Here's 17 ways you can help your employees help you control food costs.

1. Make 25 percent of manager's bonus conditional upon no over time.
2. Donate savings from reduction in breakage and loss to an employee party fund.
3. Do not allow employees to consume mistakes.
4. Use automatic timers for lights.
5. Monitor waste and use a sign-out sheet for everything thrown away.
6. Increase accountability for an individual's own work.
7. Have management conduct daily (or shift) inspections of facility.
8. Provide incentives for employees to offer solutions to problems and/or increase sales and reduce expenses. Reward with pre-set percentage of savings.
9. Set performance standards for cost control for both management and hourly employees.
10. Reward perfect attendance.
11. Use proper scoops, ladles and so forth to portion food.
12. Pre-portion foods such as cold cuts for sandwiches.
13. Provide scales.
14. Organize a safety committee to reduce workman's compensation.
15. Train and retrain employees.
16. Label or place signs over scales and slicers for standard measurements.
17. Color code food for freshness.