The Challenge
On July 1st of 2018, Chicago's Hotel Workers Sexual Harassment Ordinance went into effect. This mandate outlined stricter protections for employees in the hospitality industry. Specifically, the requirement of hotels to provide employees with panic buttons so they may instantly summon help to their location.
In order for a panic button to comply with the Chicago Ordinance, the device must have following attributes or capabilities:
• The panic button must be portable, and easily carried and activated by the employee;
• The panic button must summon prompt assistance from appropriate persons designated by the hotel employer when activated;
• The panic button must not require continued activation by the employee to sustain the alert (e.g. simple whistles, walkie-talkies, mugger buttons or other non-GPS supported notification devices are not panic buttons within the meaning of Chicago’s Ordinance);
• The panic button must have GPS capabilities and be able to identify the exact location of the employee in real time.
The deadline for hotels to be in full compliance with the requirements of the Ordinance was 11:59 p.m. on June 30th, 2018.
