15 Questions to Ask Hotels About Their Human Trafficking Policies

Human trafficking often takes place at the same 4- and 5-star hotels where meetings are held. Meeting planners can play a crucial role in spotting trafficking — as well as in educating their attendees and suppliers about it.

A new downloadable PDF released by Canada’s Meeting Professionals Against Human Trafficking (MPAHT) is a long-overdue tool for planners who want to discuss human trafficking with their potential hotel partners and other event suppliers, such as DMCs.

The time to do this is at the RFP stage, to make sure that the hotel is aware and proactive. So MPAHT Founder Sandy Biback joined forces with a team of volunteers (including Lizzy Low, assistant director, sales, business and major events at Ottawa Tourism, who is taking over the leadership of MPAHT as Biback retires) to create a list of honest, direct questions to include in RFPs to suppliers.

The questions, which cover topics ranging from training to policies, are intended to be a starting point for a dialog about human trafficking. Planners can plug and play, using the questions that are most relevant to the situation or supplier. The answers will reveal the potential partner’s commitment to preventing trafficking in their operations and supply chain.

“If I have two hotels that are equal in all ways and one of them is actively involved in training their employees while the other does nothing, I’ll choose the former,” Biback recently said in an interview with Skift Meetings.  

Following are 15 RFP questions:

1. What training do staff and subcontractors receive to recognize and respond to signs of human trafficking?
2. Are there reporting procedures if a trafficking situation is suspected on your premises?
3. Are there visible resources (posters, hotlines, etc.) available for guests and staff?
4. Does your organization have a public anti-trafficking statement or CSR commitment?
5. Are policies signed off on by senior management?
6. Is your venue a member of The Code (the Code of Conduct for the Protection of Children from Sexual Exploitation in Travel and Tourism) or planning to join?
7. Do you include anti-trafficking language in procurement policies and contracts?
8. How do you vet suppliers for compliance with anti-trafficking measures?
9. What level of supply chain auditing or mapping is conducted?
10. Are temporary labor providers licensed and compliant with local laws?
11. What steps are taken to remediate forced labor in supply chains?
12. Do your local law enforcement agencies have human trafficking-specific training? Does your organization take part in this?
13. Does your organization provide charitable or logistical support to survivor-focused organizations?
14. Is your company open to sharing a 20-minute virtual session on identifying and reporting human trafficking?
15. Have there ever been any reported incidents, and how were they addressed?

Download the complete guide from the MPAHT website (wait for the pop-up).

To Report Suspicious Behavior, call the National Human Trafficking Hotline 24 hours a day, 7 days a week at 1 (888) 373-7888 in the U.S. and 1 (833) 900-1010 in Canada.