Employment

Hotels and other accommodations provided 1.9 million wage and salary jobs nationally in 2008. Hotels and other lodging places employ many different types of managers to direct and coordinate the activities of the front office, kitchen, dining room, and other departments such as housekeeping, accounting, personnel, purchasing, publicity, sales, security, and maintenance. Lodging managers, typically the general manager and assistant managers, make decisions that affect the general operations of the hotel, including setting room rates, establishing credit policy, and having ultimate responsibility for resolving problems. Other managers are responsible for different phases of hotel operations. For example, food and beverage managers oversee restaurants, lounges, and catering or banquet operations. Room managers look after reservations and occupancy levels to ensure proper room assignments and authorize discounts, special rates, or promotions. Large hotels, especially those with conference centers, use an executive committee structure to better facilitate departmental communications and coordinate activities. Other managers who may serve on a hotel's executive committee include public relations or sales managers, human resource directors, executive housekeepers, and heads of hotel security.

Food service managers held about 338,700 jobs nationally in 2008. The majority of managers are salaried, but 42 percent are self-employed as owners of independent restaurants or other small food service establishments. Forty-one percent of all salaried jobs for food service managers are in full-service restaurants or limited-service eating places, such as fast-food restaurants and cafeterias. Other salaried jobs are in special food services' an industry that includes food service contractors who supply food services at institutional, governmental, commercial, or industrial locations, and educational services, which primarily supply elementary and secondary schools. A smaller number of salaried jobs are in hotels; amusement, gambling, and recreation industries; nursing care facilities; and hospitals. Jobs are located throughout the country, with large cities and resort areas providing more opportunities for full-service dining positions. Food service manager jobs are expected to grow 5 percent nationally through 2018. Most new jobs will be in full-service restaurants and limited service eating places. Manager jobs will also increase in healthcare and elder care facilities.

Meeting and convention planners held about 56,600 jobs nationally in 2008. About 27 percent worked for religious, grant making, civic, professional, and similar organizations and 14 percent worked for accommodation, including hotels and motels. The remaining worked for educational services, public and private, and in other industries that host meetings. About 6 percent of meeting planners were self-employed. Employment of meeting and convention planners is expected to grow 16 percent nationally over the 2008-18 decade, which is faster than the average for all occupations.