As of January 1, 2024, Senate Bill (SB) 476 requires California employers to pay for all costs associated with employees obtaining a Food Handler Card.
Those costs include:
- Any fee charged for obtaining a Food Handler Card;
- The time required for an employee to complete Food Handler Card certification training & exam;
- The costs of testing for Food Handler Card certification; and
- Any element required for completion of the Food Handler Card certification program.
Additionally, employees must be relieved of other work duties and must be paid at their regular rate of pay while taking the training and certification exam.
SB 476 also clearly states employers cannot make having a Food Handler Card a requisite for employment. Employees have 30 days from their hire date to obtain the Food Handler Card.
Who is required to have a Food Handler Card?
All food employees who prepare, store, or serve food must have a California Food Handler Card. This includes, but is not limited to servers, chefs/ head chefs/ cooks/ head cooks, bartenders, hosts/ hostesses who handle food. Bussers and supervisors (general manager or managers) may also need to have a California Food Handler Card.
Managers who already have the Food Safety Manager Certification do not need the Food Handler Card.
Best Practices for Employers
The California Restaurant Association recommends the following for employers as they implement and adjust policies:
- Revise job advertisements. Employers should revise job advertisements to ensure they do not say that having a Food Handler Card is a prerequisite to being hired.
- Use your own facilities and equipment for training, certification, and testing. Because California restaurants must bear all costs associated with Food Handler Card certification, employers should not allow employees to use their own computers or devices for certification purposes. Further since employees will otherwise be paid by employers and duty-free during certification, supervision of the process on-site is highly advisable.
- Update written policies and procedures. Update written policies (whether standalone or in handbooks or both) to specify that the employer will pay for all costs associated with the Food Handler Cards.
- Train managers and supervisors. Train managers and supervisors on scheduling, labor allocation, timekeeping practices, and the obligation to relieve employees from all other work duties during Food Handler Card training and certification. Managers and supervisors should also be trained to remind employees that certification is compensable time which must be recorded and reported through accurate timekeeping.
- Revise new hire materials. Employers should revise new hire training materials and procedures to incorporate the new certification processes and procedures.
- Use programs you trust. Stay apprised of the new food handler program lists maintained by the California Department of Public Health and local public health departments to identify which programs employees should use for certification. Consider implementing an internal mandate on certain programs employees must take in obtaining their Food Handler Cards.
Where can employees get the Food Handler Card?
In recent years, there has been a surge in online training. Under SB 476, the Food Handler Card should be issued by an American National Standards Institute (ANSI) accredited training provider that meets ASTM International E2659-09 Standard Practice for Certificate Programs.
Online training makes it easier for employers to monitor training and testing times, complying with new regulations reviewed above. To ensure compliance, employers should provide employees with the space and equipment to complete the training and exam.
It’s important to note that Riverside and San Bernardino counties have different training and testing requirements and have their own programs through their Public Health departments. They do not accept Food Handler Cards from other counties. San Diego County is also slightly different but can be done through ServSafe or TAP Series; employees just need to choose the correct option.
The following services have received the ANSI accreditation:
ServSafe - $12.99 for San Diego County / $9.99 for all other CA counties excluding Riverside and San Bernardino
https://www.servsafe.com/access/ss/Catalog/ProductList/55
Offers option for group purchase through their sales department: https://www.servsafe.com/Contact-Sales
TAP Series - $12.95 for San Diego County / $12.25 for all other CA counties excluding Riverside and San Bernardino
https://tapseries.io/Shop/FoodHandler/
Riverside County - $27.00
https://rivcoeh.org/food-handler-certification
Has an in-person option and offers an option for group purchase.
San Bernardino County - $22.00
https://sbc.statefoodsafety.com/
Offers option for group purchase.
The California Restaurant Association also provides in-person group private training & testing, excluding San Diego, Riverside, and San Bernardino counties, if you have numerous employees that need the Food Handler Card. Please contact Macy Fitch at mfitch@calrest.org for more information. Private training & testing is available to members and non-members of the California Restaurant Association.
