One of the most sought-after professions, especially in the summer season, is the waiter. His duties, rights, etc., depend directly on the place where the employee is employed. Such workers are needed both in small cafes, even street-type ones, and in high-end restaurants. They serve the ordered dishes on the table, serve visitors, should be polite and courteous to customers of the institution. Salaries can also vary, from about 50 to 1.5 thousand dollars.
Profession history
This profession has a rather long history. In our country, it arose only with the advent of restaurants that corresponded to European fashion. The first place where work as a waiter in Moscow was required appeared in the middle of the 19th century. This restaurant was called "Slavic Bazaar". All other institutions were considered ordinary taverns, just of varying degrees of quality.
Each employee who received this position was required to wear a dress coat, bow tie, white vest and gloves. In addition, he was required to monitor the lack of bristles and timely cut hair. But this only concerned restaurants; in the taverns, the employees who brought food were called sexual, only a white shirt was required of them. Moreover, most of the genitals were peasants, and in order to get to this position, they had to go a long way from the cleaner and the dishwasher. For four years they studied the profession from the outside, learned to communicate with customers, make payment calculations and correctly bring the order. The most interesting thing is that at the beginning of a career, sex should have paid extra to employers for their work. That is, they were not paid a salary, but they. And they took all the tips to the buffet, where then they were equally divided between all employees.
How to get a job
Mostly, employers do not require formal education, but if the applicant has the position, this may give him additional chances to get a job as a waiter. Jobs usually mean that a person will have to undergo training at the place of employment. Sometimes it is indicated in advance whether to complete special courses on customer service.
Skills
Waiters should be able to serve tables, study recipes and special ingredients of the served dishes, know the specifics of serving dishes in a particular institution, own etiquette and understand the pricing system. In addition, they may be required to know how drinks and dishes are combined, and in some expensive establishments you need to be able to speak English fluently.
As for personal qualities, in order to get a job as a waiter in big cities, including St. Petersburg, you need to be attentive, patient and sociable. Good memory, friendly and friendly communication, good physical endurance are very important. The employee must be neat, stress-resistant, have a good sense of humor, have a presentable appearance and clear diction.
Responsibilities
The most important functions of a waiter are fulfilling orders of clients of an institution, settling with them, serving and cleaning tables, preparing them to receive new visitors. If necessary, his duties include changing napkins, tablecloths, as well as participating in decorating the hall, if there will be a celebration. He is obliged to correctly and tactfully answer even the most provocative questions of clients, if necessary, advise them with dishes and drinks, which are on the menu of the institution.
He is engaged in the formation of the final value of the order. And also the employee is financially responsible for broken dishes, damaged furniture or the order of the client whom he served if he left without paying. The most important thing in the work of the waiter is to serve the client so that he leaves the restaurant with a good mood and is happy with the way he was served.
Features and salary
Basically, workers in this area are not paid so much, but this is due to the fact that a professional in his field always gets a tip. Moreover, depending on the quality and prestige of the institution, they may exceed its monthly salary. To master the skills of working as a waiter, you need to study for about one to three months.
Most often, before entering work, a person must pass a probationary period, which can be from one to four weeks. The work schedule is much longer than that of office employees, up to 12 hours. And the tray on which the employee must carry three dishes can weigh up to ten kilograms.
Pros of the profession
Probably the most positive quality of this profession is its relevance and accessibility. Even a waiter without work experience and any training courses can get a job, they will teach everything on the spot. The main thing is to have a pleasant appearance, to be sociable and sociable. In addition, the maintenance staff has a fairly free schedule, and there is always the opportunity to ask a colleague to take the shift in their place. Thanks to this, many students can combine such work with study. Well and of course, the biggest advantage of the profession is the tip.
Their size can vary significantly depending on various factors, ranging from the high cost and prestige of the institution where the person works, and ending with the type of visitors. Not every job can bring additional cash in addition to salary. Especially such financial support helps a lot of young people who are just starting to live separately from their parents. Well, the last advantage that a waiter gives is the opportunity to have lunch at work. With a good relationship between the staff and the kitchen, it is unlikely that the employee will remain hungry, and the more prestigious the institution, the more expensive and tasty the food will be.
Cons of the profession
The main disadvantage of this work is that the employee is responsible for almost everything. Any broken plate, glass or customer who has not paid the bill will lead to deductions from the salary. Plus, there may be fines for other oversights, depending on what rules the owner of the institution will establish.
The second disadvantage of the profession is constant stress. Working as a waiter suggests that you need to constantly communicate with a variety of people, regardless of how polite or pleasant they are. Many customers can find fault with employees just because they understand that they still have no right to reciprocate and should respect them.
The third drawback - the general characteristics of the service depend on the waiter not completely, but be responsible for all the shortcomings to him. So, for example, the kitchen is in no hurry to prepare a dish, the dishwasher has gone about its business, and there is no clean dishes, or the bartenders are too busy to deliver the order to the waiter in time.
A free schedule can only be on regular days, but weekends and holidays are usually busy. In addition, there is a high probability that there will be night shifts, because people usually visit such establishments to take a break from work in their free time. Working as a night waiter suggests that you will have to forget about regular meetings with friends and celebrate birthdays or adjust the schedule very much and arrange with colleagues.
Prospects
Despite the fact that this work is in the service sector, career growth is possible even up to the boss. Immediately increase the employee to a senior waiter, then to the administrator. If an employee graduates from special courses, they can upgrade him to a head waiter. If a person got a job in a network company, then the waiter’s work experience will give him the opportunity to become director in five years.
Conclusion
The demand for this profession is very large, both in large and small cities. And the stream of employees choosing this job as additional and unstable earnings leads to the fact that new vacancies are constantly being vacated. Having settled in a decent restaurant, you can safely count on a large salary and impressive tips. This profession does not need to be studied for a long time, in most cases, employers accept students without experience and train them on the spot.
But at the same time, work as a waiter is unstable and unpromising, especially in cheap or seasonal cafes. In most cases, people simply use such a position as a side job for a short time, because it does not allow development, does not teach anything new and does not reveal its potential. In addition to this, constant moral and physical stress must be taken into account. It doesn’t matter to employers whether the employee has a headache or is in a bad mood today, customer service should be uninterrupted and at a high level.