Negligence in the Hospitality Industry
This video has helped me understand better the concept of negligence, and how it relates to the hospitality industry. Most laws that govern corporate operations apply to the hospitality industry. Negligence may either be classified as a civil or criminal liability, and it involves the failure to act as required by the law. Managers in the hospitality industry can be sued for civil or criminal negligence, depending on the capacity in which they acted. Besides, a customer may decide to sue a hotel for civil negligence if an employee of the hotel failed to act as required, and the civil litigation may culminate with the hotel compensating the customer for the loss or injury.
A customer may claim a hotel acted negligently in cases of slips-and-falls, physical injuries, or even death within the premises of a hotel. A perfect example is when a child drowns in the absence of a swimming instructor who fails to attend to her because he was attending to personal duties. In this case, the instructor can be sued for criminal negligence, causing the death of a customer. In addition to the instructor facing criminal charges, the hotel may be prosecuted for failing to ensure that employees play their role as required.
I believe negligence in the hospitality industry should always be avoided. As a manager, I intend always to ensure that all employees play their part as required by their job description and that customers are always attended to effectively. Besides, I would ensure that any potential element of negligence is dealt with before escalating into a reality. For instance, I would always ensure that floors are up to the required standards to avoid slips-and-falls from poor quality floors.