PARSIPPANY, N.J. — Wyndham Hotels & Resorts reinforced its commitment to help combat human trafficking at its first global Town Hall event of the year, announcing its donation of 1 million Wyndham Rewards points to Polaris, a leader in the global fight to eradicate human trafficking. The company also announced its commitment to achieve, by year-end, 10 million points donated to Polaris since 2008 by Wyndham and Wyndham Rewards members. Wyndham will donate additional points later in the year to ensure this goal is reached.
“We condemn human trafficking in any form,” said Geoff Ballotti, Wyndham Hotels & Resorts president and CEO. “In recognition of National Slavery and Human Trafficking Prevention Month, we want to reinforce our partnerships with Polaris and other important anti-trafficking organizations, while continuing to educate the hospitality community on how they can help identify and report trafficking activities.”
Polaris acts as a catalyst to systemically disrupt human trafficking by helping survivors restore their freedom, preventing more victims, and leveraging data and technology to pursue traffickers wherever they operate. Polaris uses Wyndham Rewards points in part for short-term stays for victims so they have a safe place to sleep while waiting for a spot in a shelter to open.
In addition to its partnership with Polaris, Wyndham mandates human trafficking training for all company employees globally and supports the work of other organizations to promote awareness on how to identify and report suspected instances of human trafficking, including the American Hotel & Lodging Association, the Asian American Hotel Owners Association, End Child Prostitution and Trafficking, and International Tourism Partnership. With these organizations and others, Wyndham continues to educate its employees and stakeholders across its business and its supply chain on the important issue of human trafficking, including encouraging hotel staff to attend regional training (e.g., in connection with major sporting events).
Hotel guests also can spot the signs of trafficking. Guests who suspect trafficking or abuse can alert hotel management or security, or dial 911 or their local emergency number. They also can contact the National Human Trafficking Hotline at 1-888-373-7888 or text “BeFree” (233733) in the United States.
