Dining Room and Cafeteria Attendants and Bartender Helpers
Also called: Barback, Bus Boy, Bus Person, BusserFacilitate food service. Clean tables; remove dirty dishes; replace soiled table linens; set tables; replenish supply of clean linens, silverware, glassware, and dishes; supply service bar with food; and serve items such as water, condiments, and coffee to patrons.
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What the data says: AI couldn't halve the time on any of its 23 tasks, and jobs are projected to grow 5.3% 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.”
Recent conditions
- In 2024, 8.6% 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 83% 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 | $22,470 | $18,750 to $28,740 | 3,420 |
| Alaska | $27,040 | $25,140 to $30,790 | 860 |
| Arizona | $36,500 | $32,050 to $41,880 | 13,300 |
| Arkansas | $27,670 | $25,600 to $32,310 | 2,160 |
| California | $36,010 | $34,820 to $39,930 | 75,460 |
| Colorado | $36,790 | $32,140 to $46,900 | 8,460 |
| Connecticut | $34,540 | $34,010 to $36,490 | 5,810 |
| Delaware | $31,880 | $31,200 to $35,840 | 1,540 |
| District of Columbia | $39,080 | $36,670 to $48,200 | 4,130 |
| Florida | $33,280 | $29,530 to $37,080 | 50,400 |
| Georgia | $28,920 | $22,900 to $35,690 | 14,540 |
| Guam | $21,720 | $20,730 to $21,720 | 300 |
| Hawaii | $51,200 | $33,340 to $61,520 | 4,380 |
| Idaho | $27,810 | $22,110 to $31,310 | 1,520 |
| Illinois | $31,200 | $31,200 to $34,010 | 21,290 |
| Indiana | $28,320 | $23,130 to $33,340 | 10,220 |
| Iowa | $28,210 | $20,400 to $31,300 | 3,250 |
| Kansas | $26,300 | $19,010 to $31,390 | 2,960 |
| Kentucky | $26,330 | $20,640 to $30,780 | 3,350 |
| Louisiana | $26,780 | $18,760 to $31,840 | 4,810 |
| Maine | $38,560 | $33,360 to $50,220 | 1,540 |
| Maryland | $37,020 | $34,120 to $39,370 | 13,240 |
| Massachusetts | $35,380 | $32,100 to $45,520 | 11,510 |
| Michigan | $30,390 | $28,390 to $37,450 | 13,050 |
| Minnesota | $29,210 | $26,090 to $34,670 | 7,220 |
| Mississippi | $23,180 | $20,690 to $28,210 | 2,620 |
| Missouri | $31,850 | $28,600 to $37,430 | 11,590 |
| Montana | $27,510 | $22,530 to $34,830 | 1,150 |
| Nebraska | $30,690 | $28,500 to $36,080 | 2,160 |
| Nevada | $27,460 | $25,470 to $37,060 | 12,750 |
| New Hampshire | $26,290 | $21,000 to $34,290 | 1,510 |
| New Jersey | $34,170 | $32,900 to $37,560 | 16,490 |
| New Mexico | $29,360 | $27,390 to $34,550 | 2,960 |
| New York | $36,740 | $34,060 to $46,330 | 41,340 |
| North Carolina | $27,560 | $21,470 to $32,720 | 11,230 |
| North Dakota | $31,010 | $27,050 to $35,320 | 890 |
| Ohio | $29,400 | $26,430 to $35,300 | 13,670 |
| Oklahoma | $26,830 | $21,490 to $31,290 | 5,400 |
| Oregon | $36,800 | $34,080 to $40,190 | 3,910 |
| Pennsylvania | $29,310 | $23,350 to $35,430 | 20,800 |
| Puerto Rico | $22,450 | $21,840 to $23,710 | 1,070 |
| Rhode Island | $31,200 | $31,200 to $34,600 | 2,880 |
| South Carolina | $26,830 | $19,110 to $33,240 | 6,220 |
| South Dakota | $29,920 | $28,640 to $34,580 | 2,550 |
| Tennessee | $29,470 | $23,110 to $35,010 | 11,330 |
| Texas | $21,550 | $17,090 to $28,690 | 60,270 |
| Utah | $27,010 | $21,690 to $34,110 | 4,490 |
| Vermont | $34,120 | $32,400 to $39,940 | not published |
| Virgin Islands | $51,760 | $37,510 to $52,000 | 70 |
| Virginia | $32,410 | $28,930 to $37,010 | 11,910 |
| Washington | $41,420 | $36,390 to $48,620 | 6,160 |
| West Virginia | $27,150 | $22,950 to $31,270 | 1,170 |
| Wisconsin | $27,080 | $20,850 to $32,420 | 7,220 |
| Wyoming | $24,600 | $21,430 to $34,790 | 650 |
Nationally: $33,980. 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 none of its 23 tasks
| AI rating | Its main tasks | Share of Claude conversations May 2026 |
|---|---|---|
| Not much | Wipe tables or seats with dampened cloths or replace dirty tablecloths. | Not published |
| Not much | Clean up spilled food or drink or broken dishes and remove empty bottles and trash. | Not published |
| Not much | Maintain adequate supplies of items, such as clean linens, silverware, glassware, dishes, or trays. | Not published |
| Not much | Locate items requested by customers. | 0.02% |
| Not much | Set tables with clean linens, condiments, or other supplies. | Not published |
| Not much | Serve ice water, coffee, rolls, or butter to patrons. | Not published |
See all 23 tasks
| Not much | Scrape and stack dirty dishes and carry dishes and other tableware to kitchens for cleaning. | Not published |
| Not much | Fill beverage or ice dispensers. | Not published |
| Not much | Greet and seat customers. | Not published |
| Not much | Perform serving, cleaning, or stocking duties in establishments, such as cafeterias or dining rooms, to facilitate customer service. | Not published |
| Not much | Clean and polish counters, shelves, walls, furniture, or equipment in food service areas or other areas of restaurants and mop or vacuum floors. | Not published |
| Not much | Stock cabinets or serving areas with condiments and refill condiment containers. | Not published |
| Not much | Serve food to customers when waiters or waitresses need assistance. | Not published |
| Not much | Carry food, dishes, trays, or silverware from kitchens or supply departments to serving counters. | Not published |
| Not much | Run cash registers. | Not published |
| Not much | Carry trays from food counters to tables for cafeteria patrons. | Not published |
| Not much | Replenish supplies of food or equipment at steam tables or service bars. | Not published |
| Not much | Garnish foods and position them on tables to make them visible and accessible. | Not published |
| Not much | Carry linens to or from laundry areas. | Not published |
| Not much | Slice and pit fruit used to garnish drinks. | Not published |
| Not much | Wash glasses or other serving equipment at bars. | Not published |
| Not much | Mix and prepare flavors for mixed drinks. | Not published |
| Not much | Stock refrigerating units with wines or bottled beer or replace empty beer kegs. | 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 23 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 23 tasks fall under 12 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.
- #11 Provide information to guests, clients, or customers
- #19 Provide general assistance to others, such as customers, patrons, or motorists
| 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 | |||
| Stock supplies or products | |||
| Clean tools, equipment, facilities, or work areas | |||
| Move materials, equipment, or supplies | |||
| Prepare foods or beverages | |||
| Provide information to guests, clients, or customers | |||
| Provide general assistance to others, such as customers, patrons, or motorists | |||
| Prepare mixtures or solutions |
Show all 12 activities
| Execute financial transactions | |||
| Clean workpieces, finished products, or other objects | |||
| Replenish inventories of materials, equipment, or products | |||
| Escort others |
How people in this work use Claude
What people in this work made with Claude % of conversations
- Advice or a recommendation32%
- An explanation or answer32%
- An image or graphic4%
- An analysis or summary3%
- Ideas or a brainstorm2%
How they worked with Claude
10% 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 dining room and cafeteria attendants and bartender helpers 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 42,645 moves out
- 1 Waiters and Waitresses Moderate +2.0% 10%
- 2 Retail Salespersons Very high -0.3% 4%
- 3 Food Service Managers Moderate +5.8% 3%
- 4 Fast Food and Counter Workers Moderate +5.8% 3%
- 5 Cashiers High -6.5% 3%
Where people moved in from
of 26,923 moves in
- 1 Waiters and Waitresses Moderate +2.0% 13%
- 2 Cashiers High -6.5% 6%
- 3 Fast Food and Counter Workers Moderate +5.8% 5%
- 4 Retail Salespersons Very high -0.3% 4%
- 5 Customer Service Representatives Very high -5.3% 3%
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
- 22% less than high school
- 74% high school
- 2% postsecondary certificate
- 1% associate's
O*NET 31.0 survey of workers in this occupation · 20 people answered.
Census survey (American Community Survey)
- 33% less than high school
- 36% high school
- 20% some college
- 5% associate's
- 5% bachelor's
- 1% master's
Census ACS 2024, all workers in this occupation · 2,823 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
27.5% this occupation
45.3% all occupations
| By kind | This occupation | All occupations |
|---|---|---|
| a license | <0.5% | 19.1% |
| an educational certificate | <0.5% | 2.8% |
| 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
- Apprenticeship Finder ↗ DOL lists 1 registered apprenticeship in this occupation (COOK, CHIEF). Apprenticeship.gov can't be linked to one occupation, so search for “Dining Room and Cafeteria Attendants and Bartender Helpers” there.
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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