Dewey hosts alcohol safety symposium for bar employees

The mood was light at the BayCenter in Dewey Beach on the Monday before Memorial Day, but the seriousness of the subject matter was not. 

Nearly 200 restaurant servers and bartenders descended on the beach town for the Delaware Course on Alcohol Responsibility & Educated Service, organized by the Delaware Restaurant Association on Monday, May 23.

"We feel it's important again, at the beginning of a new season, to have a re-commitment to professional service," Delaware Restaurant Association President and CEO Carrie Leishman said. "We wanted to make sure to bring people in, that it's kind of fun, that it's informative. I find that when you lift that veil of ignorance off of people who may or may not know the rules ... they want to do a better job."

The purpose of the program was to re-educate restaurant industry members in the safe and responsible service of alcohol, in a casual and engaging atmosphere before the summer season begins.

Attendees socialized between sessions and over a catered lunch. Police officers joked with the audience, and presented humorous examples to make their points to the attendees and to answer real-life questions from the audience.

Approximately 40 percent of all vehicular fatalities in the United States are alcohol related. In Delaware, this proportion is 45 percent. Alcohol is also a factor in 50 to 70 percent of all pedestrian fatalities. Nearly half of all intoxicated drivers come from commercial establishments where alcohol was served.

In particular, Delaware is second in the nation for DUI arrests. Twenty percent of these arrests occur in Dewey Beach. 

Research indicates that one source of the problem is industry employees' tendency to over-serve alcohol to their patrons. To remedy this, Delaware passed House Bill 65 in 1991, requiring that all restaurant and bar employees be trained and certified prior to serving alcohol in the state.

The Division of Alcohol and Tobacco Enforcement offers training courses and certification testing at least once a week. Employees seeking certification must obtain permission from their employer, then take an entire workday to travel to the training site, complete the training, obtain certification and return.

In addition to servers, managers and owners were in attendance.

"I think it's good to have owners and managers here along with staff because they see from different perspectives," Leishman said. "It's very positive. There's so much you see punitive, issues and cops, but in Delaware, especially at the beaches, there's a synergistic relationship between servers and law enforcement."

The symposium also served to introduce the new Delaware Online Beverage Server Training, developed by the restaurant association in collaboration with the Office of Alcohol Beverage Control. A website will allow anyone access to training and certification via computer or mobile device for a small fee. Leishman calls it the result of "years of industry need and desire" to develop the online course as an alternative for the in-person course that is already provided.

"We want to deliver the most effective, efficient training 24/7," she said. "If there's no class today, they can get it here."

The website will be fully customizable by language so non-native English speakers can use it comfortably. The restaurant association expects the website to go live as early as June.

Afterwards, Delaware State Police Lt. Kevin Jones, of the Division of Alcohol and Tobacco Enforcement, gave a general introduction to ways that servers can play a part in detecting and stopping alcohol-related criminal behavior. His message was bolstered in a later session in which officers from several Delaware beach jurisdictions, many of whom knew members of the audience, entertained with personal examples of detecting alcohol violations and detaining offenders.

Human resources attorney Dena Calo, a partner with Saul Ewing LLC, offered basic instruction in dealing with sensitive issues like race, gender/transgender, disability and age. She emphasized the relationship between business owners and their legal and human resources advisors as the key to handling potentially explosive situations before they become litigation issues.  

Restaurant association Chairman Steve Montgomery, owner of The Starboard restaurant, was present throughout to answer questions and comment on the presentations, and he was joined by other dignitaries such as Sen. Ernie Lopez and Speaker of the Delaware House of Representatives Pete Schwartzkopf.

At the end of the program, Leishman felt that restaurant owners, servers and the police forces had the information to start making a change in time for summer.

"It's collaborative work," Leishman said. "It's great to have forums for discussion, it makes everyone feel very much a part of it."

For more information about server training and certification and efforts to curb alcohol-related crime, visit www.delawarerestaurant.org or date.delaware.gov/ATE/server-training.shtml.