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This story is submitted by tester

It was a sad day at the hotel just before Christmas. Owners had decided to close down the 360 room hotel in a Northern California town in preparation for the upcoming renovation. I had the difficult task of letting all the 80+ remaining employees work on their last day.

Almost a month later, I was sitting in my outside office taking care of the closed down hotel feeling like Jack Nicholson in the movie “The Shining”. Most of the power was shut down and all the doors were locked in the large convention hotel..

My typical day starts around 9 am with a walk inside the dark and cold hotel where you could hear a pin drop. In a snowy January morning, I was earlier than usual and walking with my flash light inside the unusually cold second floor corridor. As I approached the front door of room 309, the eternal quietness was broken by the telephone ringing inside the room!

I didn’t know I could run that fast when I realized I was in my office in lass than a minute. Feeling better about an hour later, I went behind the front desk to check the hotel main switchboard. It was powered by the battery back up and a wake up call was set to room 309 at 8.00 AM before the hotel was shut down. It was ringing at 8.00 AM ever since!

The Foreign Exchange student was the role model at the front desk. 6 months in to her employment things started to change with her attitude towards the hotel even though she did a great job at the desk. Her constant complaining about the co-workers was impacting the morale of the staff. She would bypass her Front Desk Manager to come to me and complain. After several warnings, I called her to my office to tell her that she was suspended for 3 days. She was shocked and wanted to know why. I asked her to go home and write 10 positive things that had happened to her at the hotel and 10 negative things that bother her so much.

3 days later she came back to me with a letter. It has 13 positive things about the work place and one negative thing written. It said “I Think it’s me”

She never complained for the next two years until her departure after the visa expiration.

It had been peaceful in the hotel for sometimes. But everything had changed since a youth group arrived two days ago. They trashed their rooms, burned the carpeting, destroyed furniture and broke the elevators. Their loud noise filled the hotel. Many regular guests had left the hotel because of them. The bellmen and service personnel did not come to work for the same reason. And now the housekeepers want to walk out. I was the only desk clerk left behind the front desk, and very scared.

I felt a sense of relief when the new Manager Trainee appeared at the front desk. “Some crazy people with this youth group staying in the hotel … I managed to lock the front door.” I told the manager shakily. “They have taking over the parking lot now. Should we call the poli…?”

“Never lock the entrance door of the hotel,” the Manager Trainee said with confidence. “You can not do that. Open the door. I’ll talk to them.”

I opened the door and the manager stepped outside into the terrifying noise coming from the parking lot. I felt even more scared and decided to lock the door behind the Manager for my safety.

Before I could get behind the front desk, I heard the screams. “OPEN THE DOOR!!! OPEN THE DOOR!!! CALL THE POLICE!!! LOCK THE DOOR!!! …”

I turned to see the manager screaming, running towards the front door. Behind was an angry crowd of young men who were moving fast, trying to grab the new Manager Trainee.

“Oh, My God!” I shrieked. “The door is locked…”

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Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)

What is EmployeeRates.Com?

EmployeeRates.Com or better known as eR, is a travel and entertainment discount program offered exclusively to hospitality employees worldwide. eR program benefits employees and employers across all segments of the hospitality industry. As an example, eR allows a restaurant server to get Employee Rates at a hotel, car rental, Airline, Cruise etc. This benefit was never before there for a regular hospitality employee.

FAQs by Employers:

1. How do I register my Hotel/ Casino/ Restaurant/ Car Rental Etc?

From HOME page click NEW EMPLOYER. Select employer type Hotels, Restaurants, Casino Etc. Enter your information as required. Your primary email and the password will be used later to log in as the Employer. Secondary email is required to contact someone else in your absence.

Submit your information.

Once your property is approved by the eR Administration, you will be sent a welcome email inviting you to log in as an Employer.

What do I do once I receive the approval email?

Go to www.EmployeeRates.Comand click on “EMPLOYER LOG IN”. Use your Category such as Hotels, your email and the password to log in. If you are a HOTEL/ CASINO or a RESORT, enter property information, photos, rates you want to offer the hospitality employees and the number of rooms you would like to authorize. Then enter your employee information in ADD EMPLOYEE section. Save all your inputs and your employees are now ready to use the system.

If you are a RESTAURANT, enter the restaurant information and the discount you would offer to the hospitality employees. Then enter the employee names and save the information. Your employees are now ready to enjoy the benefits.

All other categories enter your property information and the employee information. Your employees are now ready to enjoy all the eR benefits.

Can I change the information about my property?

Yes. You may change or delete information at any time. You can change your rates, room allocation, Discount amount, employee information as you wish. You can add new employees and delete terminated employees as needed. Just log in the “EMPLOYER LOG IN”

4. Can I cancel my membership at anytime?

Yes. You can. Your employees will not be able to use the system and benefit from discounts after that time.

How do I know if my employees are using the system?

You can send us an email requesting the usage by your employees as well as by all the other Hospitality Employees to get the report.

Can employee’s family members use the benefits?

No. This is a system only for the hospitality employees. Once you enter an employee’s name, it will be hard coded so the name can not be changed at the time of the reservation.

Our industry has a high turnover. What do I do when an employee leaves?

As they start using eR, they will appreciate the great benefit you provide and minimize your turnover factor. If an employee leaves, log in to EMPLOYER LOG IN and delete the employee name as soon as possible.

How do I know a terminated employee is not using the system?

Every time an employee logs in to the system, you will be sent an email saying the employee had logged in to the eR system. This email only informs you the employee has logged in. This is your second opportunity to delete any terminated employee. It is best interest to make sure the terminated employee is deleted from the system as soon as they leave.

How much does it cost?

Your annual membership is based on the size of your property. It is less than a penny per day per employee!!! A great investment on your employees.

Do employees have to pay?

There is a nominal Service Fee they need to pay every time they make a reservation. Currently, it is $4.00 per reservation. If they make a multiple reservation such as a rental car and Airline at the same tome, fee is still $4.00. If they log out and log in, they need to pay another $4.00 as a Service Fee.

Are there any other Fees?

No. No hidden or GDS fees. You only pay the ANNUAL Membership fee.

Can employee cancel or change reservations?

Yes. They need to call the property directly. No restrictions from eR but all the restrictions from the property applies. eR service fee is non refundable.

We belong to a management company. Can we offer our own rates for the company employees as well as regular employee rates for the other hospitality employees?

Yes. This option is available for an additional fee. Please send us an email requesting the service.

FAQs by Employees:

I am a Hospitality employee and how do I use your benefits?

Your employer must be participating and offering discounts to hospitality employees in order for you to use the benefits. Please confirm that your employer is part of eR. If they are and your name is entered by your employer in the system, just log in as “REGISTERED EMPLOYEE LOG IN” in the home page. Use your first, last name and the password given to you by the employer to log in. You are now ready to enjoy all the benefits offered to you by all the other hospitality employers.

Can my family members use the system?

This great benefit is for Hospitality Employees only. If your family member is working for a hospitality company, they need to get their employer sign in first. If they do not work for the industry, they are not eligible to get the benefits.

I am a member and I tried to book a flight but there are no employee discounts available?

All rates and discounts are based on availability by all segments. Your employer is encouraged to close the discounted rates when you are busy as well. Other employers will do the same.

How much it costs and why do I have to pay?

It costs you only $4.00 which is much less than most of the other reservation sites. If you log in and make multiple reservations such as car rental and a hotel together, you still pay only $4.00. But if you log out and log in you need to pay the fee again. We encourage you to plan your trip and make all the reservations at one time. There is no fee to just log in and browse the site.

This type of a benefit has tremendous overhead and administrative expenses. We have not changed the fee since we started and anticipate keep it low for many years to come.

Can I still use the system if I leave my current employer?

No. This benefit is provided to you by your employer because they believe in providing great benefits to you as a valued employee.

What is so special about EmployeeRates.com?

This type of a benefit was never before offered to Hospitality Employees. If you work for any hotel chain such as Marriott eR allows you to stay at another brand such as a Hyatt or Holiday Inn. If you work in a cruise ship, you can get hotel and car rental discounts. Free standing restaurant employees now can get special discounts at hotels and airlines etc.

I work at a national brand hotel. We already have employee rates program by them. So why should I use eR?

These programs are wonderful and you should use them first. However, just in case your branded hotel is not available in the city you are travelling, you now have the option to stay at another branded hotel on the discounted rate. This site also provides you other discounts such as car rentals, airlines, restaurants. It is also good to stay at a different hotel so you can experience different products.

My owner has only one Restaurant and we don’t belong to a chain. Can I still use all the benefits?

Yes. This is the essence of eR. Regardless of the size of your company, you are under one umbrella for all the benefits.

What happens when I make a reservation?

You need to pay at the time of reservation except for restaurant reservations. You will receive a confirmation number from eR by an email. This is all you need to use the benefit. You will see two separate charges on your bank statement, one for $ 4.00 form eR and the other from the facility.

Can I cancel or change a reservation?

Yes. You need to call the property direct. Give your name and the arrival date first. Do not use the confirmation number you received in the email. All applicable property policies apply for cancels and changes.

How do you guarantee I get the benefits?

Suppose you work for a hotel and you look for a hotel in another city. If eR does not have a hotel in that city, we will find one and make the reservation for you. You will only pay what ever your own employer offers to eR. We will pay the difference for you.