David Harmon, the Director of Risk and Safety at Rio Hotel & Casino Las Vegas, is dedicated to providing a secure environment for both guests and employees. His focus lies in the proactive implementation of safety programs to identify workplace hazards and address any risky behaviors among the hotel staff. The primary goal is to ensure that employees perform their duties to mitigate the risk of harm to themselves and others.
His team commits to maintaining an injury-free environment for the guests, offering a fantastic experience without worrying about safety or well-being during their visit. Through this interaction, he shares first-hand insights into recent trends and challenges in the travel insurance space and discusses the industry’s concern for health and safety.
What are the challenges prevailing regarding risk and safety in the hospitality industry?
A significant challenge in the hospitality industry regarding risk and safety lies in disseminating information to a vast number of employees and maintaining consistency in messaging the particulars. To prevent complacency, it’s crucial to ensure the message remains persistent and doesn’t become diluted over time.
To tackle this challenge, we employ measures beyond formal training sessions. We consistently communicate safety messages during pre-shift meetings and when the training season begins annually. This gives them reminders to reinforce the importance of safety precautions and keeps the protocols fresh in our employees’ minds.
In addition, we actively discuss past incidents and near misses to learn from them and prevent similar occurrences in the future. This sharing of experiences helps our team members understand potential risks and reinforces our commitment to maintaining a safe environment for employees and guests.
While safety is paramount, we strive to ensure every guest has a satisfactory experience. We understand that visitors come to Vegas seeking specific knowledge and are willing to invest in it. We must meet their expectations and ensure they feel their investment is worthwhile
Fostering a collaborative environment in the hospitality industry to achieve success requires presenting yourself as a
helpful ally rather than an adversary
What recent trends have you experienced, and have you implemented any recent technologies to mitigate hazards and ensure property safety effectively?
Recent trends include an increase in the frequency of minor injuries but a decrease in their severity. Most of these injuries, particularly soft tissue injuries, occur in manual labor departments, such as housekeeping.
partments, such as housekeeping. Tasks like bed stripping, lifting, pulling, and pushing can lead to injuries if not performed using proper techniques. For instance, repetitive movements without rotation or improper lifting techniques can result in soft tissue injuries. This trend highlights the importance of maintaining safe practices in our operations.
To mitigate such incidents, we rely solely on web-based training to extend our reach to each worker, ensuring they grasp the knowledge needed to recognize hazards and minimize risks in their job tasks.
Apart from this, we’ve refocused on the fundamental principles of safety. It involves understanding the job tasks and knowing how to execute them in a manner that enables the employees to recognize deviation from established procedures. This minimizes the risk of injury to oneself and to others as well.
Can you briefly discuss any recent project initiatives you’ve participated in and share key takeaways or insights for our readers?
Since assuming control of the Rio Hotel and Casino in October from Caesars Entertainment under Dreamscape Companies of New York, the process has been akin to launching a brand-new casino. Essentially, we’re starting from scratch.
We’ve outlined the program on paper and are actively rolling out proactive injury prevention initiatives. These include hazard recognition, behavioral-based safety techniques, and refining our training to ensure it precisely meets the recipients’ needs. We aim to provide exactly what is necessary and deliver targeted, effective training that enhances safety and fosters a positive environment for all.
We have also been partnering with Nevada OSHA’s consultation arm, SCATS, to assist us in achieving the safety objectives. The ultimate goal is to qualify for OSHA’s voluntary protection program (VPP), which we anticipate will be recognized within the next 12 to 18 months.
With all these potential disruptions and transformations happening, how do you envision the future of the space a couple of years down the line?
The future of health and safety risk management in the hospitality industry is evolving as a full-circle journey. Targets have been set to integrate world-class programs comparable to those implemented in companies like Intel and other leading construction firms that have learned from challenging experiences
While historically, safety may not have been a top priority, especially in environments with lower severity and frequency of incidents, such as hospitality, there has been a notable shift in mindset over the past decade. Leaders in Las Vegas and beyond now recognize the importance of preventing injuries, understanding that they are avoidable expenses, but each injury can impact the bottom line.
This shift has led to increased support for safety initiatives and elevated safety professionals to higher positions within the industry. As a result, companies save money in the long run and foster happier employees who feel valued and cared for. Ultimately, ensuring the safety of both employees and guests has become a top priority, as everyone desires to feel secure in their workplace or while visiting a hospitality establishment.
Is there any advice, strategies or suggestions from your experience that you’d offer to your colleagues in the hospitality industry on how to achieve success within their organizations?
Based on my experience, soft skills play a significant role in success within the hospitality industry. Collaboration is essential, as is the ability to effectively sell the program to others. It’s crucial to articulate the benefits and demonstrate what’s in it for them, as people are naturally motivated by selfinterest. You’ll garner more buy-in by highlighting how your program can improve profit margins and enhance workplace satisfaction. At the same time, fostering a collaborative environment requires presenting yourself as a helpful ally rather than an adversary.
