G6 Hospitality and Red Roof are the latest hotel companies to announce moves designed to ensure cleaner, healthier hotels and safer guests and employees.
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G6, the parent company for the Motel 6 and Studio 6 brands, launched Clean@6, a comprehensive initiative designed to ensure that guests feel confident when staying at any of the brands’ nearly 1,400 locations across the U.S. and Canada.
The company has undertaken a comprehensive approach to protect against the spread of COVID-19 and other viruses by partnering with a combination of medical advisors, industrial cleaning providers and housekeeping specialists.
“We want Motel 6 and Studio 6 guests to know that we prioritize their health,” said Rob Palleschi, CEO. “The majority of our properties have remained open during this crisis, enabling us to gather real-time intelligence to guide our decisions and best practices. Together with our trusted advisors and franchise partners, we adopted a thoughtful and proactive approach to serving guests in this new environment. I am proud our efforts have resulted in this new standard of care. Together, we have ‘left a light on’ for travelers.”
In addition to following Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and other federal and state guidelines, G6 Hospitality has relied heavily upon its partnerships with medical, chemical, housekeeping and commercial cleaning industries to adapt to the continually evolving knowledge of the COVID-19 virus. In the first phase of the Clean@6 program, G6 performed a comprehensive update to its infectious disease protocols and partnered with Corporate Medical Advisors, a subsidiary of International SOS, who will review and provide ongoing guidance on its COVID-19 operating protocols.
G6 Hospitality also has partnered closely with Diversey, a global leader in the cleaning and hygiene industry, to procure U.S. Environmental Protection Agency registered disinfectants effective against many viruses including emerging pathogens. The company works with the nation’s leading cleaning and restoration company, Servpro, to address specific cleaning and disinfecting needs across the portfolio.
The Clean@6 initiative focuses on three critical touchpoints. They include the following highlights:
Enhanced Cleaning and Sanitization:
- More frequent cleaning and heavy disinfection of high-touch public surfaces, including lobby doors and handles, front desks, guest laundry, vending areas, credit card machines, corridor handrails and elevators
- Hand sanitizer stations in the lobby for guest use and in the team center for team member use
- Use of EPA-approved antiviral disinfectants to sanitize the most commonly touched areas of guest rooms, including light switches, televisions and remotes, cooling/heating equipment, door handles, desks, chairs, commodes, showers and faucets
- As needed, engage the services of a third-party supplier to provide deep cleaning and sanitization services
Physical and Social Distancing:
- Social distancing encouraged in all common areas and at the back of the house
- Plexiglass hygiene guards installed at front-desk terminals
- Where available, use of exterior front-desk windows (in lieu of inside lobbies)
- Implemented single-use key cards for the remainder of the year
- Curtailed lobby coffee service and removed vending area microwaves to minimize use of shared equipment
- Monitoring/limiting lobby occupancy and interim closure of pools
- For guest safety and comfort, hotel staff will not enter any occupied room. Housekeeping services for stayover guests will include prescheduled trash removal, amenity replenishment, and fresh towels and linens
Safe Behavioral Practices:
- Increased guest communications on COVID-19 best practices and property requirements
- Team members who do not feel well or who have high temperatures are asked to go home/remain at home
- All employees fully trained on Clean@6 standards, sanitization protocols, and equipment; procedures reinforced in daily team meetings
- Employees trained to perform frequent hand washing by using soap and sanitizing stations
- Required use of masks and disposable gloves by team members at all times while on-property
The program is in effect at all company-managed locations and serves as a guideline for franchisees, many of whom have already adopted these best practices.
Red Roof Takes Action
Upscale economy brand Red Roof debuted Red Roof RediClean, which includes rigorous enhanced cleaning protocols that address the new normal and give consumers the confidence they need to hit the road again.
“Red Roof is ready to welcome guests back who have been sheltering in place,” said Andrew Alexander, president of Red Roof. “The Red Roof RediClean program is our commitment to enhanced cleaning, providing guests with the confidence they deserve as they once again begin to road trip throughout the country.”
Red Roof is following all government guidelines and best-practice policies to protect guests and employees, in alignment with American Hotel & Lodging Association’s Safe Stay initiative, an industrywide enhanced standard of health and safety protocols.
Red Roof has recommended that all of its properties adopt the following enhanced cleaning protocols.
Common areas: Red Roof has recommended aggressive sanitation and cleaning steps systemwide, using EPA-approved products that kill COVID-19. Enhanced protocols include additional sanitation of high touchpoints in common areas that impact guests and employees. Up to four times per day, housekeepers are sanitizing exterior and corridor touchpoints as well as common areas including elevators; laundry rooms; front desks; maintenance rooms; storage door handles; stairwell handrails; emergency exit doors; pool gates (if applicable); dumpster gate handles; trash receptacles and trash carts; and public restrooms. Red Roof also is encouraging continued social distancing in all public areas of its properties.
In-room: The cleaning and sanitization of all guestrooms also is a priority. The company is asking hotel staff to be extra diligent in sanitizing guestrooms including TVs, remote controls, tables, doorknobs, light switches, desks, phones, keyboards, toilets, faucets and sinks. The frequency of room cleaning during a guest’s stay may be altered based on guest requirements.
Red Roof recommends that linens, towels and laundry be washed in accordance with CDC guidelines. Dirty linen should be bagged in the guestroom to eliminate excess contact while being transported to the laundry facility.
Face coverings: Red Roof has created lobby signs instructing guests to wear a face covering in public spaces following government requirements. In cities and towns where it is mandated by local or state rules, guests are now required to wear cloth or other appropriate face coverings while in common areas where social distancing cannot effectively be accomplished (i.e., lobby, indoor corridors, vending rooms, laundry rooms, etc.). In states where guests are not mandated to wear face coverings, Red Roof has lobby signs strongly recommending them to do so. In addition, following the CDC guidelines, Red Roof is highly encouraging at all of its properties that housekeeping staff wear gloves when cleaning / repairing / inspecting rooms and wear face coverings to be in compliance with state mandates.
CDC Protective Measures
- All employees should follow CDC protective measures. They include:
- Cleaning hands often with soap and water for at least 20 seconds
- Avoiding close contact by putting distance between each other
- Cleaning and disinfecting by continually practicing good hygiene and using hand sanitizer (provided at all properties) that contains at least 60% alcohol
- They are asked to stay home if demonstrating symptoms of illness
- Well-being checks of all employees, including physical temperature checks, should be carried out when required by law