I just returned from the Cornell HR in Hospitality Conference in Las Vegas with my partner Carolyn Richmond. I participated in the Executive Summit and shared ideas with some of the most innovative minds in the hospitality industry. Here is my annual top ten list of take-aways:
- While no one knows what will happen under the Trump Administration, some common assumptions include: Less active Department of Labor and NLRB (especially as to non-union work forces ); EEOC likely to apply current law to egregious situations, but not expand it
- That said, states like California will pick up the slack, so California employers should not expect any decrease in claims or lawsuits
- One of labor’s biggest concerns about the Trump Administration is the shift in courts; there are 117 vacant federal court vacancies, which means a lot of conservative judges could be appointed and rule in a more business-friendly way
- A less powerful NLRB may mean more corporate campaigns, and with that may come more RICO lawsuits to challenge them
- How hotels treat their Sales Managers (whether exempt or non-exempt) is still all over the map, although the trend is certainly towards classifying lower level sales and catering managers as non-exempt
- Employees are focused on more than just compensation and benefits; renewed focus on culture, recognition and development
- Benchmarking is only part of the equation, because if you pay the median, you can’t differentiate from others and get the best candidates
- Acknowledging that many millennials move on after a few years, many recruiting efforts now focus on alumni re-recruiting, which changes the off-boarding process and the attitudes towards employees who leave
- Automation is a hot topic in hospitality, but companies need to balance guest experience with efficiency; Human Resources should embrace technology to free up time to focus on people, not mundane tasks
- Anticipate trend to de-regulate tip pooling so that more employees can participate without such archaic restrictions on back of the house and time spent touching tables