Free new staff induction checklist template
This free new staff induction checklist template — printable PDF or editable Excel — splits induction into day one, week one and month one, with a signature from both the new starter and the manager against each stage.
Free. No email address, no sign-up — the new staff induction checklist downloads straight away.
Most hospitality leavers go in the first month, and the reason is usually the same: nobody told them anything. They did not know where to put their coat, who the duty manager was, when they got paid, or what "good" looked like on their section. An induction checklist is the cheapest retention tool in the business because it removes all of that in the first three shifts.
Day one is deliberately short and practical. Fire exits, first aid, where the toilets are, how to clock in, who to call if they are sick, and one person named as the person they can ask anything. Nobody retains a two-hour policy briefing on their first day in a kitchen, and trying to deliver one is a waste of both parties' time.
The signature column is not bureaucracy. If someone is later told they breached a procedure they were never shown, the signed line is the difference between a manageable conversation and an unwinnable one. It works both ways — it also stops a manager assuming allergen handling was covered when it was not.
What you must legally provide to a new employee — written terms, tax and right-to-work documentation, minimum training — varies by country. The paperwork section here is a prompt to collect what your own jurisdiction requires, not a definitive list. Check your local employment rules and add the rows you need.
What's on the sheet
Checklist — pre-printed tasks in sections · Portrait A4 · PDF, Excel and CSV
Header fields
Employee name · Role / section · Start date · Manager / buddy
Columns
- Induction item
- Done — Date
- By — Initials
- Staff initials
Before day one
- ·Written terms of employment issued and signed copy returned
- ·Right to work and identity documents checked and recorded per local requirements
- ·Tax and payroll details collected; bank details recorded securely
- ·Emergency contact and any medical or dietary information recorded
- ·Uniform issued or requirements explained; sizes recorded
- ·First shifts confirmed in writing with start time and who to ask for
Day one — before they start work
- ·Tour: kitchen, bar, floor, toilets, staff room, lockers, smoking area
- ·Fire exits, assembly point and what to do if the alarm sounds
- ·First aid kit, accident reporting and who the trained first aiders are
- ·How to clock in and out, and what to do if they forget
- ·Break entitlement, where to take breaks, and staff food policy
- ·Who is duty manager, and one named buddy they can ask anything
- ·How to report sickness or lateness, and who to contact
- ·Pay date, pay period, payslip access and how tips are handled
- ·Rota: where it is published, when, and how to request a swap or holiday
- ·Phone, jewellery, hair and hygiene rules for their section
Week one
- ·Food safety basics for their role: hand washing, cross-contamination, temperature checks
- ·Allergen procedure: where the information is, and exactly what to say to a guest
- ·Personal hygiene and fitness to work: reporting sickness before a shift
- ·Section walk-through: equipment they will use, and safe use of anything sharp or hot
- ·Manual handling and chemical safety for the products they will touch
- ·Cleaning schedule and their part in the open or close checklist
- ·Introduced to the whole team by name across their first shifts
- ·Menu and drinks list overview; what to do when they do not know an answer
- ·Till, ordering system or app logins created and tested
- ·First-week feedback conversation — how it is going, both ways
Month one
- ·Formal role-specific training booked or completed and recorded on the training record
- ·Certifications required for the role identified with expiry dates logged
- ·Probation review date set and in the diary
- ·Standards conversation: what good looks like on their section
- ·Any equipment, uniform or access still outstanding chased and closed off
- ·Induction signed off as complete by manager and employee
What you get
- ✓Printable PDF, portrait A4, four stages from pre-start to month one
- ✓Excel (.xlsx) version you can adapt to your own roles and local requirements
- ✓CSV version for import
- ✓Dual sign-off columns for manager and employee
- ✓Hospitality-specific rows: allergens, fitness to work, section equipment, tips handling
- ✓Buddy and probation review fields
How to use it
- 1
Print one checklist per new starter and keep it with their file, not in a shared folder.
- 2
Complete the before-day-one section while they are still in onboarding, so nothing legal is outstanding on their first shift.
- 3
Name a buddy on the header before they arrive and tell that person they are the buddy.
- 4
Work the day one section before they start doing actual work, dating and initialling each row with them.
- 5
Spread the week one rows across their first three or four shifts rather than one sitting.
- 6
Set the probation review date in month one, sign the sheet off with the employee and file it.
Questions
What should be covered on a new starter's first day in hospitality?
Fire exits and the alarm procedure, first aid and accident reporting, how to clock in, break and staff food policy, who the duty manager is, how to report sickness, when they get paid, and one named person they can ask anything. Everything else can wait.
How long should a hospitality induction take?
Treat it as a month, not a morning. A tight day one, the safety and role training spread across week one, and a formal sign-off with a probation date set by the end of month one.
Why does the employee need to initial the checklist too?
Because a training record signed by only the manager proves an intention, not that the training happened. The employee's initial is what makes the record hold up if a procedure is later disputed.
Does this cover legal onboarding requirements?
Not by itself. Required documents, right-to-work checks and minimum training differ by country. The pre-start section prompts you to collect them; check your own local employment rules for the specific list.
Or stop printing it altogether
Rotahr does this check on a phone — timestamped, with the person who did it attached, reminders when one is due, and a PDF export when somebody asks for a month of records. Same job, no folder to search through.
Templates that go with it
Staff training & certification record
This free staff training and certification record template — printable PDF or editable Excel — keeps one line per person per certificate, with the date completed, the expiry date and who verified it, so nothing lapses without you noticing.
Probation review form
This free probation review form template — printable PDF or editable Excel — scores a new starter against the things that actually matter on a hospitality floor, records agreed objectives, and captures a clear pass, extend or end decision with both signatures.
First aid & emergency steps poster
This is a free printable first aid and emergency steps poster for a kitchen or bar wall — the first actions for burns, cuts, choking, falls and illness, plus blank fields for your own trained first aiders, emergency number and address.
Free to print, copy and use in your venue — no attribution required. Written for an international audience: where a threshold is a widely used figure it is printed as one, but food safety and employment rules differ by country and change. Check yours before relying on this sheet.
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