Another mid-year reminder:  California hotels and motels must train all employees on human trafficking awareness by January 1, 2020.

Per SB 970, hotel and motel employers must provide:

  • At least 20 minutes of “effective interactive training” about human trafficking awareness;
  • To each employee who is likely to interact or come into contact with victims of human trafficking; and
  • Who is employed as of July 1, 2019.
  • After that, new hires must be trained within six months of hire into a role that is likely to interact or come into contact with victims of human trafficking.
  • No additional training is requirement for employees trained on or before January 1, 2019.

Therefore, it is a good idea to train all of your existing employees this summer, and then have a human trafficking component to your new hire orientation going forward.

Luckily, the Blue Campaign has put together a very helpful and informative Hospitality Toolkit.   It explains how to recognize a victim of human trafficking for employees in different hotel departments:  Housekeeping, F&B, Front Desk, Security, etc.  It also provides directions and resources for what to do if you suspect someone may be a victim (without putting the victim in further danger), and includes department specific postings.

Unfortunately many people, male/female, adults/minors, undocumented migrants/US citizens, can be victims of human trafficking.  The training is designed to expose employees to the issue and provide guidance on how to best assist.