Letter to the Editor to Detroit News on employment opportunities

March 15, 2004

The Detroit News
Letters, Editorial Page
615 W. Lafayette
Detroit, MI 48226

Dear Editor:

On behalf of our nation's 12 million restaurant-and-foodservice employees, I take strong offense to the degrading light cast by Michael L. Diamond on the highly professional and respectable opportunities afforded to restaurant employees ("American workers snub undesirable employment," 3/12/04). Diamond not only misrepresents the rewarding opportunities abundant in the restaurant industry, but also insults the millions of Americans who have chosen restaurants as a career path.

As cornerstones of the economy, career and employment opportunities and community involvement, the restaurant industry plays an invaluable role in society. The restaurant industry is all about opportunity and a gateway to success as restaurants serve as the training ground for millions of Americans. More than two out of five adults have been employed in the restaurant industry and more than one out of four adults have found their first job in the restaurant industry. Salaries for foodservice managers are growing at a rate twice as fast as the median salary for all managerial positions. In addition, the restaurant industry will create 1.5 million new positions between 2004 and 2015. And, as the nation's largest private-sector employer, the restaurant industry offers myriad positions in a variety of fields, providing quality jobs for nearly 9 percent of those employed in the United States—for a year or a career.

I hope next time The Detroit News portrays a fair and accurate portrait of the hardworking Americans employed by our nation's restaurants.

Sincerely,




Steven C. Anderson
President and Chief Executive Officer
National Restaurant Association