On August 20, the City of Edmonton’s Urban Planning Committee considered the issue of short-term rentals. According to city administration’s report, short-term rentals in Edmonton have grown steadily, as evidenced by the increase in listings from 44 in 2014 to 2,420 as of May 2019. Data from the 2019 listings includes the following: 2,146 rental [...]
What Is Human Trafficking? Human trafficking is using force, fraud, or coercion to lure victims and force them into labour or sexual exploitation. If human trafficking is taking place at your property, other criminal activities such as drug dealing and credit card fraud may also be taking place. These activities often go hand in [...]
Recently, a Winnipeg hotel experienced a carbon monoxide leak that sent 46 guests and staff to hospital. Fortunately, there were no fatalities, but the outcome could have been much worse. The leak, which has since been attributed to inadequate ventilation, has led hoteliers across Canada to take a second look at procedures and equipment to [...]
Last week, the AHLA had the opportunity to provide feedback about proposed changes to the Temporary Foreign Worker Program (TFWP) to Uttara Chauhan (Director, Policy and Program Design, Employment and Social Development Canada) and Jordan Thompson (Acting Director, Temporary Resident Policy and Programs, Department of Citizenship and Immigration). The proposed changes would allow employees to [...]
Imagine this: It’s a beautiful summer day, and guests are enjoying a cool dip in your hotel’s pool. Like children will do, a six-year-old boy breaks into a run, and the next thing you hear is a sickening crack after he trips on a dip in the pool deck and his head hits the cement. [...]
There are 47 new MLAs in the Legislature. As such, it is important that we work to educate them on the issues that are important to the tourism industry. We need to connect with all MLAs to build and foster relationships. By informing your elected representative about the role and importance of the tourism/hospitality industry [...]
Recently, members of the Alberta Hospitality Safety Association (AHSA) voted to amalgamate with the AHLA, effective January 1, 2020, subject to: Meeting all requirements identified by WCB and Alberta Labour; AHLA establishing a new membership category for WCB industry code 87503 properties with no additional membership fee, and with voting rights restricted to resolutions regarding [...]
Recently, the Government of Alberta introduced Bill 2: An Act to Make Alberta Open for Business, in addition to creating a new youth minimum wage. Prior to the 2019 election, the AHLA met with United Conservative Party representatives to share the impacts of provincial labour legislation that had been passed under the former government. Many [...]
It’s hard to believe, but the vast majority of hotels in Canada in 2019 are still processing their hotel guests upon check-in using magnetic stripe technology. This is a very risky approach! EMV technology has been proven to be very effective against fraud. Visa reported that as of Sept 2018, EMV-compliant merchants saw counterfeit fraud [...]
Thank you to all who attended this year's 99th Annual Convention & Trade Show at the Fairmont Banff Springs - it was a truly special centennial celebration and final convention. Congratulations to our Housekeeping Award, Employer of Choice, and Gold Key Award recipients, and thank you to our sponsors! Photos are available on flickr. Available session [...]
