A study used data from the National Longitudinal Surveys of Youth to analyze the long-term effects of hospitality industry employment on youth. The subsample extracted for the study included all youth who were aged 16-24 in 1980 and employed in the civilian sector for pay at any time in the year. Statistics indicated the hospitality sector was clearly a major source of employment for youth employing nearly one out of five (18.1%) working youth in any given year. Especially important was the availability of part-time opportunities for students. Students, particularly those college bound or in college, filled a disproportionately large share of jobs in the sector. Although entry-level jobs were an important source of income support for students and other youth, relatively few young workers established careers in the industry. Industry affiliation declined sharply as workers got older. Although many youth, particularly students, had several years of experience (part-time) in the restaurant and hotel industries, few youth remained in the industry. Noncollege-bound youth were even less likely to make longer-term commitments to this sector. As their work lives evolved, the youth with experience in the hospitality industry followed the average tendency toward rapidly rising wage levels. With no distinct long-term wage effect from experience in the hospitality sector, such jobs were best viewed as a transitory phase in highly varied career paths. The youth who held jobs in the hospitality sector were likely to complete additional schooling than youth employed in other industries. (YLB)