How to Get Your License in Brew City: Getting Certified for Responsible Alcohol Serving in

Wisconsin

Wisconsin

Wisconsin is no wonder a great place to be a bartender. With its capital, Milwaukee, being dubbed as the home of beer (Brew City) in the United States, the beer and liquor culture of the city is surely lively. And with the craft beer forecasted to dominate food and beverage trends this year, more opportunities are expected to crop up for both brewers and alcohol sellers and servers.

How can one get a head start on building a vibrant career as a bartender or alcohol seller and server in Wisconsin? According to the Wisconsin Department of Revenue’s guide on Wisconsin Alcohol Beverage and Tobacco Laws for Retailers, alcohol seller and server certification is required of bartenders who are seeking employment in the state. For a retailer to be licensed, his or her employees should complete Wisconsin Responsible Beverage Server Training.

The Wisconsin Department of Revenue advises aspiring beverage servers to complete an alcohol beverage server course from the Wisconsin Technical College System, or to take a state-approved course from third-party training providers as listed on the department’s website: http://www.revenue.wi.gov.

First Things First…

If you want to get certified, all you need to do is to check out the department’s website to find out how you could enroll in the course: Wisconsin RBS Training, or check out its list of approved alcohol training vendors. Online training is accepted so it won’t be a problem for you to finish the course at your convenience.

The course takes about 4 hours and can be completed in a day or two, depending on your schedule and flexibility. It costs no more than $14.

What Are The Topics?

The course covers the following topics:

– Carding customers for alcohol and tobacco sales and services

– Recognizing the effects of alcohol on customers

– Wisconsin alcohol laws

– Preventing second-party sales

– Protecting their employer and themselves from liabilities

– Preventing alcohol-related disturbances

Who Are Exempted from Taking the Course?

The following persons are exempted from completing a Responsible Beverage Alcohol Server Training course, according to the department’s guide: – The person is renewing a retail or operator’s license. – The person works for a corporation that holds a Class

A and Class B beer license, Class A and Class B liquor, or Class C wine licenses.

– The person is licensed as a retailer, operator or manager for the past two years. .

– The person has completed a similar training program in the past two years.

Selling and Serving Alcohol to Minors

Wisconsin’s Dram Shop Law clearly states that the licensee and server could be held liable for serving or selling alcohol to a minor unless the minor falsely represented himself or herself to be of legal drinking age. The licensee and server would also be held liable if they force minor customers to consume alcohol and misinforming the customer that they’re consuming an alcohol-free beverage. Penalties could range between $500 to $10,000, depending on severity and number of previous violations.

Obtaining Your License

You will be required to take an evaluation after each module before you can be allowed to proceed to the next lesson. You must pass each module exam with a 70 percent score or higher as well as the final exam. The training provider will provide students a certification, which they will then have to present to their local municipality as proof of their training. Students will have to present this certification in order to obtain their bartender or operator’s license.