hotel safety & security
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Hotel safety & securityTRANSCRIPT
Chapter 9:Safety and Property Security
Hotel Operations Management, 1/e ©2004 Pearson Education Hayes/Ninemeier Pearson Prentice Hall
Upper Saddle River, NJ 07458
Hotels are not required to ensure guest safety.
However, must exercise reasonable care for guest and employee safety.
Hotel may be held wholly or partially liable for resulting loss or injury if it is found that a hotel has exhibited an absence of reasonable care for guest safety.
Personal Safety: Legal Liability & Guest Safety
Protection of an individual’s physical well-being and healthSafety
Protection of an individual or of business’ property or assetsSecurity
Hotels are not required to ensure guest safety.
Hotel Operations Management, 1/e ©2004 Pearson Education Hayes/Ninemeier Pearson Prentice Hall
Upper Saddle River, NJ 07458
Facility Engineering & MaintenanceLocal law enforcement officials can provide no-cost safety and security training for employees.
Training employees to 1) ensure guest safety, 2) work safely, and 3) assist hotel’s security efforts.Employee safety training is an ongoing process
Reinforces that:
Guest safety and hotel security is the responsibility of every manager, supervisor, & employee of the hotel.
Personal Safety: Staffing for SecurityOperation of Safety & Security Committee
Employee safety training
Local law enforcement
Hotel Operations Management, 1/e ©2004 Pearson Education Hayes/Ninemeier Pearson Prentice Hall
Upper Saddle River, NJ 07458
Reduce chance for guests to be victimized in their rooms by someone who had rented the same room on a prior night
Help reduce the incident of employee theft from rooms
Personal Safety: Safety ResourcesRecodable locks
Surveillance systems
Use of VCR
- Recording activity at front desk, in parking areas, and near cashiers
Use of CCTV (Closed-Circuit Television)-In a multiple-entry property where management desires to monitor
activity outside each entrance
Hotel Operations Management, 1/e ©2004 Pearson Education Hayes/Ninemeier Pearson Prentice Hall
Upper Saddle River, NJ 07458
Internal alarms
Alarm systems
Notify (contact) an external entity such as fire or police departments if alarm is activated
Contact alarms
Personal Safety: Safety Resources
Serve to deter criminal or mischief activityNotify an area within the hotel if alarm is activatedProtect storage areas, hotel facilities (pools, spa, and exercise areas), and hotel and perimeter
Both federal law and local building codes mandate hotel fire alarms
Hotel Operations Management, 1/e ©2004 Pearson Education Hayes/Ninemeier Pearson Prentice Hall
Upper Saddle River, NJ 07458
Fire / power outages / severely inclement weather / robbery / death or injury to a guest or employee / bomb threat / intense negative publicity by the media
Personal Safety: Safety ResourcesEmergency Plans: the identification of a threat to the safety and security of the hotel & hotel’s planned response to the threat
Response to events in most hotels’ emergency plans
An emergency plan must be a written document, including:
Type of crisisWho should be told when the crisis occursWhat should be done and who should do it in the crisis Who should be informed of the results or impact of the crisis when it is over
Where practical, hotels should practice implementation of their plan !
Hotel Operations Management, 1/e ©2004 Pearson Education Hayes/Ninemeier Pearson Prentice Hall
Upper Saddle River, NJ 07458
Figure 9.3 lists ten key practices for parking lot safety
Figure 9.2 lists ten key practices for spa safety
Figure 9.1 lists ten key practices for swimming pool safety
Swimming pools
Personal Safety: Special Safety Issues
Spas
Parking lots
Always remember how to improve guest safety and minimize the legal liability of the hotel!
Hotel Operations Management, 1/e ©2004 Pearson Education Hayes/Ninemeier Pearson Prentice Hall
Upper Saddle River, NJ 07458
All hotels should document their safety and security related efforts!
Personal Safety: Documenting Safety Efforts
Prepare & complete MOD checklists for each critical area of hotel- Appropriate frequency, content and number of checklist should be determined
Incident reports listing the “who, what, where, and how” should be filed and maintained
Document minutes from safety and security committee meetings, general staff meeting’s notes relevant to safety issues, records of employee training related to safety and security, and safety seminars attended by employees
Hotel Operations Management, 1/e ©2004 Pearson Education Hayes/Ninemeier Pearson Prentice Hall
Upper Saddle River, NJ 07458
Provide a safe workplace for employees by complying with OSHA safety and health standards
Personal Safety: Occupational Safety & Health Administration
OSHA regulations ensure businesses:
Provide workers with only tools and equipment that meet OSHA specifications for health and safety
Establish training programs for employees who operate dangerous equipment
Report to OSHA within 48 hrs of any worksite accident that results in fatality or requires hospitalization of five or more employees
Maintain the “OSHA Log 200” (an on-site record of work- related injuries or illness) and submit it to OSHA once per year
Hotel Operations Management, 1/e ©2004 Pearson Education Hayes/Ninemeier Pearson Prentice Hall
Upper Saddle River, NJ 07458
Display OSHA notices regarding employee rights and safety in prominent places within the hotel
OSHA regulations ensure businesses (continued…)
Provide all employees access to the Material Safety Data Sheets that provide information about the dangerous chemicals they may be handling during work
Personal Safety: The Occupational Safety & Health Administration
Offer no-cost hepatitis B vaccinations for employees who may have come into contact with blood or body fluids
Compliance with OSHA standards
Results in
Fewer accidents lower insurance costs healthier workforce
Hotel Operations Management, 1/e ©2004 Pearson Education Hayes/Ninemeier Pearson Prentice Hall
Upper Saddle River, NJ 07458
Hotels bond those employees in a position to embezzle funds
Property Security: Threats to Asset Security- Internal Threats
Methods of fraud related to cashiering
Charging guests for items not purchased, then keeping the overcharge
Changing totals on credit card charges after the guest has left or imprinting additional credit card charges and pocketing the cash difference
Misadding legitimate charges to create a higher-than-appropriate total with the intent of keeping the overcharge
Voiding legitimate sales as “mistakes” and keeping the cash amount of the legitimate sale
Facility Engineering & Maintenance 9
Charging higher-than-appropriate prices for hotel goods or services, recording the proper price, then keeping the overcharge
Hotel Operations Management, 1/e ©2004 Pearson Education Hayes/Ninemeier Pearson Prentice Hall
Upper Saddle River, NJ 07458
Property Security: Threats to Asset Security- Internal Threats (continued….)
TimeShould have strong controls in place regarding time cards.
Three noncash assets most subject to employee theft:
Company property
Carefully screen employees prior to hiringReduce theft opportunities by using effective security Treat all proven cases of similar theft in a similar manner
ServicesMonitor long-distance telephone bills generated by each administrative telephone extension number
Hotel Operations Management, 1/e ©2004 Pearson Education Hayes/Ninemeier Pearson Prentice Hall
Upper Saddle River, NJ 07458
Property Security: Threats to Asset Security- External Threats
Cash
Robbery is not the occasion to attempt the protection of cash assets.Robbery is the time to protect staff !During a robbery, complying with robber’s demands and observing the robber should be the employee’s sole concern.If no contact alarm is installed in the cashier’s cash drawer, an employee who is robbed should, at the earliest safe opportunity, contact local law enforcement officials as well as others indicated in the robbery section of the hotel’s emergency plan.
Hotel Operations Management, 1/e ©2004 Pearson Education Hayes/Ninemeier Pearson Prentice Hall
Upper Saddle River, NJ 07458
Other assets: security-conscious manager:
Property Security: Threats to Asset Security External Threats (continued….)
Hang all artwork in lobbies & guest rooms with lock-down style hangersAvoid placing valuable decorations & décor pieces in areas where they can be easily taken by guestsTrain room attendants to alert management if excessive amounts of in-room items go missing from stay-over roomsBolt televisions securely to guestroom furnitureTrain all employees to be alert regarding loss of hotel property & to report any suspicious activity
Hotel Operations Management, 1/e ©2004 Pearson Education Hayes/Ninemeier Pearson Prentice Hall
Upper Saddle River, NJ 07458
Guest-theft of housekeeping supplies
Theft from guest rooms by room attendants or other employees
- best policy is to report the incident to local law enforcement
Largest area of security concern is fraudulent selling of rooms
Use housekeeping discrepancy report to detect room revenue fraud
Front Office
Property Security: Threats to Asset Security Department-Specific Threats to Asset Security
Housekeeping
Hotel Operations Management, 1/e ©2004 Pearson Education Hayes/Ninemeier Pearson Prentice Hall
Upper Saddle River, NJ 07458
Employee theft of hand tools and supplies Implementing a sign-in/sign-out program for tools
Misstating mileage traveled, clients entertained, or sales trips taken
Hotel suppliers such as silverware and glassware taken by guestsEmployees accepting kickbacks from vendors or by purchasing, then stealing, food and beverage items intended for the hotel
Food & Beverage
Property Security: Threats to Asset Security Department-Specific Threats to Asset Security
Sales & Marketing
Maintenance & Engineering