Petrol Station Staff Onboarding Checklist

Most petrol station operators onboard new staff the same way: hand them a uniform, walk them through the till once, and then watch them figure it out on the job. That approach might get someone functional in a few days, but it costs you in mistakes, customer complaints, compliance gaps, and staff who leave within three months because they never felt properly set up. Here is a proper onboarding checklist built for servo operators.

Before their first shift

Onboarding starts before the person walks in the door. If you leave the paperwork until they arrive, you waste their first day on admin and lose your chance to make a good first impression.

• Employment contract signed and returned. Do not let anyone start work without a signed contract. For casuals, confirm the engagement terms in writing, including base rate, casual loading, and the minimum engagement period per shift.
• Tax file number declaration submitted. They cannot be paid correctly until this is done. Send them the ATO form in advance so it is ready on day one.
• Superannuation fund nominated. Confirm their preferred super fund or default to your default fund. Super must be paid from their first eligible payment.
• Bank details collected. Confirm payment method and account details before their first pay run.
• Emergency contact on file. Required for insurance and good practice in any environment where staff may be working alone.
• Uniform sized and ordered if needed. Walking in on your first day with no uniform is a bad start.

Safety and compliance induction

Petrol stations have specific safety obligations that are not shared by most retail environments. This section is not optional and cannot be delegated to a buddy who learned it informally themselves.

• Dangerous goods handling. Fuel handling procedures, spill response, what to do if a customer drives off with the nozzle.
• Emergency procedures. Fire extinguisher locations, fuel cutoff switch, evacuation procedure, who to call and in what order.
• Manual handling. Stock, gas cylinders, and any other heavy goods that are part of the role.
• Robbery and threatening customer protocol. Your state may have specific guidance on this. Every servo staff member should know what to do, what not to do, and where the safe is.
• Working alone requirements. If staff will work solo shifts, confirm whether your state requires a working alone check-in process. Some do.
• Sign off on the induction. Keep a dated record of who completed each safety briefing. This is your protection in a WorkCover investigation.

Systems and operations training

Every site is different. Do not assume that someone who has worked at another servo will know your POS, your fuel console, or your procedures.

• POS system walkthrough. Processing fuel sales, driveway authorisations, prepay, dine-in or food offer transactions if applicable, refunds, and end-of-shift cash reconciliation.
• Console operation. Authorising bowsers, emergency shutoff, wet stock reconciliation if they will be responsible for it.
• Tobacco and age-restricted products. Your legal obligations around ID checks, display restrictions, and the personal liability that comes with selling to someone underage.
• Stock and ordering basics. Where things go, how to flag low stock, what they are authorised to order versus what needs approval.
• Forecourt duties. Bin checks, pump cleanliness, window washer top-up, what to do if something looks unsafe on the forecourt.
• Opening and closing procedures. Only once they have been assessed as ready, not as a first-day exercise.

Rostering and timekeeping setup

This is where a lot of operators skip steps and then have problems later.

• Add them to your roster system. Confirm employment type, pay classification, and availability before you publish their first week.
• Set up their PIN for clock-in. They should clock in and out from day one. Timesheet data is only useful if it starts clean.
• Explain how the roster works. How to view their shifts, how to update availability, how to request time off, and who to contact if they cannot make a shift.
• Set clear expectations around no-shows. First day is the right time to explain what calling in sick looks like, how much notice you need, and what happens if they just do not show up.

The 30-day check-in

Onboarding does not end after the first week. Most avoidable early-tenure turnover happens in the first month, and it is almost always caused by something that could have been caught in a simple check-in conversation.

At around 30 days, have a brief conversation with new starters. What is going well? Where do they feel unsure? Is there anything they have not been shown that they feel they should know? This conversation takes 10 minutes and prevents 90-day resignations.

It is also the point at which you can confirm whether the working arrangement is actually working. If a casual is not picking up enough shifts, address it now. If a permanent employee's hours are not matching their contract, fix it before it becomes a complaint.