Kitchen clerk vs food service worker

The differences between kitchen clerks and food service workers can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. Additionally, a kitchen clerk has an average salary of $32,512, which is higher than the $28,753 average annual salary of a food service worker.

The top three skills for a kitchen clerk include food handling, food products and customer service. The most important skills for a food service worker are food handling, safety standards, and customer service.

Kitchen clerk vs food service worker overview

	Kitchen Clerk	Food Service Worker
Yearly salary	$32,512	$28,753
Hourly rate	$15.63	$13.82
Growth rate	2%	2%
Number of jobs	82,660	169,323
Job satisfaction	-	4
Most common degree	High School Diploma, 36%	High School Diploma, 44%
Average age	37	37
Years of experience	-	-

Kitchen clerk vs food service worker salary

Kitchen clerks and food service workers have different pay scales, as shown below.

	Kitchen Clerk	Food Service Worker
Average salary	$32,512	$28,753
Salary range	Between $26,000 And $39,000	Between $22,000 And $36,000
Highest paying City	-	Urban Honolulu, HI
Highest paying state	-	Hawaii
Best paying company	-	University of California, Berkeley
Best paying industry	-	Retail

Differences between kitchen clerk and food service worker education

There are a few differences between a kitchen clerk and a food service worker in terms of educational background:

	Kitchen Clerk	Food Service Worker
Most common degree	High School Diploma, 36%	High School Diploma, 44%
Most common major	Business	Business
Most common college	-	-

Kitchen clerk vs food service worker demographics

Here are the differences between kitchen clerks' and food service workers' demographics:

	Kitchen Clerk	Food Service Worker
Average age	37	37
Gender ratio	Male, 46.9% Female, 53.1%	Male, 36.6% Female, 63.4%
Race ratio	Black or African American, 6.9% Unknown, 4.6% Hispanic or Latino, 13.1% Asian, 7.3% White, 67.3% 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%

Differences between kitchen clerk and food service worker duties and responsibilities

Kitchen clerk example responsibilities.

Assist the catering manager to manage, prepare, cook and deliver each day s caterings.
Operate large-volume cooking equipment such as grills, deep-fat fryers, and handle assembly and disassembling of smoothie machine.
Mix water with detergents and acids to prepare cleaning solutions according to specifications, general cleanliness according to safety and company guidelines
Brew, serve, and sell coffee at Starbucks kiosk within the store.

Food service worker example responsibilities.

Volunteer at rehabilitation center/ nursing home escorting and communicating with the patients.
Learned how to do math quickly and efficiently.
Demonstrate money-handling and math skills in processing payments for orders.
Prepare all food stuffs, roasting meats, baking cookies, preparing salads.
Work in full compliance with values of compassion, dignity, excellence, integrity, and team work.
Install and maintain HVAC systems which include walkin coolers and freezers, reach-ins and pass thru and a/c systems

Kitchen clerk vs food service worker skills

Common kitchen clerk skills

Food Handling, 53%
Food Products, 13%
Customer Service, 9%
Display Cases, 8%
Slicers, 4%
Food Service, 2%

Common food service worker skills

Food Handling, 22%
Safety Standards, 9%
Customer Service, 9%
Patients, 7%
Cash Control, 4%
Rehabilitation, 4%

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Food Preparation and Restaurant Industry
Kitchen Clerk
Kitchen Clerk vs Food Service Worker

Updated January 8, 2025

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