The Liquour Licensing Board is organising a free ‘Training for Intervention Procedures’, or TIPS, course for bartenders and servers in Cayman to help them deal with customers who have had too much to drink.
Board chairman Noel Williams, at the annual meeting of the Liquor Licensing Board last week, said while there was no plan to make the programme mandatory, businesses that signed up for the course would be demonstrating that they were making safety a priority.
“We would like to introduce the TIPS programme, which I think would be worthwhile for all your bartenders serving alcohol to take,” he told business owners whose licence applications were being heard at the meeting.
Owners of a number of the businesses told the board that their bartenders had already had TIPS training.
The push by the Liquor Licensing Board comes a few weeks after the National Drug Council reiterated a call for mandatory TIPS training for hospitality-industry workers serving alcoholic beverages.
Williams said the course being organised by the board can cater to up to 35 individuals and would be free.
“We are recommending that every bar, hotel and restaurant take advantage of the programme,” he said. “It educates you and lets you know how to deal with persons who have had too much to drink, and it can help to prevent accidents.”
TIPS, which is a globally recognised programme, has certified more than 5.5 million servers worldwide to sell and serve alcohol while promoting responsible consumption, according to its website.
The National Drug Council has offered the programme in Cayman for the past 16 years.
The council’s prevention specialist Simon Miller told the Compass last month that the council believes that anyone hired to serve alcoholic beverages should be required to undergo the TIPS programme.
Last year, the Royal Cayman Islands Police Service arrested 234 motorists for driving under the influence of alcohol. Police said that nearly two-thirds (60%) of all DUI offences recorded in Cayman in 2022 involved a driver who was a least double the drink drive limit, while in 22% of DUI offences, the driver was three times the limit.
Police also noted that 44% of all DUI offences last year involved motor vehicle accidents, while just over half of those involving more than one vehicle.
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Clearly this is needed! It has been a legal requirement in other countries for decades. This needs to be mandatory for employment. Employers should WANT this. The safety of the people, the property and nature need to be looked after. Have you looked around when you drive each morning, or are you just so accustomed to smashed cars on people’s lawns, it no longer resonates? Problem…
Recognizing when people have drunk too much is important. But if we want to fix the drunk driving issues we have in cayman, we NEED to create a reliable public transport system. if we can do that we can fix the drunk driving and make a big difference to the traffic problem.