Letter to the editor to the Cleveland Plain Dealer on September 14, 2004

Mr. Brent Larkin
Editorial Page Director
Cleveland Plain Dealer
1801 Superior Avenue, NE
Cleveland, OH 44114

Dear Mr. Larkin:

On behalf of our nation's 12 million restaurant-and-foodservice employees and the more than 382,000 restaurant-and-foodservice employees in Ohio, I take issue with the recent two-part article by Leila Atassi that ran on September 6 and 7 ("Just Getting By" and "Pot of Gold"), about her recent experience working in a restaurant in the Brook Park community. Atassi misrepresents the industry as a whole by providing a narrow, one-sided glimpse from her short-term (three-and-a-half week) experience, while completely overlooking the rewarding opportunities abundant to so many hard-working professionals in the restaurant industry.

As cornerstones of the economy, career and employment opportunities and community involvement, the restaurant industry plays an essential role in Americans' lives. The $14.2 billion restaurant-and-foodservice industry in the State of Ohio plays a vital role to the local economy with its 26,114 restaurants. The restaurant industry is 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 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.

Our industry is full of positive stories of hardworking individuals who have been loyal to their companies and guests for many years, many having started out in the dish room and advancing to the Board room – all the while, providing excellence in guest service and professionalism. I hope next time The Plain Dealer will consider a more accurate portrait of the hardworking Americans employed by our nation's restaurants.

Sincerely,

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