French hotel giant Accor to probe racial profiling claims at ibis in Australia’s Alice Springs
- Staff allegedly told to check Aboriginal guests into inferior rooms at central Australia hotel
French hotel group Accor said on Saturday it was investigating claims one of its hotels in Australia was directing staff to check Aboriginal guests into poorer-quality rooms.
An investigation by the Australian Broadcasting Corporation uncovered a leaked email advising staff at the ibis Styles Alice Springs Oasis to move people from “the communities” into one of six designated rooms.
The national broadcaster said the term is used locally to refer to indigenous people living in remote communities outside Alice Springs, in Northern Territory state.
“Following an investigation released on the ibis Styles Alice Springs Oasis, the Group has opened its own internal probe,” Accor said in a statement.
The company, which operates worldwide with a portfolio including the Pullman, Raffles, Novotel and Mercure brands, said it would take “prompt and decisive action in this case”.
“The group, which is present in 100 countries, has a diversity and inclusion policy that respects cultures, heritage and local law,” the statement said.
An unnamed staff member at the Australian hotel told the ABC the profiling had happened hundreds of times since the initiative was handed down last June, where anyone who “appeared Aboriginal” was given the “worse rooms”.
The ABC arranged two bookings at the ibis, one with Aboriginal guests and the other non-indigenous.