Fast Food and Counter Workers
Also called: Cafeteria Worker, Counter Worker, Food Service Worker, ServerPerform duties such as taking orders and serving food and beverages. Serve customers at counter or from a steam table. May take payment. May prepare food and beverages.
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What the data says: AI could halve the time on 3 of its 27 tasks, and jobs are projected to grow 5.8% by 2035. How to think about this →
About this projection
BLS builds AI into its projections where the research supports it: “BLS generally applies adjustments based on this research conservatively, where there is convincing evidence for a change.”
It also notes a limit: “BLS projection methods are not designed to capture extremely rapid technological change.”
On its AI exposure groups, BLS says exposure “does not imply job loss.”
BLS figures cover the broader occupation “Fast food and counter workers”, which includes this one and others.
Recent conditions
- In 2024, 8.3% of people in this work were unemployed, against 3.8% across all occupations Census ACS 2024
- From Sep 2025 to Aug 2026, 10.1 hires for every 10 job openings in accommodation and food services, which employs about 88% of people in this work, against 7.3 across all industries BLS JOLTS
One box per opening, filled for each hire; hires beyond the openings are added in a lighter shade. Higher can mean openings get filled, or that people leave often; lower, that jobs go unfilled, or hiring is slow.10.1 this industry7.3 all industries
Median pay by state BLS OEWS May 2025, state estimates
Tap a state for its figures.
Median pay in every state
| State | Median | Middle half earn | Jobs |
|---|---|---|---|
| Alabama | $23,700 | $22,050 to $27,840 | 41,460 |
| Alaska | $33,280 | $28,690 to $39,120 | 5,900 |
| Arizona | $34,230 | $31,360 to $35,830 | 77,210 |
| Arkansas | $26,250 | $23,570 to $27,850 | 35,660 |
| California | $42,280 | $36,790 to $44,970 | 449,840 |
| Colorado | $36,270 | $33,900 to $37,710 | 82,010 |
| Connecticut | $35,380 | $34,480 to $36,450 | 35,720 |
| Delaware | $31,300 | $31,200 to $35,630 | 13,310 |
| District of Columbia | $37,430 | $37,340 to $39,050 | 5,500 |
| Florida | $29,080 | $28,020 to $33,220 | 235,400 |
| Georgia | $26,920 | $22,480 to $29,640 | 145,030 |
| Guam | $20,770 | $20,640 to $20,980 | 1,130 |
| Hawaii | $35,250 | $30,460 to $37,510 | 24,130 |
| Idaho | $28,940 | $22,760 to $33,210 | 25,810 |
| Illinois | $33,910 | $31,200 to $35,990 | 127,590 |
| Indiana | $28,790 | $24,630 to $33,210 | 97,290 |
| Iowa | $28,390 | $26,150 to $33,440 | 40,290 |
| Kansas | $27,580 | $22,980 to $29,260 | 47,140 |
| Kentucky | $27,130 | $22,800 to $29,680 | 41,860 |
| Louisiana | $22,800 | $21,770 to $26,680 | 45,720 |
| Maine | $34,710 | $31,990 to $36,500 | 17,250 |
| Maryland | $33,660 | $31,280 to $35,600 | 49,380 |
| Massachusetts | $35,850 | $33,770 to $36,980 | 85,810 |
| Michigan | $28,930 | $27,580 to $32,760 | 103,130 |
| Minnesota | $31,370 | $29,230 to $35,650 | 58,970 |
| Mississippi | $22,610 | $21,340 to $26,680 | 31,220 |
| Missouri | $30,390 | $28,900 to $34,230 | 29,360 |
| Montana | $29,090 | $26,420 to $34,640 | 14,960 |
| Nebraska | $29,000 | $28,210 to $34,410 | 30,060 |
| Nevada | $31,950 | $28,040 to $35,890 | 45,850 |
| New Hampshire | $31,590 | $28,970 to $36,130 | 14,540 |
| New Jersey | $34,150 | $32,220 to $36,150 | 93,730 |
| New Mexico | $28,700 | $28,070 to $30,140 | 28,250 |
| New York | $35,250 | $34,350 to $37,140 | 168,620 |
| North Carolina | $28,570 | $23,370 to $34,370 | 92,230 |
| North Dakota | $30,080 | $28,700 to $35,250 | 11,470 |
| Ohio | $28,430 | $26,800 to $29,930 | 163,560 |
| Oklahoma | $23,430 | $21,920 to $27,520 | 52,520 |
| Oregon | $35,050 | $33,560 to $36,880 | 59,920 |
| Pennsylvania | $28,570 | $24,440 to $32,310 | 142,220 |
| Puerto Rico | $22,030 | $21,840 to $22,390 | 26,440 |
| Rhode Island | $31,490 | $31,200 to $35,260 | 13,310 |
| South Carolina | $27,520 | $23,320 to $29,660 | 65,070 |
| South Dakota | $29,490 | $28,670 to $31,480 | 15,150 |
| Tennessee | $27,470 | $23,490 to $29,530 | 90,690 |
| Texas | $27,740 | $22,980 to $29,730 | 460,530 |
| Utah | $28,670 | $26,340 to $33,360 | 52,340 |
| Vermont | $36,030 | $34,330 to $38,640 | 6,830 |
| Virgin Islands | $24,410 | $23,670 to $26,410 | 840 |
| Virginia | $30,110 | $28,230 to $34,650 | 104,460 |
| Washington | $37,710 | $35,880 to $44,240 | 94,710 |
| West Virginia | $26,070 | $22,160 to $29,610 | 6,240 |
| Wisconsin | $28,600 | $25,710 to $33,390 | 67,750 |
| Wyoming | $27,860 | $21,910 to $29,640 | 7,060 |
Nationally: $31,200. Shades run from the lowest state median to the highest; a territory below that range takes the lightest. How to read this
How AI touches the work
What AI could speed up, task by task, and where people already use it.
AI could halve the time on 3 of its 27 tasks
| AI rating | Its main tasks | Share of Claude conversations May 2026 |
|---|---|---|
| AI + software | Communicate with customers regarding orders, comments, and complaints. | 0.01% |
| Not much | Serve customers in eating places that specialize in fast service and inexpensive carry-out food. | Not published |
| Not much | Accept payment from customers, and make change as necessary. | Not published |
| Not much | Brew coffee and tea, and fill containers with requested beverages. | Not published |
| Not much | Serve food, beverages, or desserts to customers in such settings as take-out counters of restaurants or lunchrooms, business or industrial establishments, hotel rooms, and cars. | Not published |
| Not much | Clean and organize eating, service, and kitchen areas. | Not published |
See all 27 tasks
| Not much | Perform cleaning duties, such as sweeping, mopping, and washing dishes, to keep equipment and facilities sanitary. | Not published |
| Not much | Request and record customer orders, and compute bills, using cash registers, multi-counting machines, or pencil and paper. | Not published |
| Not much | Wrap menu items such as sandwiches, hot entrees, and desserts for serving or for takeout. | Not published |
| Not much | Monitor and order supplies or food items, and restock as necessary to maintain inventory. | Not published |
| Not much | Prepare and serve cold drinks, frozen milk drinks, or desserts, using drink-dispensing, milkshake, or frozen-custard machines. | Not published |
| Not much | Scrub and polish counters, steam tables, and other equipment, and clean glasses, dishes, and fountain equipment. | Not published |
| Not much | Prepare daily food items, and cook simple foods and beverages, such as sandwiches, salads, soups, pizza, or coffee, using proper safety precautions and sanitary measures. | Not published |
| Not much | Set up dining areas for meals, and clear them following meals. | Not published |
| AI + software | Balance receipts and payments in cash registers. | Not published |
| Not much | Collect and return dirty dishes to the kitchen for washing. | Not published |
| Not much | Distribute food to servers. | Not published |
| Not much | Select food items from serving or storage areas and place them in dishes, on serving trays, or in take-out bags. | Not published |
| Not much | Deliver orders to kitchens, and pick up and serve food when it is ready. | Not published |
| Not much | Notify kitchen personnel of shortages or special orders. | Not published |
| Not much | Wash dishes, glassware, and silverware after meals. | Not published |
| Not much | Perform personnel activities, such as supervising and training employees. | Not published |
| Not much | Plan, prepare, and deliver meals to individuals with special dietary needs. | Not published |
| AI alone | Take customers' orders and write ordered items on tickets, giving ticket stubs to customers when needed to identify filled orders. | Not published |
| Not much | Add relishes and garnishes to food orders, according to instructions. | Not published |
| Not much | Replenish foods at serving stations. | Not published |
| Not much | Arrange tables and decorations according to instructions. | Not published |
Ordered by how important O*NET's respondents rate each task (1 to 5) times the share who say it is part of their job. The ordering is ours. 1 of the 27 have a published share of Claude conversations; “not published” means too few conversations for Anthropic to publish a figure.
Where people already use AI
The tasks above say what AI could speed up. This shows what people are using it for. Its 27 tasks fall under 14 work activities that many occupations share, and Microsoft counted how often each one came up in 200,000 conversations with its Copilot assistant in 2024.
- #3 Respond to customer problems or inquiries
- #36 Purchase goods or services
| Work activity | This occupation's tasks under it | People asked AI for help in 10,000 conversations |
AI did it for them in 10,000 conversations |
|---|---|---|---|
| Provide food or beverage services | |||
| Prepare foods or beverages | |||
| Execute financial transactions | |||
| Clean tools, equipment, facilities, or work areas | |||
| Communicate with others about operational plans or activities | |||
| Clean workpieces, finished products, or other objects | |||
| Move materials, equipment, or supplies | |||
| Respond to customer problems or inquiries |
Show all 14 activities
| Purchase goods or services | |||
| Direct organizational operations, activities, or procedures | |||
| Train others on operational or work procedures | |||
| Reconcile financial data | |||
| Package objects | |||
| Stock supplies or products |
How people in this work use Claude
What people in this work made with Claude % of conversations
- An email or message77%
- An explanation or answer4%
- A document or report4%
- Marketing or social media content4%
- Advice or a recommendation2%
How they worked with Claude
88% of these conversations were about work. Anthropic Economic Index, May 2026.
How to read this
Work activities come from O*NET, which links every task to the broader activities it involves. Microsoft's figures are for the activity across everyone who used Copilot, not for fast food and counter workers specifically. Copilot is a general chat assistant; dedicated coding tools are not included, so programming help is under-counted here. Activities are listed by how many of this occupation's tasks fall under them.
The task ratings say whether AI could halve the time a task takes: on its own (“AI alone”), or with software built on it (“AI + software”). They were made by people in 2023 (Eloundou et al.). Claude's share is the task's share of all Claude.ai conversations in May 2026; Anthropic doesn't publish a task with too few conversations. None of these add up to the BLS exposure group, which combines five research measures.
More in the Guide: task ratings · task order · work activities · Copilot figures · Claude
High exposure doesn't mean fewer jobs
BLS projects most occupations in its two most exposed groups to grow: 141 of 206 rated Very high and 165 of 206 rated High. Each dot is one of the 831 occupations BLS rates.
Career moves into and out of this occupation
From moves between occupations found in online resumes, 2002–2016. Career changes only: a first job after school isn't a move.
Where people moved next
of 403,923 moves out
- 1 Retail Salespersons Very high -0.3% 6%
- 2 Customer Service Representatives Very high -5.3% 5%
- 3 Cashiers High -6.5% 4%
- 4 Managers, All Other (2010 group) an older group BLS has since split; no exposure group today 4%
- 5 Food Service Managers Moderate +5.8% 3%
Where people moved in from
of 224,525 moves in
- 1 Cashiers High -6.5% 8%
- 2 Retail Salespersons Very high -0.3% 6%
- 3 Customer Service Representatives Very high -5.3% 5%
- 4 Waiters and Waitresses Moderate +2.0% 4%
- 5 Food Service Managers Moderate +5.8% 3%
Combined from the 2010 occupations “Combined Food Preparation and Serving Workers, Including Fast Food” and “Counter Attendants, Cafeteria, Food Concession, and Coffee Shop”, which BLS merged into yours. Resumes over-represent younger, white-collar job-seekers and moves into management. Schubert, Stansbury and Taska (resume data).
Education and training for the occupation
O*NET survey of workers in this occupation
- 56% less than high school
- 24% high school
- 3% postsecondary certificate
- 17% some college
O*NET 31.0 survey of workers in this occupation · 37 people answered.
Census survey (American Community Survey)
- 24% less than high school
- 33% high school
- 28% some college
- 6% associate's
- 8% bachelor's
- 1% master's
Census ACS 2024, all workers in this occupation · 9,938 people surveyed.
Why the two can differ
O*NET asks about 20 people in each occupation, which makes its shares uncertain, but it reports the exact occupation and counts certificates. The Census survey reaches thousands, but it groups some occupations together and counts degrees only. More in the Guide
Median pay by highest degree full-time, year-round · Census ACS 2024, all workers in this occupation
Jobs that require a credential BLS Occupational Requirements Survey 2023
33.5% this occupation
45.3% all occupations
| By kind | This occupation | All occupations |
|---|---|---|
| an educational certificate | <0.5% | 2.8% |
| a license | not published | |
| a certification | not published |
Share of jobs whose employer requires it. BLS doesn't say which credential. How to read this
Look up certifications, training and licenses U.S. Department of Labor
- Certification Finder ↗ certifications CareerOneStop lists for this occupation
- Training Finder ↗ schools and programs, nationwide; narrow the place there
- License Finder ↗ licenses by state
- Apprenticeships: DOL's list of apprenticeable occupations doesn't include this one.
These open in a new tab and send only the occupation's public code. More in the Guide
BLS AI exposure categories (Aug 2026) · BLS Employment Projections 2025–35 · O*NET 31.0 · Task ratings: Eloundou et al., Science (2024) · Microsoft "Working with AI" v1.1 · Anthropic Economic Index (2026-06-26) · Schubert, Stansbury and Taska · NCES CIP–SOC · Census ACS 2024 · BLS JOLTS
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