Dear WH&LA Lodging Member:
First, we need to clarify that the information shared on
AH&LA’s
Safe Stay
protocols
last Thursday has NOT been incorporated into their guide yet, and is projected to be finalized and included in an updated version within the next week or so, after final consensus and editing. It was reported on a call by AH&LA on Thursday and we had the impression it was completed, but it is still in progress. The Guide is planned to be updated regularly, however, so keeping the link handy for upcoming changes would be good. My apologies for any confusion.
We have also heard from some members of the confusion of the numerous guidances for lodging, restaurants, pools, etc. and what should be followed. We share your concerns on this as well, and have focused on making sure that you get all the state resources directly related to your operations, some of which are widely distributed, and some of which we have had to track down for you even though they are public documents.
Here are a few key considerations moving forward:
- All of the state guides released over the past weeks are guidances, not mandatory requirements. Each one is based on the vision of one or more state agencies, with their particular perspective of what is the best approach to providing safe environments for guests and employees. The state guides do not include authorized enforcement or penalties. They are provided to assist you in finding the best way to plan for getting back to business in a responsible manner, with the understanding that properties are not all the same, and that you will be the one responsible for determining the best package of steps to take to provide protection at your property to avoid any prolonging of the pandemic.
- If you have local public health orders relating to the pandemic in effect in your area, these need to be interpreted and followed while they remain in effect. They may not have criminal penalties attached to this, but other local pressures for compliance may be found.
RESULTS OF WH&LA’S MAY 27 ONE-MINUTE SURVEY
- The majority of the close to 100 participants were from independent properties (51%) with 39% from franchise properties
- The majority of participants (46%) have properties in the 1-50 room/unit category, with 28% from properties over 100 rooms/units and 26% with 51-100 rooms/units
- There was a good geographic mix of participants
- The majority (52%) consider themselves Hotels, followed by Resorts (27%), with a mix of other property types
- A strong majority (82%) of the properties are open year-round, with 13% described as seasonal
- 73% of properties are open in full as of last week, with 12% more open with partial lodging open. Another 6% will be open within 2 weeks. 0% said they may never re-open.
- The majority of participants(36%) said they are now fully staffed with no lay-offs, while 20% said they remain with 75-89% of their staff laid-off/furloughed 16% have 25-49% still laid-off/furloughed, and 10% each said they have 1-24% or 50-74% laid-off/furloughed at this time
- When asked when is the first that you think your property will exceed 50% occupancy: 27% Already have; 24% June; 16% No Idea; 12% August; 10% July; and 5% each said September or Not in 2020.
Thank you to those who participated, and hopefully we will see higher participation numbers again in future surveys, as we experienced in recent surveys, as from what we have heard, viewing the results has been of interest to a large number of members.
It has been an honor and privilege to serve our members assisting you as best possible as you have gone through some of the most challenging experiences of your professional and personal lives. You are fortunate to have Bill Elliott starting as your new President, CEO to help bring the industry back to the best measure of success possible leading out of the pandemic.
Stay well,
Trisha
