Conduct background checks on hotel employees – Brathwaite

Hotel owners and property managers have been advised to carry out thorough background checks on potential employees before hiring them.

Health, Safety, Security & Environmental Manager with Ocean Hotels Group, Philip Brathwaite, who offered the suggestion, said that background checks on prospective employees are a good way to keep guests and staff safe.

Delivering remarks on Wednesday at the Caribbean Hotel Tourism Association’s (CHTA) webinar entitled, Visitor and Employee Safety: A Roundtable on Crime Prevention Destination and Hotel Practices, Brathwaite said it is important that employees be carefully screened before they are allowed into the operation.

“Producing a clean certificate of character doesn’t necessarily mean that all is well with the person you are looking to bring on as a new team member. It’s always good to do further background checks. A person can have a pending case before the courts, and unless a charge or conviction is made against them, their record will be clean,” he said.

Additionally, Brathwaite said that management should provide training for team members to ensure that they have a better understanding of what to do in the event of a threat, incident, or any other situations which may pop up during their day-to-day duties. He said not giving employees the tools and information needed to help them to better execute their jobs, could lead to challenges later.

“It is very important that all irregularities such as incidents and accidents are reported and recorded no matter how serious they are at that point in time. As you are aware sometimes, we can get a claim appearing that forces us to start digging up. We can all agree that this is a very strenuous process, especially when after checking you have no record of it [incident],” he said.

The tourism manager also suggested that guests be educated about the accomodation’s products and services so that they have a better understanding of what is being offered.

According to him a daily briefing may also provide management with the opportunity to get feedback on any guests’ concerns.

“It is expected by our guests that while they are staying with us, there is a sense of security. We try to ensure that our product is safe, by making our guests feel at home, but let me also remind you, our guests also have a role to play in this expectation.

“We all know that some of our wonderful guests when they hear that word vacation, drop that ‘secured’ barrier which they have up while in their country. This sometimes exposes them to the elements. For example, walking around with large amounts of cash, disclosing information which they shouldn’t, leaving belongings unattended when they are out and about, and walking in lonesome areas,” Brathwaite said. Guests must be reminded of the importance of walking in groups and following best practices to keep themselves safe, he added.

The CHTA hosted the roundtable discussion to focus on the high priority area of health and safety in the  industry as it relates to employees and travellers.

Brathwaite also advised that hotels and accommodation property managers secure their premises with the appropriate camera and lighting systems.

“Here in Barbados the local authorities are always willing to come in and assist with risk assessments and giving advice about CCTV.  CCTV always helps, sometimes it’s a deterrent. I know people that have CCTV that does not work, but just seeing a camera makes people think ‘somebody is watching me’,” Brathwaite said.  (AH)