70% of Workplace Incidents Go Unresolved — Why That’s a Customer Service Issue

This week I’ve been reflecting on a statistic that continues to surface in hospitality conversations around the world. Around 70% of reported workplace incidents are never resolved.  

When you first hear that number, it’s easy to think about it as a compliance issue or a workplace relations problem. Something for HR to deal with. Something for policy documents and employee handbooks. 

But the more I think about it, the more I see it differently. 

This is a customer service issue. 

Recently on the podcast I spoke with Anna Sebastian, a hospitality consultant based in the UK who has spent more than fifteen years working in luxury hotels and international bar programs. What struck me during our conversation was how clearly she articulated something many of us in the industry instinctively know: hospitality teams are very well trained in how to deliver service, but far less prepared for what happens when something goes wrong.  

We train people how to greet guests, how to prepare drinks, how to deliver service steps and how to represent the brand. These are important skills and they form the backbone of professional standards in our industry. 

But what about the moments that fall outside the script? 

What happens when a guest behaves inappropriately. What happens when a team member feels uncomfortable. What happens when someone reports an incident and isn’t sure what will happen next. 

Too often the answer is uncertainty. 

And uncertainty is where psychological safety starts to break down. 

If a team member reports an issue and nothing happens, the message they receive is very clear. It tells them that speaking up does not lead to change. It tells them that raising concerns may not be worth the effort. And eventually, people stop reporting things altogether. 

From a leadership perspective that is deeply concerning, but from a service perspective it is equally significant. 

Hospitality is built on people. The quality of the guest experience depends on the confidence, engagement and wellbeing of the team delivering it. When staff feel supported, they bring energy, attentiveness and pride to their work. When they feel ignored or unsafe, that energy disappears surprisingly quickly. 

And believe me, guests always notice the difference. 

During our conversation Anna spoke about the gap that often exists in hospitality training. Teams learn the technical aspects of the job but are rarely taught how to deal with difficult situations. They are not always given clear guidance on reporting processes, on where responsibility sits, or on how incidents will be handled once they are raised.  

Without that clarity, the system relies on improvisation. And improvisation is rarely a good strategy when people’s safety or wellbeing is involved. 

Anna put it very simply – someone has to take responsibility.  

When an incident occurs, someone must ensure that it is addressed and resolved. Not ignored or set aside for a more “convenient time”, but handled immediately with professionalism and care. And owners, directors, CEOs, venue managers, supervisors and team leaders all play their part. 

Leadership in these moments requires conversations that can feel awkward or difficult. It may require confronting behaviour that should never have happened in the first place. Yet those moments define the culture of a workplace far more than any values statement printed on a wall. 

The other idea that came through strongly in the conversation was the concept of choice. 

Every leader, every manager, and every business owner has choices available to them each day. We choose how to respond to issues. We choose whether we address uncomfortable situations or avoid them. We choose whether culture and people are truly priorities or simply talking points. 

Those choices shape the environment our teams work in. 

Psychological safety is not something created through a policy document or a once-a-year training session. It is created through consistent actions that demonstrate people matter and concerns will be taken seriously. 

When that happens, teams begin to trust the environment they are working in. They become more open in their communication. They support one another more effectively. And that confidence flows directly into the guest experience. 

Hospitality has always been about care. Care for guests, care for colleagues, and care for the standards that define our profession. 

If we truly want to strengthen service standards across the industry, then psychological safety cannot be treated as a side conversation. It must be part of how we define professionalism itself. 

You can learn more about Anna’s work through Anna Sebastian Hospitality and the global community initiative Celebrate Her, both of which are doing important work to support people across the industry. 

I would encourage you to listen to the full podcast conversation, where we explore these ideas in greater depth, and perhaps reflect on this question. 

If a team member in your organisation reported an incident today, would they feel confident that it would be resolved? 

Because if 70% of incidents across our industry are still going unresolved, that suggests there is work for all of us to do. 

Watch the full video here: https://youtu.be/ijI5SPnQzak 

Listen to the full episode here: https://www.michellepascoe.com/The-Michelle-Pascoe-Hospitality-Podcast