“Has this prevented things from escalating? Absolutely,” says Marina Willis, head of RFT’s PinPoint Business Unit, which oversees the HELP ALERT product line.
BROOKFIELD, Wis. (PRWEB) November 17, 2017
RF Technologies (RFT) HELP ALERT® Panic Alert System for Hospitality was featured this week in a news story (FOX32-TV, Chicago) highlighting a recently-passed Chicago city ordinance intended to protect hospitality workers from sexual assault and other forms of intimidation and violence in the workplace.
Originally sponsored by Alderman Michele Harris, 8th Ward, and backed by labor unions including Unite Here Local 1, the new anti-harassment ordinance stipulates that employees working alone in Chicago hotels must be issued panic buttons (such as RFT’s HELP ALERT wireless pendant) that would enable them to immediately alert security if they encounter uncomfortable or potentially dangerous situations in guests’ rooms.
Jorge Ramirez of the Chicago Federation of Labor says implementation of the ordinance begins in January 2019, with a requirement for workers to be equipped with the personal panic alarms no later than July 1. Ramirez adds, “I’m very proud of our city for being the first to pass such an ordinance. This is an industry where workers are more susceptible to this kind of treatment, but as you can see there are people from every different industry coming forward, women in particular, saying that these things happened to them. I think this ordinance has forced a lot of folks to re-evaluate what’s going on in their workplace.”
“Has this prevented things from escalating? Absolutely,” says Marina Willis, head of RFT’s PinPoint Business Unit, which oversees the HELP ALERT product line. “There’s growing recognition in the industry that employees working in isolation are at risk for sexual harassment and/or sexual assault. If the individual has the ability to promptly and discreetly alert security to a situation while remaining calm, knowing that help is on the way, escalation can almost always be avoided.”
Hotel workers are already wearing such devices, including RFT’s HELP ALERT, in cities including New York and Washington, D.C. In Seattle, similar protection is included as part of Initiative 124 (also referred to as I-124) under which hotels are required to provide hotel workers with panic buttons. Similar mandates and/or ordinances are in-process and are likely to soon be adopted in areas in California, and elsewhere, where such protection is being requested with increased frequency by staff members and local unions representing hospitality workers.
RFT is pleased to be a part of such an important initiative focused on keeping hospitality workers safe. We are ready to put to work our 30 years of experience keeping people safe in hospitals, senior living facilities, schools, higher education, and hotels, with our HELP ALERT Panic Alert System.
To view FOX32 feature story, follow this link: http://www.fox32chicago.com/news/293929523-video
For additional information on this important issue, follow these news links:
http://www.mychinews.com/news/chicago-hotel-workers-may-soon-have-a-panic-button
http://www.chicagotribune.com/news/local/politics/ct-rahm-emanuel-chicago-city-council-0418-story.html
http://chicago.suntimes.com/news/hotels-urged-to-combat-sexual-harassment-against-female-employees/
http://abc7chicago.com/news/panic-button-ordinance-proposed-to-protect-hotel-workers/1885056/
Also, a July 2016 report issued by Unite Here Local 1:
https://www.handsoffpantson.org/wp-content/uploads/HandsOffReportWeb.pdf
About RF Technologies
RF Technologies provides safety solutions at over 10,000 senior living, healthcare, education and hospitality facilities nationwide. Life safety solutions such as CODE ALERT® Wander Management, QUICK RESPONSE® Wireless Nurse Call, SAFE PLACE® Infant Security, and HELP ALERT® reduce risk for residents, staff, and the facility; innovations such as RFT CARES® smartphone application improve caregiver coordination and efficiency. Backed by 30 years of experience in senior living, RF Technologies’ solutions are UL-certified to meet today’s life safety standards. For information visit: http://www.rft.com.