SAFETY & SECURITY

Issue
Crisis & Risk Management & Prevention

Hotels often style themselves as a “home away from home”. As part of the service industry, hospitality establishments care for employees and guests 365 days a year, 7 days a week, 24 hours a day. This brings with it a vast responsibility to provide shelter, protection and food service.

Globalisation, political conflicts and world events have brought a new unique set of challenges to the industry. These can be divided into three distinct categories:

• terrorism
• viral attacks (SARS, Avian Flu)
• natural and man-made disasters (Tsunami, earthquakes, industrial disasters)

It is the responsibility of hoteliers to ensure the safety and security of the guests on their premises. As a result, operators around the globe have become increasingly aware of the importance of crisis and risk management as one of the ways of ensuring safety & security of those under their responsibility.

Safety & Security
These two terms are often used synonymously however it is important to differentiate them.
Safety refers to protecting employees and guests present on the hotel premises from potential injury or death, i.e. protecting them from accidents, hazardous materials and fire.
Security refers to protecting guests’ possessions and the property itself, ie against theft, violent crime, terrorism.

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