Inhospitable to Trafficking Training for the Lodging Industry in King County

2:00pm to 4:30pm on May 15, 2013
Red Lion Hotel on 5th Avenue
1415 5th Avenue in Seattle
Co-Hosted by BEST and the Washington Lodging Association


In King County, 300-500 children are being prostituted on any given night. Traffickers are using all types of lodging establishments to profit from the sexual exploitation of these vulnerable youth. Victims in King County have been found in economy motels and luxury hotels, in outlying suburbs and in our downtown corridors.

INHOSPITABLE TO TRAFFICKING When leaders in the Washington Lodging Association learned about the high prevalence of sex trafficking in Washington and the risks this crime poses to our lodging establishments, they decided to take action to support the development of partnerships and practices that would help to prevent this crime. A local non-profit, Businesses Ending Slavery and Trafficking (BEST), spent over a year working with the Washington Lodging Association, law enforcement, and service providers to develop partnerships and BEST practices for protecting King County hotels from this crime.

Benefits

BEST’s recommended practices for making lodging establishments Inhospitable to Trafficking have been created and vetted with the help of hospitality leaders, hospitality attorneys, law enforcement, and victim service providers. By attending the training you will learn about the BEST practices and gain resources to protect guests, staff, and assets from safety and security risks posed by trafficking:

• Learn about sex trafficking and how it involves lodging establishments.
• Learn to easily establish brand-appropriate policies and practices to mitigate legal risks posed by this crime.
• Protect guests and staff from unnecessary suspicion of wrong-doing by learning trafficking indicators and steps to take before contacting law enforcement.
• Learn who to call for a law enforcement response, how to encourage a timely and discrete response, and what to expect if law enforcement intervenes.
• Gain resources for educating and reminding your staff.
• Gain access to a members-only website for sharing and receiving real-time information on criminal activity in neighboring lodging establishments.

While this training is focused on sex trafficking prevention, the knowledge and resources participants will gain will help to prevent and address a broader spectrum of crimes.

WHO MAY ATTEND?This training is designed for owners and managers of lodging establishments in King County, especially those overseeing functions of the hotel impacted by sex trafficking, including:

• General Manager(s)
• Security Manager(s)
• Front Desk Manager(s)
• Housekeeping Manager(s)
• Bar/Restaurant Manager(s)

BEST recognizes the sensitive nature of this training and will work to create a comfortable space for hotel staff to discuss and learn to address this crime. This training is only open to lodging establishments, law enforcement, and BEST-designated attendees.

PARTICIPATING EXPERTS

• Mar Smith, PhD, Executive Director of BEST
• Shawna Pitts, General Manager of Country Inn and Suites and Carlson-Certified Trainer
• Sandip Soli, JD, Hospitality Attorney, Cairncross & Hempelmann
• Valiant Richey, JD, Sr. Deputy Prosecuting Attorney, King County Prosecuting Attorney’s Office
• Detectives in local law enforcement departments and members of the FBI Child Exploitation Task Forces
• And others…

COST OF REGISTRATIONBEST is a non-profit organization. The registration fee helps BEST to recover a portion of our training costs. If the fees are prohibitive, please contact us. We are seeking sponsors to provide scholarships for a limited number of attendees.

DISCOUNT: Washington Lodging Association Members receive $20 OFF!

Early Bird Registration (until Friday, May 1)

$99 for first attendee ($79 for WLA members)
$55/per person for additional attendees from the same property

Registration (after May 1)

$119 for first attendee ($99 for WLA members)
$65/per person for additional attendees from the same property

HOW TO REGISTER Please fill out the attached form and mail to BEST, P.O. Box 14512, Seattle, WA 98114. Or register online: http://best.bpt.me(minimal processing fee may apply). If registering online, members of the Washington Lodging Association may enter discount code WLA to receive $20 off.