Tray line worker vs food service worker

The differences between tray line workers and food service workers can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. Additionally, a food service worker has an average salary of $28,753, which is higher than the $24,035 average annual salary of a tray line worker.

The top three skills for a tray line worker include tray line, patients and kitchen equipment. The most important skills for a food service worker are food handling, safety standards, and customer service.

Tray line worker vs food service worker overview

	Tray Line Worker	Food Service Worker
Yearly salary	$24,035	$28,753
Hourly rate	$11.56	$13.82
Growth rate	2%	2%
Number of jobs	76,868	169,323
Job satisfaction	-	4
Most common degree	High School Diploma, 56%	High School Diploma, 44%
Average age	37	37
Years of experience	-	-

Tray line worker vs food service worker salary

Tray line workers and food service workers have different pay scales, as shown below.

	Tray Line Worker	Food Service Worker
Average salary	$24,035	$28,753
Salary range	Between $18,000 And $31,000	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 tray line worker and food service worker education

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

	Tray Line Worker	Food Service Worker
Most common degree	High School Diploma, 56%	High School Diploma, 44%
Most common major	Business	Business
Most common college	-	-

Tray line worker vs food service worker demographics

Here are the differences between tray line workers' and food service workers' demographics:

	Tray Line Worker	Food Service Worker
Average age	37	37
Gender ratio	Male, 37.1% Female, 62.9%	Male, 36.6% Female, 63.4%
Race ratio	Black or African American, 13.2% Unknown, 4.3% Hispanic or Latino, 16.6% Asian, 5.8% White, 59.3% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.7%	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 tray line worker and food service worker duties and responsibilities

Tray line worker example responsibilities.

Prepare and go out to different homes, on campus, to serve breakfast, lunch and dinner, to patients
Assist with planning and directing food preparation and culinary activities along with safely handling and storing all products appropriately.
Provide culinary and kitchen maintenance skills for both non-profit organization and private residence.

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

Tray line worker vs food service worker skills

Common tray line worker skills

Tray Line, 30%
Patients, 30%
Kitchen Equipment, 11%
Food Trays, 8%
Production Orders, 6%
Assembly Line, 5%

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
Tray Line Worker
Tray Line Worker vs Food Service Worker

Updated January 8, 2025

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