Cleanzine: your weekly cleaning and hygiene industry newsletter 18th April 2024 Issue no. 1110
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Katrina Minnis of Hyatt Regency McCormick Place honoured for excellence
UMF Corporation has announced the recipient of the company's first annual Guest Room Attendant Excellence Award, which acknowledges the contributions of guest room attendants (GRAs) at hotels across the US.
Katrina Minnis, a GRA at Hyatt Regency McCormick Place in Chicago, is the recipient of this year's award, which celebrates the workers who serve as the first line of defence in ensuring a safe hotel environment.
"At Hyatt Regency McCormick Place, the safety and security of our guests and colleagues are top priorities," says Chris Carter, director of operations.
"Ms. Minnis has served as a core part of our team throughout this challenging year. She volunteered to return to work as the hotel remained open to support guests staying at the hotel while they were preparing and supporting an alternative care facility that was built at McCormick Place for Covid-19 response. She is such a deserving recipient of this honour."
According to the Centers for Disease Control & Prevention, one of the top five recommendations for preventing the spread of Covid-19 is to regularly clean and disinfect frequently touched surfaces. And, the American Hotel & Lodging Association's (AHLA's) Stay Safe program - launched in response to the pandemic, is ‘focused on enhanced hotel cleaning practices, safe social interactions, and workplace protocols to meet the new health & safety challenges and expectations presented by Covid -19’. Housekeeping staff are crucial to these initiatives.
UMF CEO George Clarke, says: "Hospitality housekeeping departments can be taken for granted, but they play an essential role in keeping hotel environments safe. We are thrilled to acknowledge their invaluable contributions with our first annual Guest Room Attendant Excellence Award. Ms. Minnis gave her time and expertise at the onset of the pandemic to ensure the highest levels of safety and wellbeing for all, especially those on the front lines of the fight against Covid-19, and is the personification of GRA excellence."
Cleaning and disinfection are in the spotlight more than ever as the world fights the pandemic. In hospitality, this has elevated the work of housekeeping departments, which are adopting hospital-grade infection prevention programs. GRAs such as Katrina Minnis play a critical part in guest satisfaction and safety as the industry copes with this new normal. As this year's recipient, she will receive an all-expenses paid trip for two, including airfare to a location of her choice within the 48 contiguous states, or the cash equivalent.
UMF Corporation is a leader in the research and development of high-performance products, programs and training for the infection prevention and commercial cleaning markets. Through extensive testing, exhaustive analysis and the commitment of significant human and financial resources, new antimicrobial technologies have been merged with innovative product designs that are redefining the future of clean.
29th October 2020