AAHOA Members, one of the biggest initiatives for our industry in the year ahead is to accurately tabulate and report industry-wide diversity data of those we employ. In that stead, we are asking you to complete the AHLA Foundation Diversity Business Survey. This data will help us drive our own narrative and is critical to measuring and showcasing how well we're doing in many areas, while also showing where we can do better. This survey is vital because the media has been using old data from a small sample set gathered with questionable methodologies that doesn't paint our industry in the best light. This confidential, anonymous survey will take 10-15 minutes and will provide valuable feedback. Help us accurately portray the strides our industry has made. Take the survey today!

Last week, AAHOA Chair Vinay Patel traveled to Washington, D.C., to meet with White House officials and members of Congress on behalf of the hospitality industry. Patel, who was joined by Dean Heyl, AAHOA Vice President of Government Affairs, and Jordan Heiliczer, AAHOA Senior Director of Government & Political Affairs, met with representatives and senators on both sides of the aisle to talk about AAHOA, the hotel industry’s recovery, franchising, small business relief, and more. They spoke about how initiatives like the CARES Act, including PPP and EIDL, kept small businesses afloat throughout the pandemic but also why more relief is critical for small businesses. In addition, they let each representative and official know that AAHOA would like to be involved in initiatives that Congress is working on to benefit small businesses, the economy, labor, access to capital, and travel and tourism.

The U.S. Department of Labor’s Occupational Safety and Health Administration recently announced a COVID-19 Vaccination and Testing Emergency Temporary Standard to mitigate the transmission of COVID-19 in the workplace. The ETS requires employers with 100 or more employees (i.e., “covered employers”) to ensure each of their workers is fully vaccinated or takes a test for COVID-19 on at least a weekly basis. The new ETS rules preempt any inconsistent state or local laws, including laws that ban or limit an employer’s authority to require vaccination, masks, or testing. The ETS goes into effect on Jan. 4, 2022, allowing a two-month vaccination window. The testing requirement for unvaccinated workers will begin after this date. Read the full announcement.

Did you miss our timely and thorough discussion on the latest implications of immigration and labor shortage issues, including the limitations and guidelines of H-2B and J-1 visas for future labor? If so, you can still watch on demand as Jorge L. Lopez, a shareholder of Littler Mendelson P.C., a leading firm with a singular focus on labor and employment law, shares what the business community has done so far this year on promoting immigration reform in the hospitality industry, and what we can expect in the future.

 

AAHOA has partnered with AutoClerk to offer AAHOA*PMS, a property management system designed specifically for AAHOA Members. There are pricing options to fit your needs, including subscriptions with no upfront fees, and you can run your hotel from any mobile device with a browser. AutoClerk also offers 24/7 phone support from staff and trainers who each have at least five years of hands-on hotel work experience. Visit www.aahoapms.com for more details and to sign up now!

MassMutual is a leading mutual life insurance company that is run for the benefit of its members and participating policyowners. MassMutual offers a wide range of financial products and services, including life insurance, disability income insurance, long term care insurance, annuities, retirement plans and other employee benefits. For more information, visit www.massmutual.com, then contact Ana Lucia Divins to get started.

No Vacancy with Glenn Haussman is the travel industry’s most exciting podcast. It's a fun, fast-paced, genre-bending program that peels back the veneer of the travel business. Click here to subscribe to the No Vacancy Podcast. Follow Glenn on Twitter @TravelingGlenn or visit www.rouse.media.

With electric cars becoming more commonplace on American roads by the day, owners of these vehicles are planning their routes based on available charging stations. And employees can be lured by these amenities at their workplaces, as well. To attract these guests and potential new workers, some hoteliers are installing vehicle-charging stations on their properties.

Now that everyone can simply search the web for discount codes, hoteliers are seeking new ways to attract new and repeat guests to their properties. One solution might just lie in reviving an older practice of offering long-term discounts for repeated bookings.

According to recent research on global employment, a worrying number of workers could be contemplating a new career path, which could be especially challenging, considering gaps shortfalls in the workforce.