I'm sure you've heard by now about Boston's Hyatt hotels laying off housekeeping staff and replacing them with cheaper help from a third-party company.
The latest development: Massachusetts governor Deval Patrick is threatening to boycott Hyatt for state business unless the hotels rehire the housekeepers they fired. In a letter to Hyatt CEO Mark Hoplamazian, Patrick called the move "the worst nightmare of every worker in today’s weak economy."
And now the Harvard Review is using Hyatt's move as an example of how to damage a brand (from TravelMole):
“Looking for a sure-fire way to do a little damage to your brand? Follow these two simple steps,” wrote the Harvard Review.
1. Make the decision to fire a very important yet modestly paid sector of your work force. Fire the entire lot of them.
2. Outsource their positions to a third-party vendor who will bring in contractors to do their jobs at a lower cost. But -- and this is critical -- before you fire them, trick your workers into training the people who will replace them.
(Note: Hyatt has said this last part isn't true, while housekeepers say it is.)It's not too late to change your mind on this one, Hyatt.