‘It feels like a fine’: Bar, restaurant workers speak out over new Smart Serve requirements

People who work at your favourite bars and restaurants are facing a government-issued deadline for recertification to keep their jobs. While most of them applaud training updates, they question the fee that goes along with it.

“We hire bartenders and wait staff for private events in the GTA,” said Kevin Bagnall, owner of Servers and Shakers, a service-related staffing business in Toronto.

Everyone he hires must have a Smart Serve certificate, which is required by the Alcohol and Gaming Commission of Ontario (AGCO). It’s for any workers who serve, handle or sell alcohol and has been an industry standard for decades. It requires workers to complete an online course, which comes with a fee.

“The main focus is for safety,” Bagnall said. “It teaches workers not to overserve and to recognize signs that people maybe too intoxicated, among other things.”

Up until now, those who completed the course were good to work for life.

“There was no expiry date on those certificates, but now the AGCO requires everyone be recertified every five years,” Bagnall said.

According to the AGCO, as of July 1, 2022, all Smart Serve certificates (new and existing) include five-year expiry dates.

“Certificate holders must recertify before their certificate expires to maintain its validity,” a spokesperson told CityNews by email.

Bagnall, who’s had his certificate since the late ’90s, recently went through the recertification process.

“There are some very good things in the new course modules, most people will agree with that,” he said. “But a lot of us in the industry question having to pay to a fee every five years, it feels like a money grab.”

An employee at a bar. CITYNEWS

While the AGCO sets the requirements, the courses and training are run by Smart Serve Ontario, a registered charity.

“The AGCO updated the Liquor Licence and Control Act (LLCA) in 2019 that reflected the changing landscape in alcohol sales and service. With so many changes it was agreed that recertification is a good practice that is consistent across the country,” said Richard Anderson, executive director of Smart Serve Ontario.

He said other provinces, with similar programs, have long had five-year recertification standards.

The new training has been updated with a series of new modules, one of which includes signs to look out for when it comes to sexual assault.

“I think that’s a good idea for their safety and ours as well,” said Caria Shema, who has spent years working in the service industry. She saw several cases where sexual assault cases were not handled properly in environments where alcohol was served.

“Some people get drunk and they can’t control themselves,” she said.

But when asked if workers should have to pay a fee to go through the retraining, Shema, wasn’t on board.

“I think it’s better to train them for free,” she said.

An employee at a bar preparing an alcoholic beverage. CITYNEWS

According to Smart Serve, some 50,000 workers have recertified already. The course costs $29.95, which adds up to nearly $1.5 million, collected in fees. So where does that money go?

Anderson said the fees pay for training improvements, which include technical enhancements, regular updates, and the addition of new course modules.

Smart Serve also gives out scholarships to students pursuing careers in hospitality.

“This has been over $1 million over the past six years,” Anderson said. “In addition to the scholarships, we directly support post-secondary students through our DrinkSmart.ca brand, which was created in 2013.

The main objective of DrinkSmart is to educate individuals about responsible drinking and to minimize alcohol-related harms on campuses and beyond.”

Bagnall said those are all good things, but coming out of pandemic lockdowns where workers are still getting on their feet, he said the fee attached to this, still stings.

“I can agree that there’s some information there that’s helpful and like any job it’s great to refresh yourselves,” he said. “Staff do appreciate it but not being dinged for $30 and having to do it at this time.”

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Below is the full statement from Smart Serve Ontario’s executive director Richard Anderson:

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