My-Chosen Café may be decorated with old-fashioned wagon wheels and quaint hand-painted signs, but when it comes to running an efficient kitchen, employees need modern skills to keep up with the bustle.

At just after 9 on a Thursday morning, the restaurant is spotless and the kitchen nearly prepped and ready for the onslaught of hungry diners. Manager Troy Ashdown is stirring a vat of creamy soup while kitchen assistant Kelly Cahill stocks fridges with fresh food.

With so many tasks to complete each day, staff training has been put on the back burner until recently when My-Chosen was offered the chance to participate in SkillsPlus training at no cost. "I thought it sounded like a great opportunity," says general manager Tessa Jackson.

With the help of Helen Thomas, the Victoria READ Society's workplace educator, employees have been working on improving nine Essential Skills, including oral communication and computer skills.

"I didn't have any computer experience so learning some of the shortcuts has made it so much easier. It's been awesome," says Cahill, who spends time during her regular shift working with Thomas right in the restaurant's office.

For Ashdown, who has been serving up the steaks and ribs at My-Chosen for 23 years, his new skills mean he can produce menus and schedules on the computer, rather than by hand. "I learn a lot here, and then go home and try it out."

The management staff also received Personality Dimensions training. "Learning about the different personality types helps you to understand how and why you react to different approaches and to know how to approach other personality types," says Thomas, who is a trained facilitator.

Using a workshop format, Thomas got the management team together and put communication at work under the spotlight. "The team found the biggest benefit was spending time together because they all have different schedules and don't often have the chance to interact as a group."

Now that My-Chosen employees have gotten a taste of training, they are hungry for more. Next, they hope to get kitchen staff certified in FoodSafe 2 and continue working on oral communication. "We have a large management team so this has been a good opportunity to start getting everyone on the same page," Jackson says.

Local and international research shows that addressing Essential Skills in the workforce helps both businesses and employees. Training helps manage change, retain promising employees, and improve productivity and safety.

SkillsPlus training is offered by the Victoria READ Society and the Community Council, with funding through the Canada-British Columbia Labour Market Agreement (LMA) for small business in the Capital Region with less than 50 employees. Currently seven businesses in the retail/wholesale/grocery and tourism/hospitality sectors have signed up and others are on a waitlist.

Employers can find more workplace learning tips, tools and resources on READ's website at www.readsociety.bc.ca/workplace.htm and through the Community Council, http://www.qolchallenge.ca/resources/skillsplus.php.