Report highlights restaurant industry career perceptions

A new National Restaurant Association report makes the case that restaurants are far more than first-job destinations. Made in Restaurants: Industry Careers in America finds that restaurant and foodservice jobs serve as powerful workforce development opportunities, helping employees build skills, confidence, and career pathways that could potentially lead to management, leadership, and business ownership.

Meaningful opportunities for success

Based on surveys of current and former industry employees as well as adults who’ve never worked in restaurants, the report finds that restaurant work provides meaningful opportunities for long-term success—especially among those with direct industry experience.

“The restaurant industry is one of America’s most accessible and practical workforce development engines,” says Michelle Korsmo, the Association’s President & CEO. “Every day, restaurants give people the chance to develop the real-world skills employers value—while creating a path to management, leadership, and, for many, ownership. These findings reinforce why investing in restaurant employees is an investment in the future of communities and the broader economy.”

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Chad Moutray, the Association’s chief economist and senior vice president of research, calls restaurants a “training ground” for Americans. The report, he says, shows that employees value both the opportunities they receive and the skills they gain, which they can carry into roles inside and outside the industry.

Six key findings stand out:

1. Current employees see room to grow: 89% say the industry offers advancement, 86% see good long-term career opportunities, and 82% say restaurant jobs prepare people for success in any career path.
2. Restaurants build transferable skills, including communication, teamwork, customer service, problem-solving, adaptability, time management, and leadership.
3. Employee satisfaction is strong: 96% of current employees are satisfied with their industry experience, 94% enjoy the work, and 91% would recommend a restaurant job.
4. Advancement is a major draw: 49% want to move up in the industry, and 42% aspire to own or operate a restaurant someday.
5. A perception gap remains: current employees are much more likely than those who have never worked in restaurants to view the industry as a viable long-term career path.
6. Non-industry adults see more challenges around scheduling, compensation, customer interactions, and workplace respect.

“The findings reinforce what employers everywhere see every day: restaurant experience builds highly transferable skills that help people succeed throughout their careers,” says Jerry Jao, CEO of Employ Inc., parent company of the report’s sponsor, JazzHR. Restaurant employees, he notes, learn to communicate effectively, solve problems in real time, and work as part of a team—qualities in demand across today’s workforce.

The report concludes that restaurants are among the few industries where people can enter with little or no experience and build lasting careers. From first jobs to executive leadership and ownership, the industry creates opportunities for professional growth and equips workers with skills that last a lifetime.