Weekend Sanitation Lead

POSITION TITLE : Weekend Sanitation Lead POSITION STATUS: Full-Time, Exempt LOCATION: Liberty, SC DEPARTMENT: Sanitation REPORT TO: Sanitation Manager EFFECTIVE DATE: May 2026   Position Profile
Cérélia's newly established Frozen Breakfast Business Unit – US Waffle – is driving an ambitious growth strategy, backed by two manufacturing facilities, Liberty, SC, and Hazelwood, MO. US Waffle is seeking a dynamic and skilled R&D Manager to join our team in Liberty, SC.

The Weekend Sanitation Lead is responsible for providing leadership, direction, and oversight of sanitation operations throughout the facility during assigned weekend shifts.

This position coordinates sanitation personnel and activities to ensure production equipment, processing areas, and designated facility areas are cleaned and sanitized in accordance with established SSOPs, GMPs, food safety requirements, chemical handling procedures, safety requirements, and company standards.

The successful candidate will maintain an active presence on the production floor, monitor sanitation activities in real time, provide direction and coaching to sanitation employees, and ensure assigned areas and equipment are properly cleaned and prepared for Quality pre-operational inspection and Production startup.

The Weekend Sanitation Lead serves as the primary sanitation representative during the assigned shift and maintains effective communication with Sanitation Management, Quality Assurance, Production, and Maintenance regarding sanitation status, staffing, equipment concerns, corrective actions, and operational needs.

This is a hands-on leadership role requiring strong attention to detail, sound judgment, accountability, and the ability to work effectively in a fast-paced food manufacturing environment.

This position will report directly to the Sanitation Manager.

Weekend Shift
Friday - Sun
6AM - 6PM
  Primary Responsibilities
1) Sanitation Operations & Team Leadership
- Direct, organize, and support sanitation employees throughout the assigned weekend shift.
- Assign employees to production lines, equipment, drains, floors, freezers, and other designated sanitation areas according to the sanitation schedule.
- Maintain an active floor presence and monitor sanitation activities while work is in progress.
- Ensure sanitation activities are completed safely, thoroughly, efficiently, and according to established procedures and schedules.
- Monitor employee performance and provide coaching, direction, and corrective feedback as needed.
- Ensure adequate workforce coverage and communicate staffing concerns to management.
- Promote a culture of accountability, teamwork, food safety, and safe work practices.
2) SSOP, GMP & Food Safety Compliance
- Ensure employees understand and follow approved SSOPs for each piece of equipment and designated sanitation area.
- Verify proper equipment disassembly, cleaning, rinsing, sanitizing, reassembly, and inspection.
- Enforce GMP, allergen-control, cross-contamination prevention, and food safety requirements.
- Ensure sanitation practices effectively address potential microbial harborage areas, including drains, standing water, floors, framework, equipment niches, undersides, and other difficult-to-clean areas.
- Identify and immediately address conditions that may create a food safety or sanitation risk.
- Ensure required environmental swabs are completed accurately, properly identified, and documented.
3) Chemical Management & Safety
- Ensure sanitation chemicals are properly prepared, labeled, handled, stored, and used in accordance with approved procedures and manufacturer requirements.
- Conduct and document required daily chemical titrations to verify proper chemical concentrations.
- Ensure chemical carts, hoses, foamers, containers, and related equipment are properly controlled and are not left unattended.
- Train and coach employees on proper chemical handling and application procedures.
- Ensure employees follow required PPE, chemical safety, LOTO, ladder safety, and other applicable safety procedures.
- Immediately report chemical incidents, safety hazards, unsafe conditions, serious injuries, and equipment concerns to appropriate management.
4) Pre-Operational Readiness & Corrective Actions
- Conduct sanitation inspections before requesting Quality pre-operational inspection.
- Verify that equipment and areas are clean, sanitary, properly assembled, and ready for Production.
- Confirm visible food residue, grease, soil, standing water, chemical residue, and other sanitation concerns have been addressed before releasing an area for pre-op.
- Immediately address deficiencies identified during sanitation inspections or Quality pre-op inspections.
- Assign employees to reclean affected areas and verify completion of corrective actions.
- Work closely with Quality and Production to ensure areas are released appropriately and on schedule.
5) Equipment, Tools & Facility Protection
- Ensure brushes, scrub pads, hoses, squeegees, and other sanitation tools are clean, properly stored, and used only in designated areas.
- Ensure electrical components, control panels, motors, bearings, sensors, and other water-sensitive equipment are properly protected during sanitation.
- Identify equipment conditions or maintenance concerns that may affect sanitation effectiveness, food safety, employee safety, or Production startup.
- Communicate equipment-related concerns promptly to Maintenance and appropriate management.
6) Documentation & Communication
- Ensure required sanitation, chemical, inspection, corrective action, environmental monitoring, and training records are completed accurately and on time.
- Communicate sanitation status, deficiencies, incomplete work, staffing concerns, equipment issues, maintenance needs, and other operational concerns to Sanitation Management, Quality, Production, and Maintenance.
- Provide an accurate weekend sanitation shift report identifying completed work, outstanding issues, corrective actions, and equipment requiring additional attention.
- Maintain clear and effective shift handoffs to ensure continuity between weekend and weekday operations.
- Immediately escalate conditions that may create food safety, employee safety, equipment, or operational risks.
6) Training & Continuous Improvement
- Coach and train sanitation employees on proper cleaning methods, SSOP requirements, chemical applications, equipment cleaning, food safety expectations, PPE, and safe work practices.
- Reinforce established sanitation standards and identify opportunities for employee development.
- Identify opportunities to improve cleaning effectiveness, employee organization, sanitation tools, SSOPs, and overall sanitation performance.
- Support implementation of corrective and preventive actions related to sanitation performance.
- Perform other sanitation-related duties as assigned by management.

Core Competencies  
- Drive High Performance : Establishes clear expectations and accountability for sanitation results. Demonstrates focus, discipline, urgency, and follow-through to ensure work is completed safely and on schedule.
- Collaborate : Builds strong working relationships with Sanitation, Quality, Production, Maintenance, and other departments. Communicates openly, listens effectively, and follows through on commitments.
- Can-do attitude : Demonstrates a positive, solution-focused approach and readily tackles challenges with resilience and enthusiasm. Takes ownership of problems and works proactively toward solutions.
- Innovate: Identifies opportunities to improve sanitation methods, organization, tools, processes, and overall performance. Supports experimentation and adoption of effective best practices.
- Accuracy and Attention to Detail: Demonstrates precision and thoroughness in sanitation inspections, chemical titrations, documentation, environmental monitoring, and corrective actions. Recognizes deficiencies promptly and ensures they are addressed.
- Leadership & Accountability: Leads by example, maintains a strong floor presence, sets clear expectations, and holds team members accountable for following established sanitation, food safety, and safety procedures.
  Qualifications  
- High school diploma or equivalent required.
- Previous sanitation, food manufacturing, or related experience required.
- Previous lead or leadership experience preferred.
- Working knowledge of SSOPs, GMPs, food safety, sanitation, and allergen-control practices.
- Ability to safely work with approved sanitation chemicals.
- Ability to effectively lead, train, coach, and communicate with sanitation employees.
- Ability to identify sanitation deficiencies and ensure corrective actions are completed.
- Ability to communicate effectively with Sanitation, Quality, Production, and Maintenance.
- Basic documentation and computer skills.
- Ability to work independently and make appropriate decisions during weekend sanitation operations.
- Strong organizational skills and ability to manage multiple sanitation priorities.
- Dependable attendance and willingness to work assigned weekend shifts, extended sanitation shifts, and additional hours as required by plant operations.
  Physical & Work Requirements  
- Ability to stand and walk for extended periods.
- Ability to bend, reach, climb, push, pull, squat, kneel, and perform sanitation-related activities.
- Ability to work around wet floors, water, cleaning chemicals, moving equipment, and production machinery.
- Ability to work in hot, cold, humid, and refrigerated environments as required.
- Ability to wear all required PPE.
- Ability to safely perform or supervise sanitation activities involving hoses, cleaning equipment, tools, and chemical application systems.
- Ability to work weekends, extended sanitation shifts, holidays, and additional hours as required by plant operations.
  Performance Expectations
The Weekend Sanitation Lead is responsible for helping ensure that weekend sanitation activities are completed safely, thoroughly, accurately, and on schedule.

The Lead is expected to maintain an active floor presence, provide effective direction and coaching to sanitation employees, ensure compliance with SSOPs, GMPs, food safety and safety requirements, and verify that production equipment and designated areas are presented to Quality in acceptable sanitary conditions for pre-operational inspection and subsequent Production startup.

The Lead is expected to promptly identify and communicate sanitation, food safety, safety, equipment, staffing, and operational concerns and take appropriate action to ensure issues are resolved.