The American Hotel & Lodging Foundation (AHLA Foundation), ECPAT-USA, and Marriott International have today launched the “Recognize and Respond: Addressing Human Trafficking in the Hospitality Industry” trafficking prevention training program for the industry in honor of World Day Against Trafficking in Persons.
The development of this new training course by Marriott involved working with nonprofits and survivor experts. Thanks to the assistance of the AHLA Foundation, the program, which Marriott donated to ECPAT-USA, is now free and accessible to the hotel sector through ECPAT-online USA’s learning platform.
The “Your Role in Preventing Trafficking” training, introduced to the market in 2020, served as the basis for this new training, which offers distinctive learning paths for employees and managers around improved guidance on handling potential trafficking situations and interacting with potential victims.
No Room for Trafficking is an AHLA Foundation national awareness campaign that builds on the industry’s ongoing commitment to unite the hotel and lodging sector in thought leadership and action to advance the next phase of anti-trafficking efforts. It has as one of its primary goals the advancement of training and education to raise awareness about human trafficking.
“One of No Room for Trafficking’s goals is to train every single hotel employee to identify and respond to a potential human trafficking situation. Through this innovative new training, the industry as a whole will be better equipped to help identify and stop cases of human trafficking,” said Chip Rogers, president and CEO of AHLA. “We are extremely grateful to Marriott International and leading trafficking prevention partners who are offering this free training with support from the AHLA Foundation.”
The No Room for Trafficking Summit took place earlier this month by the AHLA Foundation in Washington, D.C. The objective was to give business leaders and public and private sector partners a place to talk about new trends and areas for innovation to advance efforts to prevent human trafficking and help survivors.
To launch the No Room for Trafficking Survivor Fund, the Hyatt Hotels Foundation, G6 Hospitality, and Extended Stay America donated a combined $1 million to the AHLA Foundation during the Summit.
“We know first-hand that our training helps associates recognize and respond to human trafficking, and we are proud that it will have an impact well beyond Marriott’s workforce,” said Anthony Capuano, Chief Executive Officer of Marriott International. “Working together with the AHLA Foundation and ECPAT-USA, we are equipping the broader industry with an innovative and effective tool to combat human trafficking.”
“ECPAT-USA is honored to partner with the AHLA Foundation and Marriott International in our work to end human trafficking and child sexual exploitation and is grateful for their continued leadership and support. ‘Recognize and Respond: Addressing Human Trafficking Hospitality Industry’ will serve as a timely and deeply impactful resource for the entire travel sector,” said Lori Cohen, Chief Executive Officer of ECPAT-USA.
“There is no greater moral cause for our industry than ending the scourge of human trafficking. As we mark World Day Against Trafficking in Persons, we are extremely proud of our industry’s efforts and commitment to human trafficking prevention and training all hotel employees,” Eliza McCoy, Vice President of Awareness & Prevention Programs of the AHLA Foundation. “There is so much more work to be done, but together, through this new training and the recently launched No Room for Trafficking Survivor Fund, our industry will continue to play an important role in ending trafficking.”
The AHLA Foundation has tasked all industry members with this new training, “Recognize and Respond: Addressing Human Trafficking in the Hospitality Industry,” to expand their training initiatives to include this program and aid in moving the industry one step closer to ending human trafficking.
Discover more about the hotel sector’s initiatives to eradicate trafficking here.
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