The Restaurant Industry: Opportunity a la Carte
By Karyl Carmignani
If you are hungry for a challenging, lucrative career track, consider the Food and Beverage Industry. In terms of employment opportunities and growth potential, the restaurant industry far outpaces other sectors.
San Diego County is home to over 6,000 restaurants that collectively employ nearly 85,000 people. Restaurants in the county produced $2.93 billion in taxable sales in 2000 and $205 million in sales tax revenue to the state of California. The restaurant industry is the largest employer in California, and provides work for nearly 6 percent of those employed in the state.
Opportunities abound in the Food and Beverage industry, and eating-and-drinking establishments now employ more minority managers nationally than any other retail industry. In 1999, 68 percent of foodservice supervisors were women; 13 percent were African-American; 12 percent were of Hispanic origin, according to statistics released recently by the California Restaurant Association.
A strong economy has sparked growth in restaurant sales, as well as created a tight labor market. The shortage of “qualified and motivated help” is the most pressing operational challenge for restaurateurs today. In an effort to ease these “labor pains,” many restaurant operators are offering rewards to hourly and salaried employees to increase employee satisfaction, productivity and tenure. Incentives range from bonuses to profit sharing and health insurance. Other rewards, like “employee of the month” designations and sincere “thank you’s” to associates cost little, but can work wonders for employee satisfaction and team morale.
Yet another way restaurant operators can boost employee satisfaction is through training – giving their associates all the knowledge and skills they need to do their jobs well. At the risk of stating the obvious, effective training can make the difference between a calm, confident employee and a frustrated, short-term employee.
If all this isn’t savory enough news for the job hunter, keep in mind that hungry tourists feed the restaurant industry as well. Last year in San Diego, over 15 million overnight visitors pumped $5.2 billion into the local economy, which translates into millions of tasty restaurant meals. Furthermore, several local restaurants have earned national culinary awards, making San Diego a first rate, gourmet destination.
An added bonus for restaurant employees is that tourist season in San Diego is virtually year-round, so restaurant employees are not faced with a severe “feast or famine” financial cycle each year.
Entry-level positions (servers, bussers, kitchen assistants) can be an excellent way to “break into the business,” learn the ropes, and potentially lead to management opportunities. For those who relish working with people, the Food and Beverage industry is a challenging market you can definitely sink your teeth into.
