Tag Archives: Hotels
Hospitality Industry Technology Solutions: Hotels Increasingly Rely On “Mobile Platforms” For Guest Check-In; “Mobile App Downloads” To Increase More Than 7-Fold In Next Five Years
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September 5, 2013 · 9:13 amHospitality Industry Cybercrime Risks: Criminal Hackers Target Hotels Lacking “Advanced Data Security Safeguards” On Local Credit Card Transactions; “Chip-And-Pin Cards” Coming Soon
“…criminal hackers gravitate to some hotels because, like retail stores and restaurants, hotels do many credit card transactions at a local level, where centralized and highly sophisticated data security safeguards may be lacking…Most hotels are locally owned, though managed by big 
hotel chain companies. For hotel owners, it is expensive to come into full compliance with the tough global data security criteria set by the credit card companies…That includes using complex passwords, being wary of public Wi-Fi, updating antivirus software — and checking credit card statements carefully…”
“…In the United States, credit cards use magnetic strips that are more vulnerable to hacking than the electronic chips embedded in credit cards in Europe and elsewhere. Such cards also require entry of a PIN…these so-called chip-and-PIN cards are headed our way, said Kathy Orner, vice president for information security at Carlson Rezidor, a worldwide hotel company that is among the industry leaders in data security…all of the major credit card issuers plan to start introducing these cards in the United States within two or three years…”
In its 2013 Global Security Report, Trustwave, a data security management firm, says that the top three industries targeted for data breach attacks in 2012, measured by the number of its investigations, were retailing (45 percent), food and beverage (24 percent) and hotels (9 percent). Three years ago, the hotel industry was at the top, but hotels have since made “significant strides†in improving credit card security measures, the report says.
Last year, for example, the Federal Trade Commission sued Wyndham Worldwide, the hotel chain, for what it said was inadequate safeguarding of credit card information that led to three data breaches at hotels in under two years, with “millions of dollars in fraud loss, and the export of hundreds of thousands of consumers’ payment card account information to an Internet domain address registered in Russia.â€
The threat is constant, Mr. Roman said. “The best protection is vigilance, and that takes work,†he said.
For more:Â http://www.nytimes.com/2013/09/03/business/data-security-begins-with-the-traveler.html
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Filed under Guest Issues, Insurance, Liability, Management And Ownership, Privacy, Risk Management, Technology, Theft
Hospitality Industry Employment Issues: “Becoming A Resume Lie Detector” From HospitalityLawyer.com
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Filed under Labor Issues, Management And Ownership, Risk Management, Training
Hospitality Industry Technology Solutions: “Emergency Management Software” For Hotels Provides Fire, Police Departments With Instant Access To “Site And Floor Plans, HAZMAT Details And Utility Shut-Off Locations”
“…By installing (the Emergency Management Software), Doubletree provides Detroit’s first responders instant on-site access to site plans, floor 
plans, hazardous material details, utility shut-off locations, geographical maps, fire hydrants locations, persons with special needs, guests and residents, and other critical information. The pre-plan data will be on a touch screen computer in the lobby as well as on the mobile data computers in Detroit’s fire department and law enforcement vehicles…”
“Our adoption of this technology is an excellent example of the private sector bracing the public works,” said Shannon Dunavent, general manager of Detroit DoubleTree by Hilton Hotel. “This new technology will be fully implemented by September 1st, making all critical building information quickly available to first responders. We are not only making a smart, cost-effective investment in our property and in the safety of our guests and staff, but in the city’s ability to respond to emergencies.â€Â
CommandScope allows building and facility owners, managers and first responders alike to easily add and upload building and site data. The information is shareable across organizations and city departments, and is updateable in real-time allowing first responders to act with knowledge rather than trial and error. First responders can save time and lives by immediately execute emergency procedures instead of wasting time locating managers or engineers on site.
Filed under Maintenance, Management And Ownership, Risk Management, Technology, Training
Hospitality Industry Pool Safety: “Hotel Swimming Pool Liability Reduction Checklist” From HospitalityLawyer.com
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Filed under Guest Issues, Liability, Maintenance, Management And Ownership, Pool And Spa, Risk Management, Training
Hospitality Industry Technology Solutions: California Hotel’s Linen Inventory Loss Costs Reduced By 90% Using RFID Tags, Tracking Software
“…Â By using the technology the hotel has reduced the rate of missing items from 20 to 30 percent of all stock to only about 3 percent. In so doing, 
 the system has paid for itself since its installation in December 2011…each tag’s ID is paired with data regarding the linen to which it is attached, including the type of linen and when it was manufactured. That information is then stored on the Linentracker server…By having a better view into specific linens’ locations—onsite, at the laundry facility or missing—the company has been able to reduce the incidence of shrinkage, as well as require less inventory in storage, since it now knows what its existing levels of linens consist of… If the hotel can reduce that quantity by about a sixth, he adds, significant savings result. Moreover, the hotel no longer need pay for laundering services for goods that were never returned…”
Mr. C opened its doors in summer 2011, with 138 rooms, a pool, a fitness center and a restaurant—all of which require linens. The hotel, owned by Italy’s Cipriani family, is the first of what the family expects to be a chain of luxury hotels under the same name, in such cities as Miami and New York. All linens are produced in Italy and are then shipped to the hotel, with a combined value of approximately $100,000.
Each tag’s ID is paired with data regarding the linen to which it is attached, including the type of linen and when it was manufactured. That information is then stored on the Linentracker server, hosted by Jaspersoft and using Fluensee software. The specialized tags are designed for use in laundry applications. They can sustain up to 550 wash cycles with tunnel washers, the company reports, including the most challenging part of that cycle—the extractor, which creates the most pressure on tags by pressing the linens and their tags against the bottom of the washer as water is forced out of the machine.
The hotel installed three RFID readers, with two installed above the laundry chute through which all soiled linens pass, and the third mounted at the housekeeping station where the linens are received from a third-party laundry service. When the hotel first opened, Jagger says, workers tracked the linens manually. Every item was sent to an off-site laundry facility, and the washed and folded versions were counted upon being returned. Manually counting each item, however, was an exhaustive chore, and errors could be made. In addition, he notes, there were large discrepancies between the quantity of items that the hotel management thought was still at the laundry site, and what the laundry service provider itself reported…”
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Filed under Labor Issues, Maintenance, Management And Ownership, Risk Management, Technology
P3 Hospitality Industry Risk Report: “Hotel Pool Preparation, Maintenance And Checklist” By Petra Risk Solutions’ Risk Manager Joe Fisco, CLSD (Video)
[vimeo http://vimeo.com/52436189]
Petra Risk Solutions’ Risk Manager, Joe Fisco, CLSD , offers a P3 Hospitality Risk Update – ‘Hotel Pool Preparation, Maintenance And Checklist’.
P3 (Petra Plus Process) is the Risk Management Division of Petra Risk Solutions – America’s largest independent insurance brokerage devoted exclusively to the hospitality marketplace.
For more information on Petra and P3 visit petrarisksolutions.com or call 800.466.8951.
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Filed under Guest Issues, Health, Insurance, Liability, Maintenance, Management And Ownership, Pool And Spa, Risk Management
Hospitality Industry Health And Safety: Hotels And Restaurants Avoid Onsite “Automated External Defibrillator (AED)” Placement And Training Due To Concerns About Risks And Liability
“…the American Hotel and Lodging Association, singled out the patchwork of state laws as a major reason hotels in the U.S. “do not uniformly provide training and AEDs onsite,” in a 2009 report.
“…across America, there is anything but agreement among states about rules for the use of automated external defibrillators (or AEDs): Where they must be located; if they should be registered so authorities know where they are; whether a business that installs one is fully protected from liability; or even if a company is obliged to use one if someone on the premises suffers sudden cardiac arrest…”
There is no dispute that portable defibrillators, simple-to-use device that supply jolts to shock a stilled heart to beat again, could save tens of thousands of lives a year in this country alone if they are accessible to willing bystanders.
And some experts say the uneven patchwork of laws and regulations is a worrisome barrier to more widespread distribution and use of the battery-powered devices, which, if employed within minutes of cardiac arrest, can bring a person back to life.
For instance, many AEDs still carry labels saying they should only be used by “medical professionals” even though there are laws in every state giving “good Samaritan” protection to anyone who tries to use one to save the life of someone in cardiac arrest.
“The concerns about risk and liability remain very high,” said Richard Lazar, president of Readiness Systems LLC, a Portland, Ore., firm that consults with businesses and governments on AED training and placement.
Mandates for where AEDs should be placed are a national checkerboard. Nineteen states impose no mandates. But, in New York state, AEDs are required in health clubs, while in Florida, they’re mandatory in public high schools. Yet recent court rulings in both states have held that, just because those facilities are required to have the devices, they are under no legal obligation to use them.
For more:Â http://www.commercialappeal.com/news/2013/aug/25/aed-laws-cause-confusion/
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Filed under Guest Issues, Health, Liability, Management And Ownership, Risk Management, Technology, Training
Hospitality Industry Legal Risks: Restaurants And Hotels Must “Thoroughly And Consistently” Train Employees For Alcohol Service
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Filed under Guest Issues, Labor Issues, Liability, Management And Ownership, Risk Management, Training
Hospitality Industry Employment Risks: Mississippi Hotel Sued For “Pregnancy Discrimination” By EEOC; Woman Fired On First Day Of Work After Informing Manager Of Pregnancy
“…According to the EEOC’s suit, (the employee) informed her manager of her pregnancy on her first day of work. That evening, the manager terminated Harmon and replaced her with a non-pregnant employee, the EEOC said…”
“Employers cannot penalize women for choosing to have a family,” said Katharine W. Kores, district director of the EEOC’s Memphis District Office, which has jurisdiction over Arkansas, Tennessee and portions of Mississippi. “This agency will continue to work to eliminate this type of discriminatory conduct.”
Jiji, Inc., a Holiday Inn franchisee located in Batesville, Miss., violated federal law when it fired an employee because of her pregnancy, the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) charged in a lawsuit it filed today.
Such alleged conduct violates Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, as amended by the Pregnancy Discrimination Act. The EEOC filed suit, Civil Action No. 3:13-cv-00212, in U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Mississippi, Oxford Division after first attempting to reach a pre-litigation settlement through its conciliation process. The suit seeks back pay, compensatory and punitive damages, reinstatement and injunctive relief.
Jiji, Inc. is a Mississippi corporation based in Batesville that owns, manages, and operates hotel facilities in Mississippi. The EEOC enforces federal laws prohibiting employment discrimination. Further information about the EEOC is available on its web site at www.eeoc.gov.
For more:Â http://www.eeoc.gov/eeoc/newsroom/release/8-22-13.cfm
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Filed under Employment Practices Liability, Labor Issues, Liability, Management And Ownership, Risk Management
