Sabah Most Wanted

Sabah Hotel Association justifies service charge

KOTA KINABALU: It is believed that Sabah was the first state to implement the ‘Star Rating’ system in the hotel industry undertaken in collaboration with the Ministry of Tourism, Culture and Arts, according to the Sabah Hotel Association in a statement issued by its president, Christopher Chan.
The prime objective, according to Chan, was to improve not only the design and structure of the hotel, but also to add and improve the facilities and other services in order to uplift and upgrade the service standards of hotels and resorts.
Such a move, he said, was to help Malaysia gain recognition as a new tourism destination and to place Malaysia as having international standards accommodation, facilities and services.
“To comply with the star rating guide requires capital expenditures in the millions of ringgit and the need to employ more staff to fulfill the set criteria.
“This move has transformed Malaysia into a world class tourist destination and provided job opportunities to millions of people, not to mention the billions of ringgit revenue in tourism receipts, Chan said.
According to him, the service charge element in these billions of ringgit revenue contributed through the millions of tourists coming to Malaysia has gone directly or indirectly to the people in the industry, including the economic spinoffs that were generated.
“If the service charge portion were to be held back by the Company and not distributed, such income would still be subjected to Company tax.
“So, where is the leakage?” Chan postulated.
He said that in view of the objectives to meet the demand and expectations of foreign tourists, the hotel industry has requested the government to complement its efforts in human resource development required to train staff in the respective fields of discipline meeting the skill standards expectation.
“The Human Resource Development Fund (HRDF) imposed by the Ministry of Human Resource is proof of the strategic collaboration to train and retrain staff to meet the service standards required to maintain the Star Rating status of Star Rated Hotels.
“These skilled and trained staff are paid according to their level of skills in the hotel’s respective departments to maintain the ‘Customer’s Service’ standards.
“The hospitality industry operates 7 days a week, 24 hours a day and is open 365 days a year, including the need to have staff on duty for 3 shifts daily and to also be open on public holidays without fail.
“Can anyone compare the challenges faced by staff in the hospitality industry that their shift duty is changed every month on rotation basis?
“There are couples, both working in the hotel industry, who can only see each other, for the most 8 hours, in between shifts because of their different shift hours, and cannot afford to start a family unless one is going to sacrifice their career. Is there a justification for choosing this industry to work in?” Chan asked.
The service charge, Chan stressed, has been the motivator and substitute for the inconveniences faced by these group of workers and staff.
“To meet the shortage of service staff during busy functions, administrative and management staff would be drafted to work as part-time staff and paid as a part-timer. Not as overtime pay!
“If this service charge is abolished, as directed by Datuk Alias Ahmad, what would be the total loss of tourism receipts to the country?
“And the loss of direct income to workers in the hospitality industry? How do you quantify justification? A cup of gourmet ice cream in the Middle East was reported to cost USD817 recently!
“Without the financial subsidy through the service charge to maintain the hotel staff, the options would be to minimize staff strength and at the same time redefine the service standards with the reduced staff strength, and consequently dilute the star rating system,” Chan proffered.
“The Human Resources Ministry and the Tourism and Culture Ministry are therefore requested to give their comments on this matter.
“If this service charge issue requires a review, then all stake holders should come together to discuss the matter in detail, including the complications and implications that will arise, rather that declaring the matter as final in the press,” Chan lamented, adding that there is nothing personal in this matter as the implications affect million of workers and staff who are caught in limbo and cannot express their feelings and rights.