By Amy Looker
The national training arm of the Australian Liquor Stores Association (ALSA), the Retail Liquor Development Foundation (RLDF), is now offering compulsory Responsible Service of Alcohol (RSA) certification.
Working in conjunction with the Australian Hospitality Academy, RLDF will offer the course, which is deemed compulsory to all licensees and staff serving liquor in NSW, at a subsidised cost.
According to ALSA chief executive officer, Terry Mott, the addition of the RSA certification to the RLDF training program demonstrates the commitment from the retail liquor industry to build a responsible, professional, long-term work force.
“This is another important step for RLDF and reinforces the commitment ALSA has to support our retail liquor store operators and their staff to build professionalism and profitability in the sector,” he said.
“It comes hot on the heels of the first government accredited traineeship program for all liquor retailers, launched recently by RLDF. This initiative can attract government funding for liquor retailers to train and help build a solid retail career future for young staff members – not only a stop-gap employment opportunity on the way to another career.”
Along with compulsory RSA certification the RLDF also offers a diverse range of training modules including Armed Robbery Survival Skills, Business Planning Skills, Consumer Behaviour, Financial Management, Marketing Principles, Negotiation Skills, OH&S, People Management, Retail Store Layout, Strategic Planning and Time Management.
“In the last 18 months alone, over 1500 industry management and employees have registered and undertaken training through RLDF, which is a great result and reinforces the relevance and importance of the foundation and what it represents to the industry”, said RLDF National Coordinator, Jade Fitzgerald.
“Each accredited training module costs RLDF $325 to run, however these costs have been heavily subsidised, reducing the actual cost to retailers to just $125 per module, which makes accessing this important training much more accessible to small business operators.”
Formed in 2003, the RLDF is a joint initiative between ALSA and Foster’s Group to support the training and education needs of the retail liquor industry.