The NSW Restaurant and Catering Association (R&CA) wants the state government to implement changes to the law which would allow minors to serve alcoholic drinks.
Although 16 year olds can’t legally buy alcohol if these controversial changes are passed they may be able to serve alcohol in restaurant bars and dining areas to overcome staff shortages. Currently under NSW law, staff of licensed venues must be at least 18 years old to serve alcohol.
The NSW R&CA represents 11,500 venues in the state and wants the government to follow in the footsteps of Queensland and allow minors to serve alcohol.
According to the chief executive officer John Hart, the move would help restaurant and bar owners desperate for additional staff.
He was quoted on the website www.dailytelegraph.com.auas saying,
“So long as a Responsible Service of Alcohol (RSA) course has been completed, junior staff – 16 or someone in Year 11 or 12 – should be allowed to serve booze,” he said.
“At the moment, you’ve got a situation where someone orders a beer and a burger and junior staff can only serve the burger and has to get someone else to serve the beer.”
Every 5 years the NSW government has a review of the liquor laws, this time around scores of submissions have been put forward, one of which being the NSW Restaurant and Catering Association’s (R&CA) request for staff as young as 16 to be able to serve alcohol.
The post on DailyTelegraph.com.au tells of one licensee, Cresent Head Tavern’s director Darren Gunn who claims that finding staff to work at his venue in the small mid-north coast town is a battle. He is calling for people as young as 15 years old to be trained to work in the bar to fill staff gaps. He is currently training a number of 15 year olds to work in the restaurant, with food but he is unable to train them to work in the bar because of the state laws. He says once these staff are of legal age they leave the small town to find full time work elsewhere.
The post goes on to state,
Brooke Mozeley, 17, who has been working at the Crescent Head Tavern three nights a week and during school holidays since she was 15, said it was frustrating not being able to serve alcohol.
“People will call out and ask to be served and I have to tell them that I can’t,” she said.
“It would be easier if we could serve drinks as well.”
Community groups also want laws changed to allow staff of licensed venues to drink on the premise after hours. The Government is due to table its report into the review in December. These are some of the proposed changes for the state’s liquor laws,
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Venue licences revoked after five violent incidents
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Lower age of bar staff to at least 16
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After-work drinks for staff
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Ban patrons from “stockpiling” drinks
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“Water bars” and “chill out rooms” at venues