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First-Line Supervisors of Food Preparation and Serving Workers

First-Line Supervisors of Food Preparation and Serving Workers: Career Overview

Directly supervise and coordinate activities of workers engaged in preparing and serving food.

The Daily Work of First-Line Supervisors of Food Preparation and Serving Workers Take On?

Typical responsibilities of first-line supervisors of food preparation and serving workers span:

  • Resolve customer complaints regarding food service.
  • Train workers in food preparation, and in service, sanitation, and safety procedures.
  • Assign duties, responsibilities, and work stations to employees in accordance with work requirements.
  • Present bills and accept payments.
  • Perform various financial activities, such as cash handling, deposit preparation, and payroll.
  • Supervise and participate in kitchen and dining area cleaning activities.
  • Recommend measures for improving work procedures and worker performance to increase service quality and enhance job safety.
  • Specify food portions and courses, production and time sequences, and workstation and equipment arrangements.

What First-Line Supervisors of Food Preparation and Serving Workers Need to Know

Top first-line supervisors of food preparation and serving workers combine a mix of skills and domain knowledge.

Top Skills

The abilities most important for this role, rated on an importance scale of 0 to 5:

Management of Personnel Resources  4.0 / 5
0
5
Speaking  3.9 / 5
0
5
Coordination  3.9 / 5
0
5
Monitoring  3.9 / 5
0
5
Active Listening  3.8 / 5
0
5
Instructing  3.8 / 5
0
5

Core Knowledge

Customer and Personal Service  4.1 / 5
0
5
Administration and Management  3.6 / 5
0
5
Food Production  3.5 / 5
0
5
English Language  3.5 / 5
0
5
Production and Processing  3.3 / 5
0
5
Sales and Marketing  3.3 / 5
0
5

Types of First-Line Supervisors of Food Preparation and Serving Workers Jobs

People in this occupation may also be known by titles such as:

  • Banquet Captain
  • Banquet Supervisor
  • Bar Manager
  • Bartender Manager
  • Cafeteria Manager
  • Cafeteria Supervisor
  • Canteen Manager
  • Cocktail Lounge Manager

How Many First-Line Supervisors of Food Preparation and Serving Workers Are There?

There are roughly 817,258 first-line supervisors of food preparation and serving workers working in the United States today. Demand is forecast to grow by +5.6% over the projection horizon.

Forecasted number of jobs for First-Line Supervisors of Food Preparation and Serving Workers

First-Line Supervisors of Food Preparation and Serving Workers Pay

Statistic Value
Annual median $37,104
Hourly median $17.84
10th percentile $25,588
25th percentile $31,346
75th percentile $42,862
90th percentile $48,620

Wages vary widely based on experience, location, and industry.

Salary ranges for First-Line Supervisors of Food Preparation and Serving Workers

First-Line Supervisors of Food Preparation and Serving Workers Salary by State

State Annual median salary
District of Columbia $56,350
Washington $49,850
Hawaii $49,820
Connecticut $49,480
Rhode Island $49,000
Delaware $48,700
New Jersey $48,210
Colorado $47,920
Vermont $47,650
Maine $47,600
New Hampshire $47,460
Alaska $47,010
New York $46,680
Massachusetts $46,630
California $46,140
Virginia $45,440
Minnesota $45,350
Oregon $44,850
North Dakota $44,030
North Carolina $43,860
Virgin Islands $43,440
Maryland $42,920
Arizona $42,790
Montana $42,050
Florida $41,980
South Dakota $40,070
Nevada $39,700
New Mexico $39,670
Illinois $39,080
Pennsylvania $38,980
South Carolina $38,950
Indiana $38,860
Wisconsin $38,700
Iowa $38,320
Nebraska $38,170
Utah $38,070
Michigan $37,960
Tennessee $37,960
Kansas $37,910
Idaho $37,840
Georgia $37,360
Wyoming $37,260
Missouri $36,990
Ohio $36,900
Texas $36,650
Alabama $35,940
Louisiana $35,640
Kentucky $35,060
Oklahoma $34,950
Mississippi $34,230
Arkansas $31,950
West Virginia $30,500
Puerto Rico $27,930
Guam $27,460

Where First-Line Supervisors of Food Preparation and Serving Workers Earn the Most

Compensation for first-line supervisors of food preparation and serving workers vary by region. Top regions by median wage:

Region Median annual wage Share of U.S. jobs Location quotient
New England $47,626 3.9% 0.82
Far Western US $46,107 15.4% 0.93
Middle Atlantic $44,645 12.6% 0.83
Rocky Mountains $43,336 4.4% 1.11
Plains States $39,950 6.4% 0.93
Southeast $39,371 28.0% 1.15
Great Lakes $38,172 14.4% 1.02
Southwest $37,424 14.4% 1.15

Where the Jobs Cluster

Metro area State Median annual wage Employment
Kahului-Wailuku, HI HI $55,780 900
Seattle-Tacoma-Bellevue, WA WA $55,730 11,900
San Jose-Sunnyvale-Santa Clara, CA CA $55,210 5,510
Boulder, CO CO $52,570 1,570
Wenatchee-East Wenatchee, WA WA $50,940 430
Denver-Aurora-Centennial, CO CO $50,540 13,770
Atlantic City-Hammonton, NJ NJ $50,240 1,980
New Haven, CT CT $49,880 1,730

Which Industries Hire First-Line Supervisors of Food Preparation and Serving Workers

The largest employers of first-line supervisors of food preparation and serving workers work in these industries:

Industry Employment Median annual wage
Accommodation and Food Services 1,010,610 $39,520
Retail Trade 45,240 $45,740
Educational Services 37,970 $45,070
Health Care and Social Assistance 35,220 $51,080
Arts, Entertainment, and Recreation 20,570 $48,530
Manufacturing 8,410 $47,280
Other Services (except Public Administration) 6,400 $39,810
Management of Companies and Enterprises 3,130 $51,350
First-Line Supervisors of Food Preparation and Serving Workers sectors

The table below shows some of the most common industries where those employed in this career field work.

First-Line Supervisors of Food Preparation and Serving Workers industries

Tech Stack

  • Spreadsheet software: Microsoft Excel (hot technology)
  • Office suite software: Microsoft Office software (hot technology)
  • Electronic mail software: Microsoft Outlook (hot technology)
  • Presentation software: Microsoft PowerPoint (hot technology)
  • Project management software: Microsoft Project (hot technology)
  • Word processing software: Microsoft Word (hot technology)

The Day-to-Day Environment

The work environment for first-line supervisors of food preparation and serving workers tends to involve the following characteristics:

  • Telephone Conversations
  • Indoors, Environmentally Controlled
  • Contact With Others
  • Work With or Contribute to a Work Group or Team
  • Physical Proximity

Education and Training

Entry-level first-line supervisors of food preparation and serving workers positions require a high school diploma or equivalent as the typical entry-level education. This occupation sits in Some Preparation Needed (Job Zone 2), indicating the level of preparation typically expected.

Similar Occupations

Top Programs to Study For This Career

Aspiring first-line supervisors of food preparation and serving workers typically earn programs in:

Personal and Culinary Services

4 programs across 1 majors

Sources

This profile draws on the following authoritative sources:

  • U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics — Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics (OEWS) for employment and wage data by state and industry.
  • BLS Employment Projections for total employment and growth forecasts.
  • O*NET (Occupational Information Network) for skills, knowledge, tasks, work activities, work context, technology, and education-zone data.

SOC code: 35-1012.00 (First-Line Supervisors of Food Preparation and Serving Workers).

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