A Fraction of Knowledge

Yesterday I was at the deli counter of a large supermarket, waiting for my turn. For some reason this store has the slowest workers. You can be on line for a half hour if just 2 people are in front of you. When it was my turn, the deli man asked me what I needed. I said 1/3lb of turkey. He turned his back, got out the turkey and started slicing it. After about 3 slices, he stopped slicing. He looked around and seemed lost. After a very long minute he turned to me and said "I am new here and I don't know what 1/3 is". I informed him that 1/3 is .33 on the scale. A bit more than 1/4 but a bit less than 1/2. He said thank you and returned to my order. When he finished, I took the package and continued shopping. I was still thinking about his question as I shopped. He was in his mid 30's and American. How did he get passed the 4th grade without knowing what the fraction 1/3 stood for. Is our education system so poor that we send adults out into the working world clueless. Even if he did not graduate high school, the math skill that involves fractions is taught in elementary school. It was kind of sad that this is a representation of our educational system at it's worst.