Restaurants and bars are encompassed by the Food Services and Drinking Places industry. Their focus is on preparing meals, snacks, and beverages for customers to consume immediately, either on- or off-premises. Due to the flexible nature of this definition, establishments vary from full-service restaurants to special food services such as caterers.
Since both bars and restaurants are only ever as good as their staff, companies looking to onboard the best talent available will need to offer comprehensive benefits packages.
Higher employee turnover rates and percentage of part time workers can make benefit offering and administration somewhat more difficult than the average industry. The average employee demographic can range significantly from a high school senior to a retired senior citizen, each with different motivations for working. Disability plans are important as there can be a physical component to the role, from moving heavy items to being near cooking equipment. To create a custom benefit package, every employer needs to know their specific group of employees.
There are about 658,000 restaurant and bar establishments nationwide, employing over 11 million professionals. On average, each business is small, with 18 staff members each. This industry is almost evenly split between male and female employees, and the average employee age is 29 years old.
16% of these employers offer short-term disability coverage, and 4% offer long-term disability insurance. The national average is 42% and 34%, respectively.
19% offer access to a life insurance plan. Comparatively, the national average is 56%.
As a whole, the restaurant and bar industry is well below the national standard when it comes to providing comprehensive employee benefits packages. There are many opportunities for employers to increase their benefits offering, including providing more retirement savings options, improving disability coverage, adding in more paid vacation days, and providing more inclusive access to paid family leave.