Restaurant Retention: Departures, Training and Career Paths

An employee who transfers between a company's stores has left one team while staying with the business. A retention review needs clear definitions, along with records of training and opportunities to advance.

Reference sources checked October 2, 2026.

Count departures consistently#

The Bureau of Labor Statistics counts departures from an establishment's payroll in three categories: quits, layoffs and discharges, and other separations. In its Job Openings and Labor Turnover Survey, quits are voluntary departures excluding retirement and transfers to another location of the same firm. Those transfers count as other separations; moves within one location are excluded.

A restaurant company can therefore track departures from individual stores separately from exits from the business. BLS counts separations over a month, rather than as a snapshot of current employees. BLS definitions

Follow the same new hires#

A new-hire cohort offers a separate view of retention. Define a group by its starting period and follow those employees for the same length of time.

For an illustrative 90-day measure, suppose 10 people started during a hiring period and each has had 90 days of follow-up. If eight remained continuously employed by the company through day 90, retention is 8 divided by 10, or 80%. The numbers are hypothetical.

Someone hired last week has not yet reached that observation point. Record each person's start date, 90-day observation date, and any transfers, departures or rehires. A rehire after a departure does not count as continuous employment in this example. Separating crew and manager cohorts can keep a change in the mix of jobs from being mistaken for a change within one role.

Make training observable#

The Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) describes peer learning, demonstrations and on-the-job instruction in its recommended safety practices. It calls for language and literacy levels workers understand, clear contacts for concerns, and opportunities to ask questions during and after training. New tasks, or equipment changes that could increase hazards, can also call for additional instruction. OSHA training guidance

An illustrative restaurant training record could identify the employee, task, trainer, demonstration date and follow-up practice. Recording an equipment demonstration separately from supervised practice shows what the worker has observed and attempted. The trainer can then record which skills need more practice.

Show how roles connect#

Chipotle's 2025 sustainability report sets out its career-development structure. Its career roadmap connects crew member, certified trainer, kitchen leader, service leader, apprentice and general manager roles, with further paths into restaurant and field leadership. The company describes its Spice Hub as an on-demand learning platform and says leader training is designed to build on the preceding role's responsibilities and skills. Development roadmap, page 17

In a February 19, 2025 announcement, Chipotle identified three employees featured in its recruiting campaign who had progressed from crew into restaurant management: Lisset Rodriguez, a general manager in Portland, Oregon; Justice Hudson, a certified training manager and Restaurateur in Phoenix, Arizona; and Karen Martinez, a general manager in Donna, Texas. Chipotle's career announcement

Chipotle's 2025 report also describes daily engagement with general managers, individual conversations and employee surveys followed by action plans. Employee feedback, page 18