Introduction
The purpose of nearly every business is to achieve organizational goals, objectives and most importantly make money for its shareholders. This is inconsiderate of whether the business is a sole proprietorship, a franchise, or a limited company. Realizing organizational goals and satisfying the shareholders of a business comes with quite a several challenges. These include acceptance of the business by the markets, surviving competition, and the effective management of finances.
However, business corporate laws are normally given limited attention as far as the success of a business is concerned. A competitive businesses manager has to take into account the fact that legal issues about his or her business play an imperative role in shaping the image of the business. Similarly, legal issues may taint the image of an enterprise thus lowering its productivity and profit margins if not observed with a lot of precision.
In the hospitality industry, for instance, legal issues concerning the welfare of both guests and employees may derail organizational growth if not observed keenly (Barth, and David, 34). For business and corporate law, this paper will focus on employee and guest safety and security in the hospitality industry as well as the legal consequences that may arise from their negligence. It is important to note that hospitality is an image industry and therefore the industry must endeavor to evade any slight thing that would contribute to tainting its image (Boella, and Alan, 21).
Employee and guest security in the hospitality industry
Guest security, as a way of providing explicit services in a hotel setting, is mandatory. However, the question of whether employee security within such a setting should be given as much weight is still subject to a lot of discussions. This is because the focus is mostly on guests who contribute largely to taking the organization to the next level as far as financial success is concerned. However, employee security is also vital in avoiding accidents caused by negligence that would otherwise prompt court battles. Employees too are entitled to security once on duty and this has to be upheld.
Guest security and legal actions of their breach
There are quite a several areas within a hospitality outlet that must be observed keenly to ensure guest safety and security. The moment a guest has checked into a room or ordered food or drink in a hospitality outlet, he or she is entitled to self and luggage security by law and has the right to take legal actions if this is not met. As already mentioned above, legal actions against restaurants, resorts, or hotels are major hindrances to new reservations and first-time visits. This then translates to low guest turnout and consequently low income. To avoid this, the hotel or restaurant management has to do whatever it takes to evade such circumstances (Boella, and Alan, 123).
Guest safety and security take several dimensions. These include luggage safety, self-safety, food and beverage security, privacy, and confidentiality. Hotel management has to put in place all possible measures to ensure that all these levels of guest security are observed lest they risk battling with guests in courts. It is important to note that hotel guests of today are highly educated and thus they are quite aware of their rights and courses of action to be taken if these rights are infringed. As a result, strict measures must be taken to beat guests in their own game.
Luggage and property security
When guests check-in at hotels, they carry with them personal belongings that must be cared for by the hotel management. During check-in, the concierge staff normally assists the guests with their luggage. The concierges are responsible for carrying the luggage to guests’ respective rooms. Additionally, the staff is responsible for parking guest cars and leading visitors to the reception areas. During this time, the personal belongings are entitled to security since this is part of the contract signed when a guest checks in at a hotel. Once in the rooms, these belongings must be protected as well.
If a guest realizes any missing or damaged property, this is an implication of breach of contract and is entitled to legal actions. He or she has the legal right to take this matter to court. To avoid such cases that would taint the outlet’s image and consequently lower its income, effective policies and measures have to be taken to counter such menace before they transpire. For instance, the hotel must employ very trustworthy and honest concierge officers who will respect guest property. Additionally, the installation of safety deposit boxes and biometric keys in rooms play an imperative role in enhancing the security and safety of guest property (Boella, and Alan, 210).
Self-safety and security
The personal security of a guest is an important element that he or she has to be assured of before deciding to spend his or her time in a hotel or restaurant. This is an implication that guests will try as much as they can to avoid places whose security has been compromised before. Therefore, it is of great importance for a hospitality outlet to invest heavily in security.
There are petty things in a hotel or restaurant that are normally neglected but may cause serious harm to guests. For instance, when cleaning the floors, it is important to place labels written ‘wet floor’ or ‘slippery floor’ to warn users of the danger. If this is not done and a guest slips and topples over thereby sustaining injuries, he or she has the right to take this matter to court demanding compensation.
However, the labels or warning signs serve as security to the hotel. On some occasions, the labels should include warning signs in terms of drawings because guests can claim that the warnings were not written in a language they understand. Other areas that need warning signs include short portions of the ceiling where someone can hit his or her head, electricity houses or rooms, and restricted rooms (Boella, and Alan, 94).
Other security protocols include restricting dangerous places like deep pools, gymnasiums, and machinery rooms from children. A hotel facility must also ensure that there are no unauthorized intrusions that would jeopardize guest security. All these are done in a bid to avoid unsatisfied guests who would take their complaints to courts.
Food and beverage security
Food and beverage are part of package services offered by a hospitality facility. Guests are entitled to hygienic and safe meals. It is the sole purpose of the food and beverage department of a hotel to ensure that the food and beverage provided to the guests are fit for human consumption. If guests are food-poisoned during their stay at a hospitality facility, they have all the legal rights to take the matter to court. Hotels stand limited chances of winning such cases, especially where there is substantive evidence. As a result, hotel management might spend so much money on compensation if such cases are taken to court. Similarly, the facility is bound to lose business when word spreads that its food is not hygienically prepared.
A hotel must observe certain measures that ensure that all the food and beverage served to guests are hygienic and safe for consumption. This includes employing exceptionally qualified cooks to foresee the food preparation process. Additionally, the hotel management must ensure that food storage facilities are kept clean and free from rodents and pests that would otherwise contaminate the food contained therein. It is also important to inspect the hygiene of suppliers of food products before contracting them. This will ensure that all the food products and raw materials brought to the facility are hygienic and safe for human consumption (Barth, and David, 100).
Privacy
Guests are entitled to utter privacy once in a hospitality facility. Just like in their homes, guests would want to have the personnel intruding in their privacy. It is important to note that guests would not want to be associated with facilities where their privacy is not assured. As a result, this would mean a loss of business to the hotel. Similarly, numerous court cases over easily avoidable issues taint an organization’s image. For this reason, the management of the facility must deploy measures to evade such circumstances.
Hotel management may avoid the intrusion of guest privacy by installing computerized systems that tell room maids when guests need no disturbance. Quite a several hospitality outlets have adopted this mechanism. Apart from that, room maids may simply have to knock at guestroom doors before entering for routine checkups (Boella, and Alan, 109).
Confidentiality
Confidentiality of guest information and itinerary is of profound importance. Since the hotel front desk and the reception areas normally have private guest information including addresses, nationality, billing information, and perhaps itinerary, this information must be kept in the confidentiality of the hotel front desk alone. Most hotels host high-profile guests whose general security is vital. They include government officials and renowned business people who are vulnerable to attacks and kidnappings.
If a guest’s life is put at risk because of leaked information from a hotel database, the hotel may have a case to answer in the courts. Criminals may use private information leaked from hotel databases to plan attacks on high-profile guests. As a result, therefore, it is the sole duty of the hotel management to ensure that this information is kept discreetly. This may be done by having impervious hotel computer management systems. Additionally, this can be achieved by limiting access to such information to only a few people thereby enabling scrutiny if such information is leaked. Sometimes hotel top management ensures the confidentiality of guest information by monitoring unauthorized access to such information (Barth, and David, 132).
However, the confidential storage of guest information can be breached in certain circumstances. The hotel management must provide this information to the police whenever they need it. Unfortunately, some guests who check-in at hotels may be criminal suspects or wanted criminals. Such guests cause insecurity to both the hotel and the public at large. As a result, the hotel management is obliged to provide any information that may lead to their arrest and subsequent conviction.
Employee security and legal actions associated with their breach
Employees of a hospitality facility too are entitled to security lest the hotel management risks facing fierce court battles with them. In addition to that, ensuring employees’ safety and security increases productivity because it serves as a motivation factor to the employees. The safety and security of employees may be categorized as self-safety, the safety of machinery used, and insurance.
Self-safety and security of employees
Just like guests, employees are entitled to personal safety while on duty. This may be achieved by labeling dangerous regions to serve as a warning. Restricted areas like electricity rooms and machinery places should be kept out of bounds to unauthorized employees. This should be clearly stated in the contracts to serve as security if an employee sustains injuries in places he or she is not supposed to be. If this is not done, employees can successfully sue their employers.
Employee self-security also includes hygienic environments. Typically, unhygienic working areas are prone to disease-causing germs. When they come in contact with these germs, employees are bound to contract infectious diseases. In this case, an employee can confidently present his or her complaints in a court of law and receive compensation from hotel management.
Safety of machinery used by employees
Employees are entitled to work with safe machines while on duty. It is the sole responsibility of hotel management to ensure that all machines and equipment are in their rightful working conditions. This is done to safeguard employees from sustaining injuries from unworthy machinery. When an employee is injured while working with faulty equipment resulting from the negligence of the management, the hotel management usually has a case to answer. This is because employees are entitled to utter security provided by their employers (Boella, and Alan, 212).
However, employees are not supposed to knowingly execute their mandate using faulty gadgets. If they sustain injuries while doing this, the hotel management is not always liable for the damages caused.
Insurance
Employees are supposed to be insured by their employers. This is because there are some unavoidable accidents that an employee may face while in the line of duty. In a hospitality setup, for instance, the personnel of the engineering department is vulnerable to accidents due to the complexity of their work. They are always involved in risky installations and repairs including contact with electricity and water; which are some of the deadliest dangers in such a setup. When such employees are not insured, they are bound to sue their employer if involved in an accident at work. The management of hospitality facilities should, therefore, endeavor to ensure the health of its employees to avoid court cases that lower productivity (Barth, and David, 364).
Conclusion
In conclusion, therefore, frequent court cases involving a hospitality facility contribute to tainting its image and consequently defaming it. This then results in low income. As a result of this, all hospitality outlets must employ various measures and policies of ensuring that their guests and employees are always safe and secure within their premises.
Works Cited
Barth, Stephen C, and David, Hayes K. Hospitality Law: Managing Legal Issues in the Hospitality Industry. Hoboken, N. J: John Wiley & Sons, 2009. Print.
Boella, M J, and Alan Pannett. Principles of Hospitality Law. London: Continuum, 2009. Print.