Ravinder Sandhu Published in Hospitality Law

Ravinder Sandhu’s article, “Enforce Policies Regarding Employee-Customer Relations,” was published in the July 2009 issue of Hospitality Law. Ravinder’s article discusses the importance of circulating and enforcing employee-customer interaction policies to protect employers against potential claims brought by customers for alleged actions committed by employees. Ravinder notes, “Restaurants and other hospitality employers should train their employees on the proper procedures to follow when dealing with unwelcome or aggressive customers.”

In his article, Ravinder recommends that companies require their employees to maintain strictly professional relationships with customers in the workplace. He notes, “Policies should prohibit employees from making sexual and other improper advances toward customers, and restaurants should exercise judgment because the industry is largely predicated on sustaining friendly employee-customer relations.” He also recommends that employers establish guidelines that clearly define an employee’s specific job duties and to consider conducting background checks on applicants or employees in customer service positions to check for any violent criminal histories. Ravinder concludes, “Although restaurants cannot predict employee-customer interactions, restaurants can take preventive action to best shield themselves from liability by implementing unambiguous policies that specify permissible and impermissible workplace conduct.”