RSA or RCG — which one does your job need?

RSA covers alcohol service

RSA is unit SITHFAB021 Provide responsible service of alcohol. Licensed venues use it for staff who sell, serve or supply alcohol, including pubs, clubs, restaurants, bottle shops and event venues.

The training covers liquor rules, responsible service, refusing service and reducing alcohol-related harm. You learn how to read a situation, keep patrons safe and handle a tricky moment at the bar with confidence.

New South Wales offers classroom and self-paced RSA. Victoria’s Edway RSA is online and self-paced. Choose your state on the course page because the documents and post-course steps differ.

RSA is the ticket for bar staff, wait staff, bottle-shop staff, venue managers and anyone working events and festivals. It is a great first course when you start out in hospitality.

RCG covers gaming machines

RCG is unit SITHGAM022 Provide responsible gambling services. In New South Wales, it applies to work involving gaming machines, including gaming-floor duties and paying out winnings.

The course covers the New South Wales rules, gambling harm and how to respond to patrons. You must be at least 18 to work with gaming machines.

RCG suits gaming-floor staff, cashiers, hotel licensees and club staff. It gives you the knowledge to promote responsible gambling and look after the people on your floor.

When you need both

Many hotels and clubs combine bar and gaming duties. RSA and RCG are separate credentials, each covering its own area, so in that situation you need both.

If you only serve alcohol, RSA is the relevant course. If you work only with gaming machines in New South Wales, RCG is the relevant course.

Holding both makes you a strong candidate for pub and club roles, because you can move between the bar and the gaming room as the shift needs.

Advanced RCG comes later

Advanced RCG is for Responsible Gambling Officers and certain senior gaming roles in New South Wales. Complete RCG first; it is a mandatory prerequisite.

Advanced RCG is a Liquor & Gaming NSW course rather than a nationally accredited unit. It adds an endorsement to the New South Wales competency card.

Starting with RCG puts you on the path towards those senior gaming roles as your career grows.

RSA or licensee training?

They do different jobs. RSA is what you need to serve alcohol. Licensee Training is what you need to run the venue.

Liquor & Gaming NSW makes Licensee Training mandatory for most licensees, approved managers and club secretaries in New South Wales. It covers NSW liquor laws, managing a liquor licence, reducing alcohol-related harm and staying compliant.

You need a current RSA before you can enrol, so RSA always comes first. If you are being appointed as an approved manager or club secretary, you have 60 days from when the application to appoint you is lodged to finish the training. If you are transferring a liquor licence, the 60 days run from provisional approval.

Completing Licensee Training also automatically renews your existing RSA endorsement. It does not renew your RCG. If you work in gaming, you need an RCG refresher completed within the 90 days before you enrol.

Licensee Training is a Liquor & Gaming NSW course rather than a nationally accredited unit, and it only applies in New South Wales. Other states set their own requirements for people who run licensed venues.

Worried about taking charge of a licensed venue?

Stepping up to run a venue is a big moment, and it is normal to feel the weight of it. When you are the licensee or the approved manager on shift, the buck stops with you. What if an inspector walks in? What if a patron has had too much and the night turns ugly? What if a staff member gets it wrong and the venue pays for it? Not following the rules can mean losing the licence, and that is a lot to carry if you are not sure what the rules are.

Licensee Training takes the guesswork out. You learn how liquor regulation works in New South Wales, what you are responsible for, and how compliance and enforcement work, so you know where you stand before anyone asks.

Instead of lying awake wondering whether you have missed something, you walk into each shift knowing the rules and how to apply them. That is what lets you run the room with confidence.

What skills will help you on the job?

Know the rules you are held to. You get an overview of liquor regulation in New South Wales, so you understand the law your venue runs under.

Manage your liquor licence. You learn what your licence asks of you and how to keep it in good standing.

Stop problems before they start. You learn best-practice ways to prevent alcohol-related harm, so a busy night stays a good night.

Know what to expect from compliance and enforcement. You understand how the rules are checked and enforced, so an inspection feels far less daunting.

Build a team that gets it right. You learn how to build a culture of compliance in your business, so doing the right thing becomes part of how your whole team works.

Why step up to licensee training?

Go from serving drinks to running the venue. RSA gets you behind the bar. Licensee Training is the training you need before you can be appointed to run the place, as an approved manager, licensee or club secretary.

Become the person the venue relies on. When you know the liquor laws and how a licence works, you are the one the owner can trust to run a shift, a busy night or the whole venue, and to keep the licence safe.

Take the next step in your career. Having the training done shows an owner you are ready for more responsibility. It can strengthen your case for a management role, a promotion or a pay rise.

Look after your venue and the people in it. You learn how to reduce alcohol-related harm, so you can keep patrons safe, protect the business and handle a hard night with confidence.

Renew your RSA along the way. Finishing Licensee Training renews your existing RSA endorsement, so one course moves your career forward and keeps your RSA current.

Be ready when the chance comes. When a manager role opens up, you can put your hand up knowing your training is already done, rather than racing the 60-day deadline after you are appointed.

Victoria has no Edway RCG

Edway offers RSA in Victoria but does not offer RCG there. The Victorian RSA path also uses a Liquor Control Victoria Certificate of Completion rather than the New South Wales competency card.

In New South Wales, RSA, RCG and Licensee Training are delivered and issued by Edway Training (RTO 91401), a Liquor & Gaming NSW Approved Training Provider.

Next step

For alcohol service, start with RSA and choose your state. For gaming-machine work in New South Wales, add RCG.

If your role requires the senior endorsement, ask Liquor & Gaming NSW about Advanced RCG after completing RCG.

Ready to run a venue in New South Wales? Once your RSA is current, book Licensee Training.

Pick your course, choose a date that suits you and get ready for your next hospitality job. Our team is happy to help you find the right course.