New rules for bar security staff are coming to Nova Scotia after recent incidents involving employees, including the death of a patron outside a Halifax bar in 2022.
The new regulations come into effect Monday and apply to all licensed establishments in the province.
Security staff will need criminal record checks and have to provide the results to the employer. They’ll also have to complete safety and responsible alcohol service training.
“This is going to go towards ensuring safety, not just for patrons that visit the establishments, but also the individuals working on the door and other staff and the establishment itself,” said Natasha Chestnut, executive director of the Restaurant Association of Nova Scotia.
According to the province, Nova Scotia will become the only province to explicitly establish training and screening requirements for bar security employees under its liquor control legislation, including penalties for non-compliance.
“Nova Scotians deserve to feel safe when they go out, and these changes ensure there are clear, enforceable standards for those responsible for maintaining order in licensed establishments,” Service Nova Scotia Minister Jill Balser said in a statement.
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In a release, the province said the rules were developed “in response to incidents involving bar security employees and patrons.”
In December 2022, Ryan Sawyer, 31, died after an altercation outside the former Halifax Alehouse bar in downtown Halifax.
Alexander Pishori Levy was found guilty of manslaughter and sentenced to four years in prison this past April.
Levy was a bouncer at the Halifax Alehouse at the time, and testified in court that he applied a chokehold on Sawyer outside the bar during a scuffle. Sawyer suffered a heart attack and later died in hospital.
About five months after Sawyer’s death, the province updated its training and record checks policies but only for security staff at late-night bars, also known as cabarets, because they were considered higher-risk since they’re open until 3:30 a.m. and primarily focused on serving alcohol.
The new regulations coming in Monday will not only include all establishments, but also introduce fines for liquor licensing infractions ranging from $500 for a first offence to $10,000 for additional violations.
It also allows employees younger than 19 to serve, but not pour, alcohol in lounges to “help address ongoing labour shortages.”
“The approach that they will take, it will be a very supportive approach, a very educational approach,” Chestnut said.
“They’ll do their visits, they’ll go in, and they’ll visit with establishments, talk about what they need to be doing to be compliant.”
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