Thank you for the question.

There are two things wrong with using 2 way radios without a earpiece.

First, the associates always feel the need to turn their radio volumes to the highest level. If you are in your guest room, you can always hear when a houseman, bellman, or security guard are on the floor. The radios echo through the hallway.

Second, for guest safety. When the PBX operator calls a houseman or engineer to go to a room and assist a guest, they should tell the houseman or engineer the room number and the name of the guest. Just like you would not announce the guest name and room number in the lobby, you should not annouce it over a radio that can be heard by anyone.

Also, the front desk radio should be kept in the back office and not used in the lobby. I can’t tell you how many times I have been checking in and hear a loud radio conversation in Spanish in the background.

Some hotels have now gone to hi-tech 2 way pagers to send requests to the houseman or enginner. The houseman will receive a page with the request, room number, and guest name. Once he/she has completed the request, they press a button to notify the front desk that the request is completed.