It's a Living

The series opens with innocent Vicki contemplating going out on a date with a pilot. She's even more worried about what's going to happen after the dinner, since she still is a virgin.

While her husband and children are away on a camping trip, Lois has Jan stay overnight due to the fact that a burglar has been terrorizing her neighborhood. It turns into a slumber party when Dot and Vicki insist on sleeping over as well but the fun quickly is dampened when the burglar makes an appearance.

Vicki's plans are ruined when tenants change their minds about moving out of an apartment which is to be hers. This prompts the other waitresses to talk Cassie into putting her up for a few days.

Vicki's father comes to town for a visit and Vicki is worried about his reaction to the skimpy outfits she must wear for work. However this worry pales in comparison to her discovering her dad and Nancy having a one night stand.

After having a big argument with her husband, Lois runs into her high school sweetheart who wants to pick up where they left off. When he gives Lois his hotel key, a concerned Dot and Vicki follow her and try to stop her from making what could be the biggest mistake of her life.

Jan wants to be able to afford to pay for ballet lessons for her daughter, so she picks up a second job, preparing invitations. However, her second job begins to interfere with her job at the restaurant which prompts Nancy to fire her.

Cassie is reluctant to stay with her latest boyfriend since falling in love is something that she is uncomfortable with. Meanwhile to impress him, she decides to cook a meal, with a little help from her fellow waitresses.

The staff must stay calm when a fire breaks out in the hotel a few floor below the restaurant. They must also try to keep the customers as calm as possible which proves difficult at times since the customers include a bickering married couple, a money grubbing televangilist and a man who's having an affair on his wife.

Jan makes a mistake when she accepts her economics professor's offer to go out on a date. However, when she tries to break off their romance, he hands her an ultimatum: sleep with me or I'll give you an F in the course.

Dot and Vicki begin dating the same man which only aggravates the situation at the restaurant where Nancy imposes a crash diet on Cassie and Jan.

Lois learns that an invitation to speak to her daughter's class about working mothers was prompted by her daughter's essay describing her as vice president of a bank. Meanwhile, Dot tries to cheer up an impotent Sonny.

Jan and Lois have a ongoing debate over the discovery of a girlie magazine in the possesion of Lois's son.

Nancy is unexpectedly fired from her hostess position at the restaurant. Her firing is not the only surprise as is the reason she was fired which forces her to come face to face with age discrimination.