The restaurant industry added 38,000 jobs in November, according to data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics released Friday, and the jobless rate slipped to 3.7%.
“Including November’s increase, eating and drinking places have now added more than 6 million jobs since the pandemic trough of restaurant employment in April 2020,” said Bruce Grindy, chief economist at the National Restaurant Association, in his monthly recap. “As of November 2023, eating and drinking places are 46,000 jobs above their February 2020 employment peak.”
The November unemployment rate was down from 3.9% in October. The National Restaurant Association chief economist noted that the full-service segment continued to lag quick-service operations in employment gains, based on October numbers.
The bureau noted that November’s job increases were dominated by food services and drinking places.
“Leisure and hospitality had added an average of 51,000 jobs per month over the prior 12 months,” its report said.
In November, average hourly earnings for all employees on private nonfarm payrolls rose by 12 cents, or 0.4%, to $34.10 an hour. Over the past 12 months, average hourly earnings have increased by 4%. In November, average hourly earnings of private-sector production and nonsupervisory employees rose by 12 cents, or 0.4%, to $29.30.
Grindy noted that restaurant job growth has been choppy, “but the latest data suggests the industry finally returned to pre-pandemic employment levels in November. That was thought to be the case in September, before the preliminary data was revised sharply lower.”
Including November’s increase, eating and drinking places have added more than 6 million jobs since the pandemic trough of restaurant employment in April 2020, Grindy said. As of November 2023, eating and drinking places are 46,000 jobs above their February 2020 employment peak.
However, the full-service segment is still down more than 200,000 jobs, he said, adding that segment-level employment figures lag by one month, so October is the most current data available.
“The full-service segment experienced the most job losses during the initial months of the pandemic – and it still has the longest path to recovery,” Grindy said. “As of October 2023, full-service restaurant employment levels were 205,000 jobs (or 4%) below pre-pandemic readings in February 2020.”
Employment counts in the cafeterias/grill buffets/buffets segment (down 33%) also remained below February 2020 levels.
“Job losses in the limited-service segments were somewhat less severe during the initial months of the pandemic, as these operations were more likely to retain staff to support their existing off-premises business,” Grindy said. “As of October 2023, employment at snack and nonalcoholic beverage bars – including coffee, donut and ice cream shops – was 106,000 jobs (or 13%) above February 2020 readings.”
Overall, staffing levels in the quick-service and fast-casual segments were 119,000 jobs (or 3%) above pre-pandemic levels. Headcounts at bars and taverns were 51,000 jobs (or 12%) above the pre-pandemic peak.
Employment levels also varied by state, with 23 below pre-pandemic employment levels, he said.
“As of October 2023, 23 states and the District of Columbia still had fewer eating and drinking place jobs than they did in October 2019,” Grindy noted.
This group was led by Maryland, which had 9% fewer eating and drinking place jobs in October 2023 than it did in October 2019. Maine (down 8%), Vermont (down 7%), Michigan (down 6%) and Massachusetts (down 6%) were also below their pre-pandemic restaurant employment levels.
As of October 2023, eating and drinking place employment in 27 states surpassed their comparable pre-pandemic readings in October 2019. That group was led by Nevada (up 15%), Utah (up 13%), Idaho (up 12%) and Montana (up 9%).
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