The City of San Francisco and the State of California require a number of certifications to work in the bar industry.  California requires bartenders, barbacks and security staff to go through Responsible Beverage Service (RBS) training (https://ggra.org/california-responsible-beverage-service-training/) every 3 years.  California requires all staff to go through sexual harassment and abusive conduct prevention training (https://ggra.org/anti-harassment-training/) every 2 years.  Finally, California requires bartenders and barbacks to go through Food Handling Safety training (https://ggra.org/food-handler-card/) every 3 years.  

Responsible Beverage Server (RBS) Training Certification

Beginning July 2022, any ABC licensee who has an “ABC On-Premises License” will need to have their staff trained and certified in Responsible Beverage Service (RBS) within sixty (60) days of the date of initial employment.  All Bartenders, Barback, and Security personnel are required to take RBS Training. Each staff member must take the training course, and pass an ABC exam in order to receive certification.  Certification is valid for 3 years. 

The process to obtain certification is as follows. You can also find a step by step guide of this process here.:

• First time RBS certification: Create an account on the ABC RBS Portal to register. It costs $3 to register with the ABC.  You will be assigned a Server ID.  Write down your ID number found in the Server Certificate Details section.  For re-certication: You just need your Server ID, and proceed to the next step.  If you don’t have your Server ID, you need to log into the ABC RBS Portal and get it.
• Choose a certified trainer.  We recommend using training provided by the GGRA (Golden Gate Restaurant Association). GGRA’s discounted training is $9.60.
• Search for online providers to find a training provider, or if you want to use the GGRA discounted training, just click on this StateFoodSafety link to register and purchase the course.
• Once you begin the StateFoodSafety course, you’ll be prompted to enter the Server Id Number.
• Within 1-2 days after course completion, you’ll receive an email notification from the CA RBS saying you may begin your exam. The state administered exam must be completed within 30 days of the date you completed the training.
• After you complete the training, you will get a Certificate of completion. Save this certificate for later when you need to upload it through the Training portal after you pass the ABC exam..
• Finally, you need to pass the ABC exam.  You can find practice tests at these links: Sample Test #1, Sample Test #2.  Once you pass the test,  please upload your certificate using the link below in the section labeled “Upload Employee Training Certification”.  You will need to provide your Server ID when you upload your certificate.  This will allow us to query the ABC to ensure you passed.  After you upload the RBS certificate, we will add 3 hours of time to your next payroll run to reimburse you for your time and most of the course costs. 

Hint about taking the training course from StateFoodSafety: If you take the StateFoodSafety course, one hint to make it run faster is to turn on the AutoPlay feature which automatically advances between slides:

Sexual Harassment Prevention Training

As of January 1, 2021, SB 1343 requires that all employers of 5 or more employees provide 1 hour of sexual harassment and abusive conduct prevention training to non-managerial employees and 2 hours of sexual harassment and abusive conduct prevention training to managerial employees once every two (2) years.

The state has provided free training for employees. You can find both the 1 hour non-supervisory training and 2 hour supervisory training via their website: here

Note: You will be paid for your time for training every 2 years.  In order to get credit for the class and get reimbursed for your time, you must capture proof of your certificate.  Either save the certificate as a PDF, or take a screen print, or take a pic with your phone.  Once you upload your certificate using the link below in the section labeled “Upload Employee Training Certification”, we will add 1 hour of time to your next payroll run.

Food Handler Certification

As of January 1, 2012, all “Food Handlers” in the state of California are required to obtain a Food Handler Card. This card is obtained through specific, state certified Food Safety Training and an exam. The Food Handler Card is something we as owners need to ensure all employees who handle food or drink consumed by customers have obtained. The card itself is something you must also have in order to be properly certified for the job. You will need to obtain a card (testing and training are very cheap) before you start work. The card is yours, so you can use it if you work somewhere else in the food/bar industry in California.

There are a number of online sites that are certified for obtaining your California food handlers card. Classes should be in the $10 range.  A number of staff members have used: StateFoodSafety.com. Remember, you need to take the California Food Handler Card Training and Testing.  A copy of your certificate needs to be uploaded using the link below in the section labeled “Upload Employee Training Certification”.

Guard Card

Anyone working as a security guard in California must have a Guard Card. Guard Card training includes 8 hours of initial training, a background check, and 32 hours of post-licensing training. Guard Cards are issued by the state and must be renewed every 2 years. If you already have a Guard Card, please upload a copy here. If you do not have a Guard Card, you must complete the training and submit your Guard Card to Beaux within 60 days of your start date. Details of how to obtain a Guard Card can be found at https://www.bsis.ca.gov/industries/guard.shtml

Upload Employee Training Certification

As stated above, the City of San Francisco and the State of California require a number of certifications to work in the industry.  As such, we need to enforce this requirement with our employees.  As you receive the various certifications, please send them to us via the Upload Employee Training Certification form.