An estimated 339,000 workers were employed in foodservice operations in the nation's elementary and secondary schools. While news stories often focus on so-called "lunch ladies," the school foodservice workforce encompasses employees ranging from front-line cafeteria workers to chefs and food preparation staff to administrators and managers. Such workers have a variety of skills and educational backgrounds and differ in their labor market outcomes. Federal funding and policies have affected the trajectory of the school foodservice workforce over time. While early school food programs in the United States were started locally, the introduction of federal funding in the 1930s led to an expansion and professionalization of the workforce, which was (and remains) comprised largely of women. Federal funding for the National School Lunch Program (NSLP) was made permanent in 1946 and, together with funding for the School Breakfast Program (SBP), now provides the bulk of school foodservice departments' budgets. This report details the history of the school foodservice labor force and policy shifts that have affected the workforce over time, including a recent trend toward outsourcing. It provides an overview of school foodservice positions, budgets, and operations, and the federal laws, policies, and funding streams applicable to the workforce, including labor laws and funding for workforce training. It also presents original estimates of the characteristics and labor market outcomes of public-sector school foodservice workers using American Community Survey (ACS) data from 2015 to 2019.