Category Archives: Liability

by | March 29, 2010 · 7:17 am

Hospitality Industry Safety: OSHA Outreach Training Program May Be Mandated Nationally As It Stresses “Safety And Health Hazard Recognition And Prevention”

The OSHA Outreach Training Program is our primary way to train workers in the basics of occupational safety and health. Through the program, individuals who complete a one-week OSHA trainer course are authorized to teach 10-hour and 30-hour courses in construction or general industry safety and health hazard recognition and prevention. Authorized trainers can receive OSHA course completion cards for their students. Over the past three years, over 1.6 million students have received training through this program.

10-HOUR GENERAL INDUSTRY REQUIRED COURSE TOPICS
*OSHA subpart references are provided for informational purposes;

training should emphasize hazard awareness
Mandatory – 6 hours  
One Hour – Introduction to OSHA, including:

  • OSH Act, General Duty Clause, Employer and Employee Rights and Responsibilities, Whistleblower Rights, Recordkeeping basics
  • Inspections, Citations, and Penalties
  • Value of Safety and Health
  • OSHA Website and available resources
  • OSHA 800 number
One Hour 
Walking and Working Surfaces, Subpart D – including fall protection
One Hour 
Exit Routes, Emergency Action Plans, Fire Prevention Plans, and Fire Protection, Subpart E & L
One Hour 
Electrical, Subpart S
One Hour 
Personal Protective Equipment, Subpart I
One Hour 
Hazard Communication, Subpart Z
 

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by | March 27, 2010 · 8:39 am

Hotel Safety Issues: Carbon Monoxide Poisoning That Killed Hotel Guest In 2008 Caused By Blocked Basement Exhaust Vent During Remodeling

The lawsuit, filed in July 2008 in Philadelphia, alleged that a plastic canopy was placed over a basement exhaust vent and trapped the carbon monoxide emitted from hot water heaters. The poisonous air was pulled into the rooms by air handling units. In addition to Philip Prechtel’s death, several people, including Katherine Prechtel, were hospitalized.

(From a MCall.com article)   The family of a South Carolina man who died after inhaling carbon monoxide at an Upper Macungie Township hotel in January 2008 has settled a federal lawsuit against the hotel and several contractors.

Philip D. Prechtel, 63, died after a makeshift canopy placed on the side of the Best Western Allentown Inn & Suites during a remodeling project captured carbon monoxide gas that was drawn into several rooms, including the one Prechtel slept in with his wife, Katherine.

The terms of the settlement, reached last week, were not disclosed, according to court documents.

On behalf of the Prechtels, attorney James Huber of Allentown was seeking at least $350,000 for the loss of Philip Prechtel’s household services, Social Security benefits and health insurance. Huber was also seeking damages for the physical and emotional pain and loss suffered by Katherine Prechtel.

http://www.mcall.com/news/local/all-a5_5settle.7218447mar26,0,5677482.story

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by | March 26, 2010 · 6:06 am

Workers’ Comp Fraud Prevention: State Of Colorado Amends Bill That Would Restrict Video Surveillance That Is Deemed “Intrusive Or Harassing”

The original intent of the bill was to restrict workers’ comp insurers’ use of video surveillance to only cases where the insurer has a reasonable basis to suspect fraud. It also would have imposed a significant fine on insurers that violated the rule. However, the legislation was amended after lawmakers raised concerns that it would seriously hinder insurers’ efforts to prevent fraud.

The amended version prohibits evidence from being introduced at workers’ comp administrative hearings if it is deemed that the surveillance was intrusive, intimidating or harassing. In addition, the evidence would not be permitted if the administrative law judge finds that the investigator, if questioned, misrepresented himself to the claimant and did not disclose on whose behalf he was conducting the surveillance. The legislation would also require insurers to present the surveillance videos to the claimant’s treating physician for review.

http://www.riskandinsurance.com/story.jsp?storyId=375682191

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by | March 25, 2010 · 5:21 am

Hospitality Industry Workplace Safety: Assistant Secretary Of Labor Stresses Need To Increase OSHA Penalties Against Employers Who Do Not Comply With OSHA Standards

Dr. David Michaels, Assistant Secretary of Labor for the Occupational Safety and Health Administration, who emphasized that current OSHA penalties must be increased in order to motivate employers to increase their compliance with the OSHA standards. Michaels stated that environmental laws currently carry much heavier penalties than penalties under the OSH Act, especially where loss of human life is involved.

(From and Hr.cch.com article)    The Workforce Protections Subcommittee of the House Education and Labor Committee held a hearing Tuesday on the “Protecting America’s Workers Act (PAWA) (H.R. 2067).” The bill, introduced by Rep. Lynn Woolsey (D-CA), chair of the subcommittee, addresses three major weaknesses in the Occupational Safety and Health (OSH) Act:

  • It would expand OSHA coverage to more than 8.5 million state and local public employees who currently have limited or no protection from safety and health hazards at work.
  • It also would amend OSHA’s whistleblower provisions to expedite the process because the current delays in decision-making deprives workers of due process.
  • Finally, the bill would update civil and criminal penalties.

http://hr.cch.com/news/safety/032410a.asp

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by | March 24, 2010 · 6:17 am

Restaurant Industry Food Safety: Foodservice Employees’ Illnesses Are A Source Of Contamination At Restaurants And Can Be Traced To A Lack Of Insurance And Paid Sick Days

“…Affordable health insurance and paid sick days for all foodservice employees…would achieve significant and measurable improvements in food safety, especially as it relates to the thousands upon millions of non-outbreak, or sporadic, illnesses caused by contaminated restaurant food each year….”

(From a ChainLeader.com article)   First, many servers and food workers are responsible for covering their own shifts, which, in these times of lean staffing, can be next to impossible. Second, if they stay home, they make no money. Third, if they appear to “flake out” by not coming to work, they may lose premium shifts. They might even lose their jobs.

And so the food-safety precaution that the restaurant industry relies on to protect customers from much of foodborne illness is the expectation that these employees will decide on their own to stay home.

http://www.chainleader.com/article/452255-Food_Safety_Solutions_Execution_and_Advocacy.php

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by | March 23, 2010 · 5:35 am

Hotel Health And Safety Issues: Education On The “Risks For Infestation” Of Bed Bugs May Help Keep Treatment And Legal Costs Down

“Based on the traveling behavior of bed bugs, any industry or travel destination with a high visitor turn over is particularly at-risk for infestation,” said White. “It will be especially important for the hospitality industry to be educated on this matter so they can respond competently to a situation where treatment and legal costs can spike quickly.”

(From a PCTOnline.com article)   Pennsylvania’s hospitality sector has recognized the risks bed bugs pose to their industry and will gather March 25 to attend a bed bug seminar hosted by the Greater Philadelphia Hotel Association (GPHA) to learn how to combat this emerging issue.

GPHA is an association that represents the interests of the hospitality industry throughout Pennsylvania and southern New Jersey. Their activities include civic representation, community partnerships and industry education.

The association’s statewide seminar titled, “Bed Bugs and the Hospitality Industry: Little Bugs, Big Problem” will be held at the downtown Marriott Hotel in Philadelphia, PA, March 25 at 8:30 a.m. The event will address the latest information on bed bugs and the most recent treatment breakthroughs to minimize cost. The seminar will also tackle the problems this pest represents that are unique to the hospitality industry.

Suzanne Geyer, an associate director with GPHA acknowledged that the bed bug seminar would present important information to industry management regarding the correct procedures needed to effectively approach dealing with bed bugs.

“This seminar will be especially important for practitioners because the information provided here is specific to hospitality and will provide a deeper understanding of bed bugs and some of the strategies needed to minimize the operational impact these pests can inflict,” said Geyer.

http://www.pctonline.com/Philadelphia-bed-bug-seminar.aspx

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by | March 20, 2010 · 7:01 am

Hospitality Industry Risk: Smaller Hotels Reporting An “Epidemic” In Theft Of Flat Screen TV’s From Rooms Prompting Many Operators To Install Camera Systems

The theft prompted him to take action, investing in a $1,500 camera system to monitor the walkways outside rooms and, hopefully, he said, act as a deterrent to other would-be thieves.

(From a ReporterNews.com article)   Theft is “frequent enough we have to make a large order every month for linens and supplies we shouldn’t have to,” said Jo Ann Schibi, manager of the MCM Elegante Hotel. “It’s the hotel business. It’s been like this forever.”

Perhaps, but missing televisions have upped the ante for some victimized hotels in Abilene.

Dasi Reddy, owner of the Knights Inn Civic Plaza Hotel downtown, said he’s had six or seven televisions taken from rooms in the past 14 months.

At Motel 6 just west of town and near Interstate 20, eight flat-screen televisions were reported stolen March 7 from an unoccupied room, just two days after a 32-inch television had been reported stolen from a hotel room.

Local staff at the Motel 6 declined to comment, and police were unavailable Friday to discuss the case.

But TV thefts were described as “a new epidemic for us” by Laura Rojo-Eddy, director of corporate communications for Accor North America, the parent company of Motel 6.

The chain began renovations in the second-half of 2008 that included the addition of flat-screen televisions to rooms. With the flat-screen televisions, however, more thefts have followed, said Rojo-Eddy.

“I guess they’re smaller and easier to carry,” said Rojo-Eddy. “The industry kind of has had a problem to take care of them.”

For hotel operators, the losses hurt the bottom line during an economic recession that has included a sharp decrease in travel spending.

With an insurance deductible that doesn’t cover a $200 loss, Reddy said he mainly has paid for the replacement televisions himself.

Several items — including a television, microwave and ice machine — turned up missing March 12 after the departure of guests staying through a church outreach program, Reddy said.

“We want to help them,” said Reddy, who charges churches a reduced rate when they are helping house homeless or other displaced people. The church sponsoring the stay has been able to return some of the missing items to the hotel, he noted.

http://www.reporternews.com/news/2010/mar/19/stolen-tvs-trouble-hotels/

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by | March 19, 2010 · 1:35 pm

Sexual Harassment In The Hospitality Industry: Restaurant Operators Should Have Backgrounds Checked Closely To Prevent Harassment Of Gays

The hospitality industry is calling for people who operate restaurants to be subjected to more stringent vetting following the case of a restaurateur fined for sexually harassing a gay worker.

(From a TVNZ.co.nz article)   Hospitality workers made up 10% of workplace sexual harassment complaints to the Human Rights Commission in the last two years and in the latest incident the Employment Relations Authority found an Auckland restaurateur guilty of sexually harassing an employee.

Graeme George Edwards has been fined $15,000 in damages and lost pay after harassing, then sacking, a gay employee at his Mexican restaurant.

Hospitality insiders say it’s just the tip of the iceberg and the behaviour is widespread.http://tvnz.co.nz/national-news/harassment-rife-in-hospitality-sector-3423490

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by | March 18, 2010 · 2:14 pm

Hotel Industry Safety And Surveillance: New Technology From 3VR Security Increases Safety For Hotel Guests

“The system will also allow us to do things we never thought about.” Just some of the uses that are being tested at Hilton Americas-Houston include counting arriving vehicles to determine peak times for staffing and monitoring any vehicle accidents in the garage area to provide guests with needed information for their insurance purposes. Ltd.

(From SecurityInfoWatch.com article)  In order to provide guests with the ultimate in security and customer service, Hilton Americas-Houston, the city’s largest hotel, has enhanced their surveillance systems with cutting edge technology from 3VR Security, Inc. The 3VR platform makes it possible for the property to find relevant surveillance footage in seconds, rather than hours, allowing the hotel to utilize the technology for multiple purposes.

As the number-one convention hotel in the city, Hilton Americas-Houston is the first hotel to utilize 3VR’s facial recognition, license plate recognition and advanced motion analytics to provide the ultimate in guest security. In the hotel security business since 1990, John Alan Moore, director of security and life safety for Hilton Americas-Houston says “I’ve never seen anything that is able to do the things this technology does; it’s light-years ahead of the system we previously used.” In addition to providing the ultimate in security for their guests, the hotel is also able to utilize the 3VR system to ensure the best possible customer service. Hilton Americas-Houston is now able to help guests locate lost possessions with the system’s color, directional and object search capabilities. A guest’s misplaced suitcase can be found almost instantly by following the piece using a search based on color and object, from the time it enters the hotel all along its path throughout the building. With over 7,000 lost guest items per year in lost and found, the system will significantly increase the hotel’s ability to satisfy the customer on even higher levels. Another use for the system that Hilton Americas-Houston has found useful is recognizing repeat customers. According to Moore, “We will be able to tie in with front office systems to flag our Gold Card members in order to be able to blow them away with service. This is another tool to be used to keep Hilton as the leader in the industry.” With 90% accuracy, the system registers few false positives, even picking up good facial info on cameras not specifically designated as facial-recognition. On a humorous note, the system is so sensitive that it has recognized faces that were not actually guests; they were photos of the t-shirts of guests. Moore said “President Obama made an appearance on our skywalk, on a guest’s clothing. That’s how bad the system wants to recognize a face.” This high-sensitivity makes the system a most useful tool for the property, providing the ultimate in guest safety and security.

Moore stated, “The system will also allow us to do things we never thought about.” Just some of the uses that are being tested at Hilton Americas-Houston include counting arriving vehicles to determine peak times for staffing and monitoring any vehicle accidents in the garage area to provide guests with needed information for their insurance purposes. Ltd.

http://www.securityinfowatch.com/node/1315210

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by | March 17, 2010 · 10:04 am

Restaurant Risk Management: Employment Practices Insurance For Workplace “Sexual Harassment” Suits Can Be Rescinded For “Failure To Disclose”

 Applying California law, the United States District Court for the Northern District of California, has held that an insurer was entitled to rescind an employment practices liability policy and to recover the payments made under that policy based on the insured’s failure to disclose on the application for coverage that an employee had resigned after alleging sexual harassment. Carolina Casualty Co. v. RDD, Inc., 2010 WL 597097 (N.D. Cal. Feb. 17, 2010).    

(From a Lexology.com article) The insured, a restaurant owner, received a letter from one of its waitresses on April 28, 2008, advising that she was quitting immediately. The waitress asserted in the letter that she had been sexually harassed by the owner and the managers on weekly basis for the past year, that her complaints about the harassment were met with retaliation in the form of unwanted shift changes and that her mental and physical health was suffering as a result of the events.

The next day, the restaurant contacted its insurance broker to obtain employment practices liability coverage. On behalf of the restaurant, the broker completed and submitted to the insurer an application. Questions 21 and 22 on the application asked: (a) whether, during the past five years, any current or former employee had made any claim or otherwise alleged discrimination or harassment or other Wrongful Acts against any insured; and (b) whether any insured was aware of any fact, circumstance or situation involving any insured that might reasonably be expected to result in a claim. Both questions were answered “no.” The application included notice that if certain key officers of the entity proposed for coverage knew, as of the policy inception date, that the statements in the application were untrue, inaccurate or incomplete, the policy would be void as to those individuals and the entity itself.

On April 30, 2008, the broker sent an e-mail to the insurer stating that a former employee of the restaurant had hired counsel but that no other details were known. The same day, the insurer quoted a price for coverage. The broker then advised the insurer that the number employees had been incorrectly stated on the application submitted, and the insurer issued a revised quote based on the correct number. The insured’s president signed the application the next day, and the policy was issued on July 15, 2008 for the claims-made period of May 5, 2008 to May 5, 2009.

The week before the policy was issued, the former employee filed suit against the restaurant. The insured tendered the action to the insurer under the policy. The insurer defended the action and, ultimately, paid $50,000 to settle it on April 1, 2009. Meanwhile, the insurer first learned of the April 28, 2008 resignation letter on February 2, 2009, and filed suit to rescind the policy three weeks later.

http://www.lexology.com/library/detail.aspx?g=ba82600c-4404-48d8-a65c-853167a52c57

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