Restaurant Association Offers Checklist To Help Operators Prepare for Vaccine Mandate

While the U.S. Supreme Court is hearing arguments today for President Joe Biden’s federal vaccine mandate, as it stands now, employees of businesses with 100 or more employees are required to be vaccinated before Jan. 10 or test negative weekly starting Feb. 9.

To help operators prepare should the mandate remain in place, the National Restaurant Association’s food safety and policy experts compiled a checklist of questions to consider. Here’s a look:

• Have you established what the acceptable proof of vaccination is with those who will be checking? Will you need the actual cards or will copies or photos on phones work?
• Will your employees and customers need to show a legal form of identification, in addition to their vaccination cards, to prove identity? What forms of ID will be acceptable?
• Do you need to verify that the various proofs of vaccination are real? What do you do if your checker suspects a fake or is presented with a less-than-acceptable form of proof?
• Have you determined who on your staff will enforce vaccination requirements at your restaurant? Do you have candidates for each shift? How will management be involved?
• How do you plan to explain your vaccination policy to customers before and as they arrive at your restaurant? Will you need signage? Will you post the information on your website and/or on social media?
• Have you determined the logistics of where and how customers show proof, so you don’t slow down service? How do you plan to turn an on-premises occasion into an off-premises transaction if a customer can’t show proof of vaccination?
• Will you require employees and customers to wear masks indoors despite proof of vaccination? Will you provide complimentary masks for those who don’t have them?
• Do you need to check proof of vaccination for suppliers or vendors, or can they enter with just a mask?