By Vanessa Cavasinni, editor Australian Hotelier
Liquor & Gaming NSW (L&G NSW) will soon implement compulsory online refresher courses for holders of responsible service of alcohol (RSA) and responsible conduct of gambling (RCG) cards that are about to expire.
Refresher training was a recommendation in the 2013 independent review of the Liquor Act, in order to keep required skills up-to-date. Both five-year RSA and RCG cards have been implemented since August 2011, with the first sets of cards due to expire in August this year.
Holders of RSA and RCG cards will now have to pay a $35 fee to take a required online refresher course before their current cards expire, in order to obtain another five-year competency card.
The online refresher courses are not yet available, as L&G NSW are still finalising these programs, but will soon be made available. Card holders will receive reminders of their cards’ impending expiration via SMS and email, which will also include a link to the refresher course.
John Green, Director of Liquor and Policing for AHA NSW, believes the new scheme will be a more expedient way of renewing these competencies..
“It makes sense that as existing RSA and RCG certifications expire, staff only have to do a refresher rather than re-do the entire course,” Mr Green said.
“We have yet to see the online refresher training so can’t comment on the content, however along with other industry associations we expect to be briefed/consulted before it goes live.”
The online course will now be the only way an RSA or RCG card can be renewed for a five-year period, and L&G NSW recommends that licensees remind their staff of the need to take the course before their card expires regularly.