Employer liability and due diligence.
Employer liability:
The connection between food hygiene legislation, your
canteen and contract catering audits.
Why do we need independent catering consultants?
As the employer you are held responsible for your
employee’s welfare which of course includes all catering
standards and conditions.
This includes the caterer because they operate from
your premises and cater for your employees!
Your catering contractors standards clearly impact
your employer liability and your catering budget costs!
Can you demonstrate due diligence?
CSSolutionsLtd are the UK leaders at independent food hygiene audits assessing catering contractors and vending operators performance standards...
Why? Our success is because the report uniquely links best practice to statistical benchmarks and is tailored to your site.
As an employer your duty of care to employees is personal and non- delegable. Using the catering contract or vending contracts as a defence for poor standards is no excuse; employer liability means you have a duty of care!
To establish your standards.... Click here.
Common law duties. As the employer legally your duty to your employees is personal and non-delegable. You can delegate the duty to your contractors or employees but not your responsibility for a negligent performance!
Contract catering budget. You are responsible for all bottom line related costs! Your business has to be compliant and is totally reliant on its employees; so their welfare and any catering costs are your first and second priorities...
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Employment liability dictates you must take reasonable care to ensure the safety and health of employees.
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Remember if your catering department chooses which catering consultants are used to monitor their standards all data produced by that consultant will have a clear bias.
Most importantly their data does not supply you with the clear independent statistical benchmarks which enable you to protect yourself as the employer and improve general standards for your employees.
- This obvious vested interest not to divulge information that could risk or jeopardize the catering contract makes you extremely vulnerable to both additional risk and costs!
Without facts you do not have control. Data integrity must be beyond debate, from a truly independent source with no vested interest in your catering contractors, vending operators or in-house catering team...
- An unbiased food hygiene audit data reduces both your risk and paying a higher catering subsidy!
- It’s not sufficient to say employee welfare standards are good or bad; how do you prove it?
- Without control you cannot “manage” standards & catering costs as effectively.
Food hygiene legislation and employment liability guidelines protect you and your employees:
No matter what size your food prep facilities do not underestimate the very real potential risk from basic food poisoning to your employees. A food hygiene audit gives you all of the facts!
REMEMBER THIS IS YOUR RISK; AS THE EMPLOYER YOU ARE THE DUTY HOLDER!
If your still not convinced that food hygiene legislation applies to your canteen; or that this is between your caterer and their choice of catering consultants.
Consider the following; both clearly related to poor catering standards:
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Profit for them; if the in-house caterer, vending supplier or contract caterer cuts back on the less profitable
areas for them they create more margin for themselves but create higher risk for you.
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Profit for you; when the catering contractors or vending operators cut corners then canteen standards and
merchandising are likely to be poor reducing sales, making the catering subsidy higher than
is necessary for you.
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Also consider:
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Convenience; it’s very easy for catering related contractors to hide standards without “independent”
policing. Ineffective food storage past "use by date" products, poor cleaning and
incorrect temperature control being typical examples.
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Familiarity; people become used to falling standards until of course things go to far and then the
only option left is putting the catering contract out to tender.
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Staff knowledge; lack of guidance and control! |
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Interest; lack of it due to not having clear goals. Goals can only be set once you have a clear
percentage benchmark with recommendations relating to your caterers current standards!
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In reality the reasons for poor standards are irrelevant.
The facts are your employees should never be put at risk, you have common law duties.
- Remember your duty of care.
- Remember your contract catering budget, catering costs and subsidies.
- Most importantly remember you can not hide behind locally agreed catering contracts or vending contracts!
To arrange your free site survey; telephone 0151-929 3273 or complete the simple Cssolutionsltd questionnaire on the Contact us page.
