Category Archives: Liability

by | September 14, 2013 · 1:37 am

Hospitality Industry Legal Risks: Immigration And Customs Enforcement (ICE) Employment Audits Targeted Restaurants (38%) In 2012; “Silent Raids” Force Workers To Lose Jobs, Large Fines For “Paperwork Errors”

“The administration appears to start with the presumption that employers are not telling the truth about their listed employees…”

U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement“…(an Ohio) restaurant was audited in early 2012. No undocumented workers were found…but paperwork errors resulted in a $27,500 fine, which didn’t get reduced. The company paid another $7,500 to have an immigration attorney handle the case and review the I-9 forms of the other 13 restaurants to make sure they were filled out correctly…”

“In late 2010, (a national restaurant) chain lost about 450 Minnesota workers, between 30% and 40% of its employees there…Last year, the burrito chain announced it was under federal investigation over possible criminal securities law violations related to communications to investors of work-authorization compliance. The company has said it is cooperating fully with the investigation…”

The U.S. government has launched a fresh crackdown on employers suspected of hiring illegal immigrants by notifying about 1,000 businesses across the country in recent weeks they must submit documents for audits. The so-called “silent raids” are the largest since July 2009 when just as many companies were notified, according to immigration attorneys, and weren’t publicly disclosed by Immigration and Customs Enforcement, the agency that conducts such inspections.

While the audits don’t lead to the deportation of a firm’s illegal workers, they lose their jobs if discovered. Critics of the crackdown say it drives more immigrants to eploitative, off-the-books work. For employers, the audits can lead to deep losses in productivity, in addition to civil and criminal fines, and many workers end up getting hired by competitors.

For more:  http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424127887324755104579071331936331534.html

Comments Off on Hospitality Industry Legal Risks: Immigration And Customs Enforcement (ICE) Employment Audits Targeted Restaurants (38%) In 2012; “Silent Raids” Force Workers To Lose Jobs, Large Fines For “Paperwork Errors”

Filed under Employment Practices Liability, Labor Issues, Liability, Management And Ownership, Risk Management

Tagged as , , , , , , , ,

by | September 13, 2013 · 5:19 am

Hospitality Industry Health Hazards: Hotel Owners Must Be Aware Of Risks From “Naegleria Fowleriis”, Known As “Brain-Eating Amoeba” In Warm Fresh Water On Or Around Their Premises

HospitalityLawyer.com“…Hotel owners and operators must be aware of potential N.fowleri hazards in bodies of water on or around their premises. If you offer guests access to recreational bodies of warm fresh water, we recommend making N.fowleri informational brochures available at your front desk; you may even consider providing complimentary nose plugs. Of course, it is absolutely essential that you keep all swimming pools and hot tubs properly chlorinated. Don’t assume that the water in hot tubs and/or hot springs is sufficiently hot to kill N.fowleri; the amoeba can survive temperatures well in excess of 115°F (46°C) for short periods of time…”

Naegleria Fowleri Amoebic Meningitis RiskNaegleria fowleriis an amoeba common to warm bodies of fresh water, including lakes and unchlorinated or poorly chlorinated swimming pools. This amoeba can infect the human nervous system and induce a lethal form of encephalitis when a victim insufflates contaminated water deep into the nasal cavities; while infection is relatively rare, only one percent of all victims survive. This parasite has made the news in recent years with the moniker “brain-eating amoeba” because it feeds on the proteins that help form neurons in our brains.

HospitalityLawyer Converge Solutions

http://hlconverge.com/

Both travelers and hotel owners/operators need to understand the conditions that encourage N.fowleri infection, as this amoeba presents a significant health hazard and a potential liability. N.fowleri thrives in warm fresh water; it cannot survive in very cold, salty, or properly chlorinated water. Infections typically occur in stagnant bodies of water, often after swimmers have stirred up sediment (which contains N.fowleri spores), and usually involve an activity like jumping, diving, or wakeboarding. In 2012, two people in Louisiana died from N.fowleri infection after using contaminated tap water with their neti pots. Death almost always occurs one to twelve days after infection.

This past summer, a four year-old boy in Bernard Parish, Louisiana, died of PAM (primary amebic meningoencephalitis, the extremely lethal result of N.fowleri infection) after playing on a Slip ‘n Slide. A twelve year-old boy in LaBelle, Florida, died of PAM after kneeboarding in a water-filled ditch near his home. One very lucky twelve year-old girl from Arkansas managed to survive an N.fowleri infection, making her the third survivor in the recorded history of the disease.

For more:  http://hlconverge.com/

Comments Off on Hospitality Industry Health Hazards: Hotel Owners Must Be Aware Of Risks From “Naegleria Fowleriis”, Known As “Brain-Eating Amoeba” In Warm Fresh Water On Or Around Their Premises

Filed under Guest Issues, Health, Labor Issues, Liability, Management And Ownership, Pool And Spa, Risk Management

Tagged as , , , , , , , ,

by | September 12, 2013 · 6:12 am

Hospitality Industry Health Risks: Arizona Restaurant Conducts “Full Re-Sanitizing” And “Enhanced Cleaning Protocols” With Consultant After E. Coli Outbreak Hospitalized 23 Customers

“…(the restaurant) said it disposed of all food and conducted “a full re-sanitizing of the restaurant” before reopening it. The company also noted Restaurant Food Safetythat it had worked with best-selling author and consultant Linda Cobb, known as the “Queen of Clean,” to “enhance its cleaning protocols”…of those who became ill in the exposure between July 18 and July 30, at least 23 were hospitalized, including two children who developed hemolytic uremic syndrome, a complication of E. coli infection that can cause kidney failure. The children required hospitalization, blood transfusions and dialysis..”

A Federico’s Mexican Food Restaurant in Litchfield Park, Ariz. that was linked to 79 cases of E. coli infection in July has reopened with new cleaning protocols in place and plans for a promotion to allay customers’ concerns about food safety.

On Aug. 1, the Maricopa County Department of Public Health informed Federico’s that it suspected some people had fallen ill from E. coli after eating at its Litchfield Park location. The company closed the restaurant for three days and reopened Aug. 5.

Owners of Federico’s, which has 20 units in the Phoenix, Ariz., area, said that the Maricopa County Department of Public Health has yet to determine the source of the E. coli O157:H7 infection.

For more:  http://nrn.com/food-safety/federico-s-restaurant-reopens-after-e-coli-outbreak

Comments Off on Hospitality Industry Health Risks: Arizona Restaurant Conducts “Full Re-Sanitizing” And “Enhanced Cleaning Protocols” With Consultant After E. Coli Outbreak Hospitalized 23 Customers

Filed under Claims, Food Illnesses, Guest Issues, Health, Liability, Management And Ownership, Risk Management, Training

Tagged as , , , , , , , ,

by | September 11, 2013 · 6:17 am

Hospitality Industry Safety Issues: Top Restaurant Review Website Posts “City Health Inspection Scores” Online; Consumers Can Now More Easily View Inspection Background And History

“…Yelp’s data come from city health inspectors, and the site displays the same information a consumer could find on a government site. But Online Restaurant Health Inspectionsthose sites can be unwieldy and, as Yelp Director of Public Policy Luther Lowe puts it…“Nobody goes to the .gov websites before they go to Yelp. The goal is to put highly relevant information that’s created by taxpayers in a context that makes a lot of sense.”…In a city committed to open data, inspection scores were already available online, via mobile app and in the restaurants themselves. But the new Yelp feature “goes a little bit further” by allowing consumers to read about inspection background and history…”

Yelp.com is starting to make it easier for diners to find a place to eat without getting sick.In August, Louisville became the second city to incorporate health-inspection information into its restaurant pages on the user-review site. San Francisco — Yelp’s home turf — was the first to do so back in January. Now, listed among a restaurant’s business attributes (hours, parking, Wi-Fi access, etc.) is its health score out of 100 possible points and a link to a description of  violations and previous inspections.

The new feature is “empowering the public with information,” says Kathy Harrison, communications director for the Louisville Metro Department for Public Health and Wellness.

The response to the addition of health scores has been “overwhelmingly positive,” Lowe says, and Yelp is currently working with a half-dozen other cities to bring health scores to their restaurant pages over the next several months.

For more:  http://www.foodsafetynews.com/2013/09/yelp-is-posting-health-inspection-scores/#.UjB2k0nn-M8

Comments Off on Hospitality Industry Safety Issues: Top Restaurant Review Website Posts “City Health Inspection Scores” Online; Consumers Can Now More Easily View Inspection Background And History

Filed under Food Illnesses, Guest Issues, Health, Liability, Management And Ownership, Risk Management

Tagged as , , , , , , , ,

by | September 10, 2013 · 6:16 am

Hospitality Industry Legal Risks: Florida Hotel Violated Federal Wage & Labor Laws By Creating “Employment Relationship” By “Directly Supervising” Staffing Company Employees

“…investigators determined that the hotel was liable for repayment of back wages because hotel staff had directly supervised those employed Hospitality Industry Wage Violation Lawsuitsby the staffing agency, creating what Young referred to as “joint employment relationship”…generally the using company tries to avoid the responsibility of the employers by staying out of the direct supervision of the employees or payment…however, we found there was enough direct supervision by Castillo Real employees on the staffing company’s employees to then create an employment relationship…Based on that relationship the hotel was found liable for the repayment of back wages…”

The U.S. Department of Labor found that two-thirds of the staffing companies that provide employees to north Florida’s hospitality industry investigated as part of a new initiative were not in compliance with federal wage and labor laws.

According to a DOL release, the hotel will pay $17,890 in back wages after it was discovered that employees provided by staffing company Maja LLC regularly were not paid overtime after working more than 40 hours a week providing services such as housekeeping and laundering. Additionally, some weeks employees’ wages fell below the federally required minimum wage.

Michael Young, district director of the DOL’s Wage and Hour Division’s Jacksonville District Office said the practice of using staffing companies to fill positions formerly managed by hotels themselves is becoming more prevalent across the country. The initiative looking into compliance among staffing companies was undertaken in four of the 10 districts in the Southeast.

For more:  http://news.wjct.org/post/investigation-finds-north-florida-hotels-violated-federal-labor-laws

Comments Off on Hospitality Industry Legal Risks: Florida Hotel Violated Federal Wage & Labor Laws By Creating “Employment Relationship” By “Directly Supervising” Staffing Company Employees

Filed under Employment Practices Liability, Labor Issues, Liability, Management And Ownership, Risk Management, Training

Tagged as , , , , , ,

by | September 9, 2013 · 6:27 am

Hospitality Industry Legal Risks: Missouri Restaurant Operator Ordered To Pay $20.5 Million To Man Permanently Disabled After Beating In Parking Lot; “Failure To Prevent Fight”, Violated “Disruptive Customer Policies”

 “…(the plaintiff) claimed the fast food giant failed to prevent the fight, poorly trained its employees and violated its own policies for dealing Hospitality Industry Injury Lawsuitswith disruptive customers…(the jury) actually returned a $25 million verdict against Jack in the Box after an eight-day civil trial. That was reduced to $20.5 million after the jury found Aziz to be 18 percent at fault for the attack…”

A City Court jury ordered Jack in the Box restaurants to pay $20.5 million to a man who is permanently disabled from a beating in a parking lot 3 years ago.  Ali Aziz, now 35, was beaten unconscious and spent more than a year in a coma after the June 20, 2012 assault. He has permanent brain damage and cannot walk or feed himself, the St. Louis Post-Dispatch reported.

Aziz, through his mother Annette Brown, sued Jack in the Box in City Court in 2011.  Four people – three men and a woman – pleaded guilty and have gone to prison for it.
Earnest Carter, 22, was sentenced to 12 years in prison; Jasmine Jeffries, 22, to 15 years; Johnnie Lane, 33, to 5 years; and Rwoeshan Booker, 20, to 13 years, the Post-Dispatch reported.

A Jack in the Box spokesman said the company is considering an appeal.

For more:  http://www.courthousenews.com/2013/09/09/60939.htm

Comments Off on Hospitality Industry Legal Risks: Missouri Restaurant Operator Ordered To Pay $20.5 Million To Man Permanently Disabled After Beating In Parking Lot; “Failure To Prevent Fight”, Violated “Disruptive Customer Policies”

Filed under Crime, Guest Issues, Injuries, Labor Issues, Liability, Management And Ownership, Risk Management, Training

Tagged as , , , , , ,

by | September 8, 2013 · 6:15 am

Hospitality Industry Crime Risks: Connecticut Hotel Manager Settles Multimillion Dollar “Wrongful Death Lawsuit”; Woman Murdered In Lobby By Intoxicated Man At Room Party

“…The former managers of a Stamford hotel agreed Friday to settle a multimillion dollar lawsuit brought against the hotel by the family of a 21-Hospitality Industry Wrongful Death Lawsuitsyear-old Greenwich woman stabbed to death by her ex-boyfriend there nearly six years ago…the trial addressed a real important public safety issue — and that was hotel safety…”

Details of the settlement were sealed in a confidentiality agreement, but lawyers for the family of Layla Renee Banks appeared very happy as they left the Main Street courthouse. On Thursday they had asked a jury to return a verdict of $20 million for their clients.

In the late evening of Oct. 13, 2007, a group of teens and young adults from Greenwich, wanting to extend what began as a sweet 16 party at one of their homes, rented a room on the third floor of the five-story hotel. Alcohol use was rampant among the partygoers who swelled to about 100, court documents and police reports show.

By his own admission later to police, he had had about six drinks at the party when he confronted Banks. He wanted to know why she hadn’t returned his emails or phone calls. After they began arguing, Banks screamed for help, eventually fleeing from Botello and the party to the hotel’s lobby, court documents and police reports state.

In a darkened hallway off the lobby, Botello caught up with the young woman, reports state. He clamped his hand over her mouth to prevent her from screaming and in the ensuing struggle he threw her purse down the hall.

Banks began sobbing and crying for help as a hotel worker began vacuuming the end of the hallway, the reports state. Panicked, Botello later told police he pulled out a knife and began stabbing Banks over and over — some 90 times, the medical report states.

For more:  http://www.ctpost.com/local/article/Hotel-murder-lawsuit-settled-4792732.php

Comments Off on Hospitality Industry Crime Risks: Connecticut Hotel Manager Settles Multimillion Dollar “Wrongful Death Lawsuit”; Woman Murdered In Lobby By Intoxicated Man At Room Party

Filed under Crime, Guest Issues, Injuries, Liability, Management And Ownership, Risk Management

Tagged as , , , , , ,

by | September 7, 2013 · 7:12 am

Hospitality Industry Legal Risks: Oregon Restaurant Sued For “Racial Discrimination”, Retaliation; Claims “Intentional Bias, Visceral Antagonism”

“…The suit says (the plaintiff) reported Counard’s conduct and “visceral antagonism” to other managers…he was suspended based on an Hospitality Industry Discrimination Lawsuitsallegation that he had told a server to rinse and serve a skewer of shrimp that had fallen on the floor…A month later, after an investigation in which Huleis was not interviewed, he was fired…The lawsuit claims Huleis’ treatment was intentional, was part of a pattern of discrimination against minority employees and was done with a reckless disregard for the company’s societal obligations…”

A Eugene man who says he was fired from his job at the Eugene Red Lobster restaurant because he is of Middle Eastern descent has filed a lawsuit against the chain in federal court. Jim Huleis, who came to Eugene in 2011 to help open a Red Lobster outlet near Valley River Center, seeks unspecified damages on claims of racial discrimination and retaliation. He alleges an area manager who disliked that Huleis was Arab singled him out for bad treatment to discredit and ultimately fire him.

The lawsuit asks the court to issue an injunction barring Red Lobster’s parent company, Florida-based GMRI Inc., from discriminating against people based on race or national origin. It also asks for an award compensating Huleis for his economic losses, including his past and future earnings, and for reinstatement to his job.

In addition, the suit asks for compensation for noneconomic damages and punitive damages and for an award covering his legal costs.

“We are a company known for greatly valuing diversity and have zero tolerance for any form of discrimination, so we take any claim like this very seriously,” Bernstein said in an e-mailed statement. “If there are differences between employees and our company during or after employment, the mutual goal is to resolve these issues in a prompt and fair way, and to do that we have a robust dispute resolution process, which includes mediation and arbitration. Mr. Huleis is pursuing this matter through that process.”

According to the suit, Counard immediately treated Huleis different from other managers, giving him inappropriate tasks, minimizing him and barring him from duties he would usually perform.

For more:  http://www.registerguard.com/rg/news/local/30417354-75/huleis-eugene-lobster-red-says.html.csp

Comments Off on Hospitality Industry Legal Risks: Oregon Restaurant Sued For “Racial Discrimination”, Retaliation; Claims “Intentional Bias, Visceral Antagonism”

Filed under Labor Issues, Liability, Management And Ownership, Risk Management, Training

Tagged as , , , , ,

by | September 6, 2013 · 9:15 am

Hospitality Industry Legal Risks: Florida Sports Bar Sued By Man Attacked By Bouncers; Assault Captured On Cell Phone And Posted Online

“…a bystander caught the incident on his cell phone (and shows) the first punch thrown (at the plaintiff), then a bouncer stomping on his head.  However, Coelho was the one arrested and charged with battery on a law  enforcement officer…(but) what people see from the video (is that) he Sports Bar Lawsuit Over Assault By Bouncerswas the  victim an attorney stated…The state attorney agreed and dropped charges against Coelho…the (sports bar) posted a statement on their Facebook page deeply regretting the matter…The sports bar has also fired the bouncers involved in the altercation (and) they have  since been arrested for the attack…”

A man involved in a fight outside a South Florida bar is filing a lawsuit  against those, he says, are responsible. Alex Coelho was with his girlfriend and friends when he was attacked outside  of Dirty Blondes in Fort Lauderdale Beach back in July.  After a verbal argument  with one of the bartenders, they were escorted outside. As the argument ensued,  Coelho was attacked and beaten by the bouncers. The attack was caught on  camera.

According to the group, they ordered a round of drinks. When one of the  drinks came back wrong, they said the bartender became irate. “‘That’s what you  ordered, if you don’t like it, you can get a drink somewhere else’ type of  deal,” Coelho said. “I offered to pay for another one, and then she called the  bouncers over. I actually offered them, ‘I don’t want any trouble here.’ I  pulled a $10 bill out of my pocket.”

Coelho asked to speak to the bar’s manager once the tension began to rise.  “I work in hospitality, and I understand how people should be treated,” Coelho  said. I definitely wasn’t yelling. I definitely didn’t want to fight or get in a  fight. I’ve never been arrested, ever.”

Read more: http://www.wsvn.com/news/articles/local/21011603710196/man-files-lawsuit-after-bar-fight/#ixzz2e8EiWlNd

Comments Off on Hospitality Industry Legal Risks: Florida Sports Bar Sued By Man Attacked By Bouncers; Assault Captured On Cell Phone And Posted Online

Filed under Crime, Guest Issues, Injuries, Labor Issues, Liability, Management And Ownership, Risk Management

Tagged as , , , , , , ,

by | September 4, 2013 · 8:35 am

Hospitality Industry Legal Issues: Restaurants Beginning To Replace “Tipping” With Surcharges Or Higher Menu Prices In Response To “Wage Violation Lawsuits”, Cultural Changes

 “…Front-of-house workers are suing one respected restaurant after another, including Dovetail, last month, accusing them of playing fast and Hospitality Industry Wage Violation Lawsuitsloose with the laws on tips. The charges include sharing tips with workers who aren’t eligible for them and making tipped employees spend too much time on what is called sidework, like folding napkins between meals…One such lawsuit was settled for more than $5 million. Some owners now think they can avoid the suits by eliminating tips…”

“…Another change is cultural. The restaurant business can be seen as a class struggle between the groomed, pressed, articulate charmers working in the dining room and the blistered, stained and profane grunts in the kitchen. The rise of chefs that are also owners has brought a few of the grunts to power. But as the average tip has risen to 20 percent or so from 15 percent, the pay for line cooks, dishwashers and others has stayed low…”

“…The self-interest calculation (for servers) may be different now. Credit card receipts and tougher oversight have virtually killed off unreported tips…”

Sushi Yasuda joins other restaurants that have done away with tips, replacing them with either a surcharge (Atera and Chef’s Table at Brooklyn Fare in New York; Next and Alineain Chicago; Coi and Chez Panisse in the San Francisco Bay Area) or prices that include the cost of service (Per Se in New York and the French Laundry in Healdsburg, Calif.).

These restaurants are numerous enough and important enough to suggest that a tip-reform movement is under way. On the other hand, they are few enough and exceptional enough to suggest that the movement may remain very small, and move very slowly.

Americans have stuck with tipping for years because all parties thought it worked in their favor. Servers, especially in restaurants from the mid- to high-priced, made good money, much of it in cash, and much of that unreported on tax returns. Owners saved on labor costs and taxes. And customers generally believed that tips brought better service.

For more:  http://www.nytimes.com/2013/09/04/dining/leaving-a-tip-a-custom-in-need-of-changing.html?pagewanted=all&_r=0

Comments Off on Hospitality Industry Legal Issues: Restaurants Beginning To Replace “Tipping” With Surcharges Or Higher Menu Prices In Response To “Wage Violation Lawsuits”, Cultural Changes

Filed under Employment Practices Liability, Guest Issues, Labor Issues, Liability, Management And Ownership, Risk Management

Tagged as , , , , , , ,