale, food service workers bring in lower salaries than deli assistants. In fact, they earn a $728 lower salary per year.deli assistants and food service workers both have job responsibilities that require similar skill sets. These similarities include skills such as "cleanliness," "customer service," and "inventory control," but they differ when it comes to other required skills.

Some important key differences between the two careers include a few of the skills necessary to fulfill the responsibilities of each. Some examples from deli assistant resumes include skills like "party trays," "deli food," "display cases," and "bakery products," whereas a food service worker is more likely to list skills in "food handling," "patients," "pet," and "cash control. "

Food service workers earn the best pay in the retail industry, where they command an average salary of $30,177. Deli assistants earn the highest pay from the retail industry, with an average salary of $31,095.When it comes to education, food service workers tend to earn similar degree levels compared to deli assistants. In fact, they're 0.6% less likely to earn a Master's Degree, and 0.1% less likely to graduate with a Doctoral Degree.

Deli assistant vs. Food prep/dishwasher

A food prep/dishwasher's role is to perform food preparation and cleaning duties in a kitchen, under the supervision and directives of a chef or manager. One of their primary responsibilities is washing dishes, sanitizing utensils, and preparing ingredients by washing, peeling, and cutting them according to size. They may also participate in organizing, sorting, and putting them in proper storage. There are also instances when they have to perform basic cooking tasks ranging from boiling and frying to baking. Furthermore, a food prep/dishwasher may have the duty of maintaining the kitchen's cleanliness and other areas.

Food prep/dishwashers average a higher salary than the annual salary of deli assistants. The difference is about $483 per year.While their salaries may vary, deli assistants and food prep/dishwashers both use similar skills to perform their duties. Resumes from both professions include skills like "cleanliness," "customer service," and "fryers. "While some skills are required in each professionacirc;euro;trade;s responsibilities, there are some differences to note. "party trays," "inventory control," "customer orders," and "slicers" are skills that commonly show up on deli assistant resumes. On the other hand, food prep/dishwashers use skills like food preparation equipment, work ethic, strong work ethic, and wash dishes on their resumes.food prep/dishwashers enjoy the best pay in the professional industry, with an average salary of $30,657. For comparison, deli assistants earn the highest salary in the retail industry.The average resume of food prep/dishwashers showed that they earn similar levels of education compared to deli assistants. So much so that theyacirc;euro;trade;re 1.4% less likely to earn a Master's Degree and more likely to earn a Doctoral Degree by 0.1%.

Types of deli assistant

Updated January 8, 2025

Zippia Research Team
Zippia Team

Editorial Staff

The Zippia Research Team has spent countless hours reviewing resumes, job postings, and government data to determine what goes into getting a job in each phase of life. Professional writers and data scientists comprise the Zippia Research Team.

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