Get Armed With Information About Food Safety Training
FOOD SAFETY TRAINING
It has been determined that in 44 states, an establishment is required to have at least one operator or manager equipped with food safety training. This manager must have had passed a certification exam to be recognized with food safety expertise. Among these 44 states, 13 have an additional requirement that the manager continues his education by attending 5-18-hr training courses.
It has also been determined that in 50 jurisdictions, all food handlers must be trained in food safety training programs for at least 15 minutes and at most 10 hours.
When it comes to food safety training, it was preferred to have in depth training in different aspects of food safety and that the contents of the program must be updated so as to be flexible with the recent workforce issues. It would also be helpful if the programs were spoken with the language and educational level of the workforce involved and that materials used in food service be available for these programs. There are many ways to do food safety training these days. With the help of technology, food safety programs can also be done and spread through the internet. There are also training programs in floppies and CDs for those establishments who'd rather let their employees choose when and where to study. Little by little, satellite broadcasting. Teleconferencing, and videoconferencing will also be common. Intranet sites will most probably be used too, since in this way, changes and updates will be more easily served up. Plus, using these media will also help with time management and time-sensitive information. Starting Food Safety Training With the demand for better food service and the growing health-consciousness of customers, and add to that reports of foodborne illnesses, food safety training have become a must for every food retail establishment. And as this kind of training involves food and their customers, food safety training will have to be taken careful step by careful step.
· Identify the training needs of the trainees
Teaching trainees would be like catering to your customers. You determine what they want and need and go for that to make profit. In training, you must determine what your trainees need and what would make them eager to learn and you go with that method to have better results.
You first determine who your trainees are and identify their limits (like time, educational level, and language). This way, you will have an idea of how to reach them, what learning materials to use, and which learning methods would be effective.
· Break the jobs into different steps
In order to specifically tap into each of the trainees gap in his job skills, you'll have to break the job into different steps and identify the problem in every one. This way, you minimize their mistakes and you generally have an idea of their weaknesses and work on them.
· Identify specific learning goals
Goals are a type of motivation for the trainees. They're also the blueprint for the actual program. With these goals comes what are expected of the trainees and the expected results of the training. This'll help make adjustments to the method of the program to further improve the training.
· Develop learning strategies
The strategies to be used should be based on the goals and training needs of the trainees, of course. Based on these, you will then decide the method of presenting your materials to them. Never forget to keep on the enthusiasm to keep your trainees eager to learn.
· Choose the most effective training method
After identifying the training strategy, you'll have to look for the most effective way to present your materials. It could be through, conferences with videos, or just passing around leaflets as lectures go on, just as long as the trainees get along with the program well.
· Evaluate results
The final step is, of course, evaluation. To further improve future training programs, evaluations are needed to know the gaps in training procedures and to know what to work on in your trainees as they go to the floor. Bear in mind that food safety procedures constantly change and you have to update your training programs to keep with the changing time and trends in the restaurant business. Keeping It Together Just because training is finished doesn't mean you're done looking over your employees' performances as they go to the floor. It has been determined that human resources are still the major concern of the retail food establishments. The state of the employees' skill levels aren't just the issue to be covered if you want a great service crew following you. There are also matters such as compensation and benefits and the adequacy of their training. You have to keep your employees highly motivated if you want to retain their services for your restaurant. There's also the image of your restaurant to worry about. There's always the possibility that you won't be able to retain your employees. In order to replace them, you'll need to have an image to attract new employees, especially those with the skills. This is also applicable if you want to retain your employees. A good image of a company goes hand in hand with the image of an employee (and vice versa). Finding candidates fit for the positions you offer would be challenging. The best alternative for the company would be to retain their employees. This mean that you as the manager would have to duke it out to provide the appropriate compensation for your workforce.
Do not forget that the workforce also have concerns involving their work. One example is if their salary is enough to accommodate his or her family or not. Another is if they benefits or insurances. A manager must learn how to care for his employees, and to teach them to forward that care to the customers that they serve. SOURCES: Hernandez, Jorge. A Recipe for Food Safety Training.Food Management; 1/1/2001 Enz, Cathy A. Issues of concern for restaurant owners and managers.(Management)Cornell Hotel & Restaurant Administration Quarterly; 11/1/2004;
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