Tag Archives: Legal Issues

by | July 7, 2014 · 9:43 am

Hospitality Industry Legal Update: “Greenwood Village to Take Final Vote on Hotel-Motel Stay Limit”

“…The law would give long-term hotel and motel patrons in Greenwood Village until Nov. 1 to find a new place to live. Greenwood Village City Council meeting they will have first reading on an ordinance amending the Greenwood Village land development code regarding length of stay in hotels and motelsA daily fine of $499 could be levied against the hotel operator, or the occupant, for violations beyond the stay limit…The hotel operator would be responsible for moving out long-term residents on a voluntary basis. But because Colorado law gives tenancy rights to anyone residing at one location for 30 days or more, those who refuse to leave could face eviction.…”

Dozens of families living in Greenwood Village hotels and motels will have to start looking for new homes if the City Council on Monday passes a measure limiting a hotel stay to no more than 30 days.

The city claims the ordinance is needed because hotels, which lack residential zoning, are not equipped to operate as long-term living facilities.

For more: http://dpo.st/1pUIf50  

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by | July 1, 2014 · 9:27 am

Hospitality Industry Legal Update: “Mahwah Hotel to Pay $110,000 to Settle Sandy Price-Gouging Lawsuit”

“…State law prohibits price increases of more than 10 percent than normal during declared states of emergency. GavelComfort Suites Mahwah allegedly charged more than $100 more than the allowed increase in some cases, according to the state lawsuit…The state filed 27 lawsuits against businesses accused of price gouging after Hurricane Sandy…”

A township hotel will pay $110,000 to settle claims that it gouged prices after Hurricane Sandy, authorities said.

Comfort Suites Mahwah allegedly engaged in 473 instances of illegal price gouging after the storm, a lawsuit filed by the New Jersey Division of Consumer Affairs said.

For more: http://bit.ly/1mFywHt

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by | June 30, 2014 · 9:04 am

Hospitality Industry Legal Update: “Blame Flies Over Drowning Death in Seattle Hotel Pool”

“…The lawsuit claims that Deboch’s body was dragged by suction from a pump to a drain in the middle of the deep end,WA pool where it was held for nearly three hours. The suit claims that the pump’s emergency shut-off, which would have released suction after detecting a blockage, had failed. The suit also claims poor water quality prevented rescue attempts by firefighters…”

The family of a man who drowned a year ago in the swimming pool at the Quality Inn & Suites Seattle Center has filed a wrongful-death suit against the owners of the hotel, claiming poor maintenance made the water unusually murky and contributed to a botched rescue operation by firefighters.

For more: http://bit.ly/V2RT7K

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by | June 27, 2014 · 9:43 am

Hospitality Industry ADA Update: “Best Western Responds to Property That Refused Family With Service Dog”

“…Under the Americans with Disabilities Act,service dogservice animals can accompany people with disabilities in all areas where members of the public are allowed. Staffers are allowed to only ask two questions: Whether the dog is a service animal and what tasks he has been trained to perform…”

Best Western International has responded to its Baton Rouge property that refused the reservation of a North Carolina family traveling with a service dog by temporarily restricting the hotel from accepting reservations.

For more: http://yhoo.it/1yULoDz

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by | June 26, 2014 · 9:09 am

Hospitality Industry Management Update: “Hot-Sheets Bronx Motel Kept Bloody Mattress in Room Years After Customer Died of Overdose on Bed”

“…A room attendant who photographed the soiled mattress in room 230 weeksbronx hotel before the inspection told an arbitrator it had been in use up until April, 2014…The firm also found that hotel management had failed to properly train staff on how to handle sheets and towels contaminated with human waste and other substances…”

Working in this Bronx motel is a bloody hell.

The owners of a hot-sheet motel where union laborers have been protesting wage and benefits cuts failed to replace a bloody mattress two years after a dead man was found on the bed, workers claim.

Owner Ankoor Naik has also ignored two independent reports that found inadequate training and protection for employees at the 94-unit flophouse despite hazardous conditions and bedbug infestations, workers and safety experts attest.

For more: http://nydn.us/1qL4QQD 

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by | June 24, 2014 · 8:35 am

Hospitality Industry Liability Update: “Hotels Don’t Need CO Alarms, New Rules Say”

“…CO is a very real danger, and CO alarms should be in hotel rooms,”CO says Stephen Thom, a University of Maryland professor of emergency medicine and a CO specialist. “CO incidents happen in every major city regularly, and people only pay attention to the need for CO detectors when there is a tragedy…”

New international building and fire codes that will be published this summer may provide hotel guests less protection from deadly carbon monoxide.

The 2015 codes eliminate a 2012 requirement that required a CO alarm in each guest room or a detection system in all common areas, according to Michael O’Brian, a member of an International Code Council committee that recommended the new codes.

For more: http://usat.ly/1jLdVBe

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by | June 12, 2014 · 8:24 am

Hospitality Industry Risk Update: “Hospitality’s Fight Against Human Trafficking”

“…While the $32-billion human trafficking industry is on the rise, now the hospitality industry must take steps.gavel (1) With leaders like Nelson, the hospitality industry is just starting to push back, which means traffickers are going to hit obstacles never seen before. We cannot just rely on the strength of victims and the federal government to fight alone. All of us have a responsibility to stop the epidemic in our country…”

The hospitality businesses, especially hotels and restaurants, have become a harbor for human trafficking in the United States. Human trafficking comes in two forms: commercial sex trafficking and forced labor trafficking. Victims can be domestic or international. Whether it is commercial sex trafficking victims being moved through motels, or subcontracted foreign labor utilized in restaurants or hotels, traffickers have identified the hospitality industry as a vehicle for modern-day slavery.

For more: http://bit.ly/1hMzfem

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by | June 11, 2014 · 9:02 am

Hospitality Industry Bed Bug Update: “How to Search Your Hotel Room for Bed Bugs”

“…I also found “joke” apps pretending to be bed bug detectors for the purposes of freaking your friends out,bedbugs2 and some highly bogus “ultrasonic repelling” apps that suggest they turn your phone into a sonic threat to bugs of all kinds. There is no evidence that bed bugs or mosquitoes are repelled by ultrasound. Don’t waste your money…”

You’re packed for your trip, your boarding passes are downloaded… and then that little moment of terror hits. What if the hotel you’re going to stay in has bed bugs? It’s a real concern, but by being vigilant, you can reduce your chances of bringing home some unexpected souvenirs.

I don’t put a lot of trust in online hotel bed bug ratings or reports; infestation status can change from day to day, and there is no reliable way to verify that reviews are not fake.

Here’s how I search for bed bugs when I arrive at a new hotel. I can’t promise this is foolproof, but knowing how one slightly-paranoid entomologist deals with the threat of bed bugs might be useful to some readers.

For more: http://wrd.cm/1odGOha

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by | June 6, 2014 · 9:00 am

Hospitality Industry Management Update: “Union Fight Divides Workforce at DoubleTree”

“…Organizers have been walking picket lines with workers and visiting employees at their homes,Double Tree and guests have been approached by union supporters in the lobby and have had fliers slipped under their doors. Over one weekend in early May, a push to get groups to cancel room reservations accounted for more than $30,000 in lost business, according to workers who reject calls for a union…”

An effort to organize employees at Hilton’s DoubleTree Suites has turned the hotel near the Charles River into a workplace that is sharply divided. On one side are housekeepers and other staff members fighting for more affordable health care and a collective voice. Resisting their efforts are administrative workers, restaurant servers, and others who don’t want to lose benefits offered by Hilton, which they say is a generous employer.

Both groups say they are in the majority.

For more: http://bit.ly/Sgavz6

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by | June 5, 2014 · 8:17 am

Hospitality Industry Legal Update: “Grass Valley Hotel Bust Results in 15 Arrests”

“…Through that investigation 15 people were arrested on variety of charges,grass valley including suspicion possession of controlled substances and firearms. Police believe the suspects were using the rooms to take drugs…Police confiscated methamphetamine, drug paraphernalia, firearms and ammunition. A hidden trap door under the carpet in one room led to a storage room…”

Grass Valley police arrested 15 people on various drug and gun charges at a hotel.

The arrests occurred on May 30 after police learned that people were staying at the Holiday Lodge on East Main Street who were not registered. Police suspected they were involved in narcotics.

For more: http://bit.ly/1kNa4mA

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