Every day millions of people across the United States use cafeterias. Whether they are in schools, hospitals, or retirement homes, cafeterias are an essential part of this nations infrastructure. The people who work in these facilities work one of the most important jobs in the nation, yet their salaries are extremely low.

I want to research and do my low wage life project about cafeteria workers because every time I have ever ordered something from a cafeteria, I always wonder what the workers life is like. The first thought that comes to my head is that the workers must not make much money, and many of those employees have been working the same job for long periods of time.

My friend’s mother worked at the cafeteria at my old high school. His mom unlike most of the cafeteria employees at was working for extra money, and not for survival. However he told me stories about some of the workers there who were living in harsh conditions. They barely had enough money to buy groceries, and never had enough money buy things for entertainment. Another one of the employees had their daughter drop out of high school, and work in the cafeteria with the mother, just to make enough money to live comfortably

96% of cafeteria workers are female, and the average yearly pay is around $19,000. Most cafeteria workers do not have much more than a high school education, and all that is needed to become a cafeteria employees is some minor cooking skills, and minor mathematical operation skills if they are working a cash register. The hours of working in a cafeteria are not unbearable, but they are long enough to the point where it can cause physical health problems from standing all day. There are also medical risks while working the appliances needed to cook the foods, like ovens, and dough mixers.

I want to do more research to find more personal stories about working in the cafeterias, and why the work force is predominately women. I also would like to research the range of jobs within the cafeteria ,and whether they are all equal in pay. I also want to look at how cafeteria workers are viewed in society. I get the general feeling that most cafeteria workers are looked down upon because their job is to serve people. But with research I can strengthen that view, or see if it is even correct.