Category Archives: Training

by | November 14, 2011 · 6:44 am

Hospitality Inudustry Employment Risks: Woman At Florida Staffing Company Convicted Of "Alien Smuggling And Worker Visa Fraud" In Supplying Workers To Hotels

 “…a large temporary labor staffing company based in Orlando, which supplied temporary labor to numerous businesses in the hotel and hospitality industries throughout Florida and the United States…”

“… They also submitted fake hotel contract agreements to conceal their activities and falsely reported that U.S. workers had been hired when they had not…”

A federal jury found a Brazilian woman residing in Orlando guilty of alien smuggling and conspiracy to commit alien smuggling and worker visa fraud on Monday, following an investigation that began with U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s (ICE) Homeland Security Investigations (HSI).

Rafaela Dutra Toro, 30, faces a maximum penalty of 10 years in federal prison. She was indicted on Jan. 26. Her sentencing hearing has not yet been scheduled.

 “The individuals involved in this case orchestrated a very large and very complex visa fraud ring. They took jobs away from U.S. citizens and others who are legally allowed to work in this country by knowingly employing people who were not authorized to work in the United States,” said Susan McCormick, special agent in charge of HSI in Tampa. “Through cases like this one, HSI is helping to protect our economy and preserve job opportunities from being lost due to fraud.”

Toro is a citizen of Brazil and will be subject to removal from the United States after serving her sentence. According to evidence presented at trial, Toro worked for VR Services, a large temporary labor staffing company based in Orlando, which supplied temporary labor to numerous businesses in the hotel and hospitality industries throughout Florida and the United States. The scheme allowed Toro and her co-conspirators to set up a permanent foreign labor pool that hired illegal alien workers across the United States in jobs that would normally have been filled by United States citizens. As part of the conspiracy, Toro and her co-conspirators submitted false documentation to the government and manipulated the H-2B foreign worker visa process. They also submitted fake hotel contract agreements to conceal their activities and falsely reported that U.S. workers had been hired when they had not.

For more:  http://www.laht.com/article.asp?ArticleId=443603&CategoryId=14090

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by | November 12, 2011 · 4:06 pm

Hospitality Industry Employee Risks: New York Hotel Sued By Black Employee For Discrimination After "Racist Stunt"

“…A black midtown hotel cook says two co-workers inside of a year have dressed like the Ku Klux Klan and harassed him…(serving) the hotel and three employees with a $35 million discrimination lawsuit over an alleged racist stunt on Oct. 28, 2010…”

In an amended complaint, Jones says painter Ramon Pagan confronted him in the hotel basement wearing a “pure white cone-shaped article on his head.” Pagan said, “Hey, look at me. I am the Ku Klux Klan,” while a hotel manager witnessed the bizarre exchange, according to court papers filed in Manhattan Federal Court.

“[Pagan] laughed in my face and enjoyed what he was doing. And there was a manager right there looking at him and didn’t say a word.” “It was not a painter’s mask he was wearing, it was perfectly shaped like a cone,” he added.

Jones immediately reported what happened to hotel brass who reviewed a surveillance video which captured the scene. Phoebe Knowles, a vice president for the Roger Smith Hotel, said Friday that management acted decisively and canned Pagan. “The employee no longer works here,” Knowles said.

“We have a strict policy against any type of harassing actions, and we respond expeditiously when it comes to our attention.”

Read more: http://www.nydailynews.com/new-york/black-midtown-hotel-cook-co-workers-dressed-ku-klux-klans-harassed-article-1.976420#ixzz1dXRLEHn1

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by | November 10, 2011 · 6:44 am

Hospitality Industry Internet Risks: Connecticut Hotel Employees Assist Authorities In Arrest And Conviction Of Man For "Child Pornography" While Using Hotel Internet

Employees at the Marriott Hotel in Hartford, Conn., took action over the summer when they spotted a man trying to access a pornographic website in their hotel, the Hartford Courant reports.

They banned the man from the hotel, and then alerted authorities, leading to an investigation by agencies including the Hartford Police, FBI and the Connecticut Computer Crimes Task Force.

That investigation on Tuesday led to a guilty plea from the suspect who had been using Internet services almost daily at a variety of places including the hotel’s Starbucks Café and the nearby library, the article says.

He had previously been convicted of attempted child molestation, according to the FBI.

William Scott Van Wyk, 35, pleaded guilty in Hartford before U.S. District Judge Christopher Droney to a child pornography charge and one count of using the Internet to try to persuade a minor to engage in sexual activity, the story says.

He faces at least 15 years in prison, although he may receive a longer sentence due to his record.

For more:  http://travel.usatoday.com/hotels/post/2011/11/hotel-takes-action-when-man-spotted-child-porn-guilty-plea/562998/1?csp=34travel&utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+UsatodaycomTravel-TopStories+%28Travel+-+Top+Stories%29

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by | November 9, 2011 · 6:46 am

Hospitality Industry Security Risks: Las Vegas Hotel Housekeeper "Sexually Assaulted" In Hotel Room; Security And Surveillance Measures Had Been Cut And Scaled Back In Recent Years

“…In the 1990s and early 2000s, the hotel used to provide for a security guard at the employee parking lot. That position has been cut, the co-worker said…”

“…The number of security guards assigned to walk guest floors to monitor safety also has been scaled back over the years, said the employee, who suggested there should be at least one security guard at guest elevators to check identifications…”

A Las Vegas man accused of beating and raping a 65-year-old Strip hotel maid last week kept clothing in his home that may have been bloodied in the attack, police said.

According to his Las Vegas police arrest report, David Randell Ferren, 19, kept a bloody jacket, belt and condoms that may have been worn during the assault of a Bally’s hotel maid on the morning of Nov. 1.

The report alleges Ferren punched the maid in the face as she was entering a room on the 59th floor of Bally’s about 9:30 a.m. Security footage showed Ferren exiting an elevator on that floor shortly before the attack, police said.

In the arrest report, police said Ferren forced the maid into the room and raped her. The assault was interrupted after the occupant of the room entered. That woman told detectives she saw a naked man getting dressed as the maid fled the room, the report said.

Another maid saw the man using an emergency exit , the report said.

For more:  http://www.lvrj.com/news/suspect-in-strip-rape-kept-bloody-clothing-police-say-133403473.html

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by | November 7, 2011 · 6:46 am

Hospitality Industry Security Risks: California Hotel Front Desk Clerk Subdues Armed Robber With Help From Guests (Video)

[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dRxmLBNgSiM&feature=player_embedded]

An armed robber got more than he bargained for after being tackled by two cage fighters who just happened to be staying at the hotel he was trying to hold-up. Gun-toting Luis Rosales definitely made the wrong move when he walked into the Comfort Inn hotel in LA’s Koreatown, pointed a gun at the clerk and demanded he fill a bag full of cash.

After handing over money from the till, the clerk noticed Rosales place the weapon in the bag along with the cash. He followed him out of the office, grabbed him from behind and screamed for help.

As Rosales, 31, struggled to break free the two fighters leapt into action with Denney grabbing the robber in a hold while Alvarez seized the gun. They then put him on the ground with a leg sweep and held him until police arrived.

Denney, 28, told the LA Times: ‘The manager eye-balled us and immediately started running after this guy saying “He’s got a gun, he’s got a gun, he’s got a gun, he just robbed me”.

Read more: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2058483/Luis-Rosales-Armed-hotel-robber-meets-match-2-cage-fighters-video.html#ixzz1d1uJi0nU

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by | November 3, 2011 · 5:28 am

Hospitality Industry Guest Satisfaction: Washington DC Hotel's "Women Only" Floor Offers "Safety, Convenience And Comfort" To Female Guests (Video)

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Women seek safety, convenience and comfort when they travel. A D.C. hotel offers a “women only” floor along with other amenities targeting the growing sector of women travelers.

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by | November 2, 2011 · 4:58 am

Hospitality Industry Security Risks: Department Of Homeland Security (DHS) To Present 15-Second TV Announcement On In-Room Hotel Channels Urging Guests To Be "Vigilant" In Fight Against Terrorism

“…Starting today, the welcome screens on 1.2 million hotel television sets in Marriott, Hilton, Sheraton, Holiday Inn and other hotels in the USA will show a short public service announcement from DHS (Department of Homeland Security). The 15-second spot encourages viewers to be vigilant and call law enforcement if they witness something suspicious during their travels…”

During the PSA, which starts with a woman exiting a yellow taxi in front of a train station, a narrator says, “Maybe you see something suspicious. Can you be sure? If you see something, say something to authorities.”

The PSA, which will be interspersed with other messages on the welcome screen, will be the same in all 5,400 hotels that LodgeNet serves. It ends by telling viewers to contact “local authorities.”

Homeland Security Secretary Janet Napolitano says that reaching the “millions of guests that stay at hotels and motels each year is a significant step in engaging the full range of partners in our Homeland Security efforts.”

The federal government gained access to hotel TV sets by forming a partnership with the hotel industry’s largest association — the American Hotel & Lodging Association — which connected DHS with LodgeNet, the industry’s largest TV-content provider.

By entering hotels at a time when the hospitality industry is on the rebound, the government has the power to tap a growing, captive audience. Recent research from LodgeNet says 98% of hotel guests turn on their hotel TV, and the average guest keeps it on for more than three hours per day.

For more:  http://travel.usatoday.com/hotels/story/2011-11-02/Hotel-guests-recruited-with-Homeland-Security-TV-spots/51032602/1

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by | October 31, 2011 · 5:38 am

Hospitality Industry Guest Satisfaction: "Respectful Treatment" By Hotel Employees Tops Is Top Concern Of Business Travellers

“…74% of executives say hotel workers need to treat them with respect if they want to keep their business…according to a survey released last week…”

What comes through loud and clear is that an executive traveler isn’t asking for high-priced service as much as high touch,” said Shawn Abaspor, chief executive of Vitesse Worldwide.

One of the world’s largest hotel companies is now letting guests post reviews on its hotel websites — even guests who aren’t happy with their stay. Starwood Hotels & Resorts Worldwide, whose hotel brands include Sheraton, Westin and St. Regis, recently unveiled a new feature to let guests write reviews that will appear on the hotel website. And the hotel company has encouraged guests to be honest.

Online hotel review sites are plentiful. But until now, hotels themselves rarely — if ever — post reviews by guests, said Kathryn Potter, a spokeswoman for the American Hotel & Lodging Assn., the trade group for the nation’s hotel owners.

“This is the first I’ve ever heard of a hotel posting reviews on their own site,” she said.

Only guests who type in their reservation confirmation number can submit reviews, and Starwood officials promise not to block negative reviews.

On the website for the St. Regis Monarch Beach Resort in Dana Point, most of the reviews are positive. But one mentions a problem with service. “When we first arrived, we waited five minutes for someone from valet to take care of us,” wrote a guest from North Carolina.

For more:  http://www.latimes.com/business/la-fi-travel-briefcase-20111031,0,6754845.story

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by | October 30, 2011 · 6:47 am

Hospitality Industry Fire Risks: California Hotel "Electrical Fire" Causes Hundreds Of Guest To Be Evacuated As Two Floors Fill With Smoke

 “…Firefighters scoured the hotel to ensure all guests and hotel personnel were evacuated. Another group of firefighters tried to determine the source of the fire, and a third group worked on freeing the pair trapped in the elevator….”

Firefighters evacuated several hundred guests at a 15-floor Hyatt Regency after two of the hotel’s floors began filling with smoke after an electrical fire, officials said. The incident was reported at 5 p.m., and seven engines, two ladder trucks and a battalion chief from Orange County Fire Authority responded to the hotel at 17900 Jamboree Road.

A man and woman were trapped in an elevator between the second and third floors, Orange County Fire Capt. Marc Stone said. They were freed at 6 p.m. According to Stone, fire personnel were attempting to locate the source of the fire. Smoke filled the second and third floors of the hotel, he said.

It was unclear whether the electrical fire melted down some equipment or if the equipment overheated to cause the fire, Stone said.

For more:  http://www.ocregister.com/news/fire-324481-hotel-smoke.html

 

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by | October 27, 2011 · 1:37 am

Hospitality Industry Employee Risks: California Hotel Operator Ordered By Labor Commission To Pay "Back Wages And Penalties" For Denying Housekeepers 10-Minute Rest Periods

“…43 of the 80 employees at Embassy Suites Irvine filed formal complaints with the Labor Commissioner about the rest-period issue. Of the seven hearings that have so far been held, all seven workers received awards averaging $5,261 each…”

HEI Hospitality LLC, which manages the 293-room hotel, was recently ordered by a state Labor Commissioner hearing officer to pay $36,827 in back wages and penalties to full-time housekeepers who were denied 10-minute rest periods. The breaks are a legally mandated minimum standard in California.

Those housekeepers earned an average of $8.92 an hour before taxes. Their work included scrubbing toilets and showers, vacuuming, mopping floors on their knees, changing blankets and sheets, cleaning out microwaves, refrigerators and coffeemakers, taking out the trash, wiping down mirrors and counters and changing shower curtains.

The housekeepers said HEI would assign them workloads of 16 or 17 rooms to clean in an eight-hour shift, threaten them with discipline if they did not finish all their work on time and give them extra work such as cleaning hallways if they were seen standing around. Several of them were never made aware, as is required by law, that they had a right to take the breaks.

For more:  http://www.ocregister.com/news/hei-323823-employees-workers.html

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