Explore jobs
Find specific jobs
Explore careers
Explore professions
Best companies
Explore companies
The differences between food service associates and food service workers can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. Additionally, a food service associate has an average salary of $31,642, which is higher than the $28,753 average annual salary of a food service worker.
The top three skills for a food service associate include patients, food handling and excellent interpersonal. The most important skills for a food service worker are food handling, safety standards, and customer service.
| Food Service Associate | Food Service Worker | |
| Yearly salary | $31,642 | $28,753 |
| Hourly rate | $15.21 | $13.82 |
| Growth rate | 2% | 2% |
| Number of jobs | 64,167 | 169,323 |
| Job satisfaction | - | 4 |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 35% | High School Diploma, 44% |
| Average age | 37 | 37 |
| Years of experience | - | - |
A food service associate performs fundamental functions in the food industry. Food service associates prepare and serve food items. They cater to special events, which involve facility preparation, food presentation maintenance, and setting up tables. Their duties include cleaning preparation and service equipment. They restock the work stations for the essential supplies. The skills they need to perform their job include customer service, teamwork, work with diverse cultural, ethnic, and academic backgrounds, and learn safety and health regulations.
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.
Food service associates and food service workers have different pay scales, as shown below.
| Food Service Associate | Food Service Worker | |
| Average salary | $31,642 | $28,753 |
| Salary range | Between $25,000 And $39,000 | Between $22,000 And $36,000 |
| Highest paying City | Washington, DC | Urban Honolulu, HI |
| Highest paying state | Rhode Island | Hawaii |
| Best paying company | Maine Health/maine Mental Health Partners | University of California, Berkeley |
| Best paying industry | Technology | Retail |
There are a few differences between a food service associate and a food service worker in terms of educational background:
| Food Service Associate | Food Service Worker | |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 35% | High School Diploma, 44% |
| Most common major | Business | Business |
| Most common college | - | - |
Here are the differences between food service associates' and food service workers' demographics:
| Food Service Associate | Food Service Worker | |
| Average age | 37 | 37 |
| Gender ratio | Male, 38.0% Female, 62.0% | Male, 36.6% Female, 63.4% |
| Race ratio | Black or African American, 11.9% Unknown, 4.8% Hispanic or Latino, 16.6% Asian, 7.3% White, 58.5% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.9% | Black or African American, 12.3% Unknown, 4.9% Hispanic or Latino, 16.7% Asian, 7.1% White, 58.1% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.9% |
| LGBT Percentage | 6% | 6% |