Career Explorer Food and hospitality
Human edge, steady
Dishwashers
Clean dishes, kitchen, food preparation equipment, or utensils.
More resilient than most: more resilient than 64% of the 831 careers we score. AI exposure is very low (the Bureau of Labor Statistics rates it low), and US jobs are projected to change by -1.0% by 2035, expected to shrink.
AI struggles with much of this work. Hiring is expected to grow slower than average, or to shrink.
- Median pay (2025)
- $34,810
- Job growth to 2035
- -1.0%
- Openings a year
- 68,900
- People doing it (2025)
- 480,000
- Usual route in
- No formal credential, then short on-the-job training
Where people already use AI for this work
- Prepare foods or beverages
From Microsoft Research, Working with AI (2025).
Work AI rarely helps with
- Clean tools, equipment, facilities, or work areas
- Stock supplies or products
- Clean workpieces, finished products, or other objects
What the work looks like
- Wash dishes, glassware, flatware, pots, or pans, using dishwashers or by hand.
- Maintain kitchen work areas, equipment, or utensils in clean and orderly condition.
- Place clean dishes, utensils, or cooking equipment in storage areas.
- Sweep or scrub floors.
- Load or unload trucks that deliver or pick up food or supplies.
From O*NET 31.0, US Department of Labor.
What the Bureau of Labor Statistics expects
- Fewer of these jobs, as an increasing number of delivery and carryout options reduces the number of dishes which need to be washed in-house.
- More of these jobs, as movie theaters are increasingly offering partial or full restaurant menus to moviegoers to encourage attendance. Dishwashers will be needed as offerings require more involved preparation and larger kitchens.
Careers using similar strengths, with a stronger outlook
- Laundry and dry-cleaning workersHuman edge, growing, Index 83, +4.3%
- Landscaping and groundskeeping workersHuman edge, growing, Index 79, +4.7%
- Maids and housekeeping cleanersHuman edge, steady, Index 69, +0.6%
- Laborers and freight, stock, and material movers, handHuman edge, steady, Index 72, +1.8%
Also known as: Busser, Dishwasher, Kitchen Steward, Steward, Dish Machine Operator (DMO), Dish Room Worker, Dish Runner, Dish Technician (Dish Tech).
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Sources: US Bureau of Labor Statistics Employment Projections 2025 to 2035; O*NET 31.0; Microsoft Research (2025); Anthropic Economic Index (2026); Eloundou and colleagues (Science, 2024); Felten, Raj and Seamans (2023). How we score. Updated 12 October 2026.