Travel and Tourism Law and Ethics: A Case Study of Thomas Cook

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LEGISLATION AND ETHICS IN TRAVEL AND TOURISM SECTOR

Table of Contents
INTRODUCTION............................................................................................................................. 2
TASK 1............................................................................................................................................ 3
1.1 EXPLAIN THE LEGAL AND REGULATORY FRAMEWORK OF THE TRAVEL AND TOURISM
SECTOR WITH REFERENCE TO ENGLAND AND WALES...............................................................3
1.2 DISCUSS SURFACE, SEA AND AIR TRANSPORT LAW IN RELATION TO THE CARRIAGE OF
PASSENGERS WITHIN THE LEGAL AND REGULATORY FRAMEWORK OF THE UNITED KINGDOM
................................................................................................................................................... 5
TASK 2............................................................................................................................................ 7
2.1 EVALUATE THE IMPACTS OF THE PRINCIPLES OF HEALTH, SAFETY AND SECURITY
LEGISLATION ON THE TRAVEL AND TOURISM SECTOR WITH REFERENCE TO THOMAS COOK. .7
2.2 ANALYSE LEGISLATION THAT RELATES TO EQUALITY WITH REFERENCE TO THOMAS COOK
................................................................................................................................................... 8
TASK 3.......................................................................................................................................... 10
3.1 EXPLAIN CONTRACT LEGISLATION IN RELATION TO TRAVEL AND TOURISM CUSTOMERS 10
3.2 EXPLAIN CONSUMER PROTECTION LEGISLATION IN RELATION TO TRAVEL AND TOURISM
CUSTOMERS.............................................................................................................................11
TASK 4.......................................................................................................................................... 13
4.1 ANALYSE ETHICAL DILEMMAS FACED BY THE TRAVEL AND TOURISM SECTOR.................13
4.2 ANALYSE THE CORPORATE SOCIAL RESPONSIBILITY (CSR) POLICY OF A SPECIFIED TRAVEL
AND TOURISM BUSINESS.........................................................................................................14
CONCLUSION............................................................................................................................... 17
REFERENCES.................................................................................................................................18
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INTRODUCTION
Travel and tourism industry is a advancing at an unprecedented rate and it provides an
excellent support to the economy of the UK. The government of the UK has created a set of
rules for the business which are working in the tourism industry so that the right of the
overseas, as well as inbound travellers can be protected. In addition, some rules and
regulations are also applicable in the industry which creates a better safe work environment for
the workers. This report will explore the laws and regulation which are necessary to protect the
rights of travellers using the facilities. Different legislation associated with the surface, sea and
air transport in the UK is discussed in detail. In the final portion of the report, the ethical issues
prevalent in the industry and the sustainability of efforts of the TUI group are discussed.
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TASK 1
1.1 EXPLAIN THE LEGAL AND REGULATORY FRAMEWORK OF THE TRAVEL
AND TOURISM SECTOR WITH REFERENCE TO ENGLAND AND WALES
Strategic Rail Authority (SRA)
SRA was a public body working according to the regulations of Transport Act 2000. It worked
with an aim to make the railway system in the UK more effective and usher some technological
innovations. SRA was dissolved in 2006 and its functions were absorbed by the Office of rail
regulation. This body now regulates the economic functions of the Britain railways (Medlik,
2012).
Health and Safety Executive (HSE)
HSE works with an aim to provide a safe work environment and reduce the number of injuries
or deaths at work. The organisation believes that every worker has the right to come home
safely. By managing different risks at the workplace, the employees can develop confidence and
improve their productivity (Knani, 2014). The organisation uses its legal power to inspect and
manage different risks at the workplace. HSE raises awareness at the workplace regarding
health safety by engaging the employees in the best practices in safety and security
management.
Health and Safety Commission (HSC)
HSC is law statutory organisation which makes it mandatory that individuals should follow the
legislation related to health and safety. It creates a system of accreditation for the organisation
so that the safety and security measures taken at the workplace can be graded. They also issue
warning to the duty holders if they are failing to uphold the law.
Maritime and Coastguard Agency (MCA)
This is an executive agency of the British government which ensures that people follow the
safety guidelines of the maritime regulatory authority (Graham, 2013). The aim of this
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organisation is to prevent the loss of life when people are travelling through sea route. The
organisation also has the authority to initiate search and rescue work as per the requirement.
International Air Transport Association (IATA)
This is an international trade association of the airline companies in the world. The association
helps in formulating rules and regulations for the aviation sector. The association is
headquartered in Montreal, Quebec. The member companies of IATA comprise 82% of the total
air traffic in the world (Griffithand Howarth, 2014). In addition, IATA also challenges unjustified
charges by aviation companies and ensures sensible regulation.
Air Travel Operator Licensing (ATOL)
ATOL is a financial protection scheme launched by the British government in 1973 to protect
travellers from fraudulent activities of tour operators. ATOL ensures that all the monies of the
people be refunded if a tour operator company fails or collapses (Bennett, 2011). It also ensures
that all the terms and conditions are clearly stated by the tour operating companies.
Civil Aviation Authority (CAA)
CAA is a regulating body in the aviation sector in the UK which ensures that the airline industry
meets the highest standards and the customers can have value for their money and are treated
fairly during their flight. CAA works as an independent regulator and the cost of the
organisation is met by the British Government (Knani, 2014).
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1.2 DISCUSS SURFACE, SEA AND AIR TRANSPORT LAW IN RELATION TO THE
CARRIAGE OF PASSENGERS WITHIN THE LEGAL AND REGULATORY
FRAMEWORK OF THE UNITED KINGDOM
SURFACE LAW
The surface laws in the UK are associated with road and train transportation. Carriage of
Passenger by Road Act 1974 Athens has discussed in detail about the surface laws applicable in
the United Kingdom (Simon, 2017). It formulates a range of laws and regulation for the
passengers on board. The law provides a remedy to the passengers in case there is a theft of a
valuable item, physical damage or injury during the travel or if there is mental distress to the
travel due to the behaviour of the concerned authority.
SEA LAW
Athens Convention 1974 defines the liability of the travel business operators when there is a
damage caused to the passengers who are travelling in a ferry ride or a ship. The law talks
about liability to the passenger in case there is any damage or injury during the travel. This law
also provides instructions to provide insurance to the people traveling by waterways or sea
route. The cost of the insurance premium can be added in the passenger fare. In addition, The
International Maritime Organisation also makes certain laws and regulation to safeguard the
security of the passengers which need to be followed by the shipping agencies (Gifis, 2010).
According to the laws, the sea craft carrying more than 12 passengers need to manage
adequate safety provisions.
AIR LAW
The Warsaw Convention of 1929 lays down a range of laws and regulation for the carriers of
passengers in the Aviation industry. According to this law, compensation can be claimed for
death or personal injury of an individual during the flight. The Denied Boarding Compensation
Schemes (EU) 1997 aims to develop better standards related to the air passengers (Kelly, 2010).
If a flight is cancelled, the airline company need to provide an option to the passengers to get a
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reimbursement. In addition, if there is a flight cancellation, the passengers need to be informed
well in advance and if the airline company fails to do so, the passenger is liable to get
compensation.
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TASK 2
2.1 EVALUATE THE IMPACTS OF THE PRINCIPLES OF HEALTH, SAFETY AND
SECURITY LEGISLATION ON THE TRAVEL AND TOURISM SECTOR WITH
REFERENCE TO THOMAS COOK
The primary aim of health and safety legislation is to offer a safe and secure work condition to
the workers. A uniformity in the laws is necessary so that these regulations can be applied
widely across the organisations (MacGregor, 2019). The British government tries to make sure
that the employers understand their liability towards the employees working at their
organisation and initiate a better work environment which is free of injuries and fatal accidents.
The Health and Safety at Work Act 1974 is one such effort of the British government which
makes certain rules and regulation for employers when they hire an employee. The legislation
sets the duties and liabilities of the organisation and ensures that adequate compensation is
provided to the affected person in case an injury happens during the work. This act also makes
the employees are aware of their rights and runs educational programs in the organisation to
inform the employees (Simon, 2017). The employees working with hazardous materials should
be provided with adequate safety instruments.For Thomas cook, The Health and Safety at Work
Act 1974 is valuable because it makes mandatory for the organisation to ensure the safety of its
workers. For example, better safety arrangements at the kitchen will ensure that the employees
are working in safe and secure conditions.
Occupiers Liability Act 1984 explains that the owner of a property needs to ensure adequate
safety provision at his property and he is liable to be prosecuted if he fails to ensure these
safety measures even if the person injured has trespass the property in an illegal manner
(Bennett, 2011). For example, if the person is moving on a private way and gets injured due to
an open manhole, the owner of the land can be sued according to the law and the person
injured can claim for compensation.
Duty of care makes a moral and legal obligation for individuals and corporations to fulfil the
wellbeing of people. The legislation requires that person or organisation need to avoid such
acts which can cause possible harm to others. For example, a person who owns a piece of land
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and has fenced its corners with jagged edges; If the owner of the land is aware that children
often go to play on one side of the fencing and there is a possibility that they can ham
themselves, the owner of the land will owe those children a duty of care (Thompson, 2017).
But, in case the owner of the land is not aware of this fact that those children play on that place
on a regular basis then there will be no duty of care owed as per the regulation.
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2.2 ANALYSE LEGISLATION THAT RELATES TO EQUALITY WITH REFERENCE
TO THOMAS COOK
While operating in the United Kingdom, Thomas Cook has to make sure that the employees and
the customer associated with the organisation are treated in just and equal way. The equality
Act 2010 came in force on 1st October 2010, this act combines over 116 separate legislations
related to equality and made a single act (Fredman, 2017). The most important acts merged in
the Equality acts 2010 which are relevant according to the operations of Thomas cook are
discussed below:
Sex Discrimination Act 1975: makes it mandatory that no individual can be given preferential
treatment on the basis of his or her gender. For example, a nightclub offering free entry to
women but charging men for entry is a discrimination based on gender (Chen-Wishart, 2012).
Race Discrimination Act 1976: this act prohibition of direct or indirect discrimination on racial
grounds. Thomas cook should provide equal opportunities to its employees to work and get
promoted and any discrimination based on the race, colour or nationality is protected by the
law (Johnstone, 2012).
Employment Protection (Consolidation) Act 1978: this legislation works to protect the basic rights
which are provided to each and every employee working in an organisation. A women
employee cannot be terminated form the job if she is pregnant. Every female employee needs
to be provided with a 29-week leave for pregnancy. In addition, the employee should also be
provided maternity leave for the period she was absent from work due to pregnancy (Hoffman
and Rowe, 2010).
Disability Discrimination Act 1995: this act promotes the rights for the people who are facing
any kind of disability. Thomas cook should make a reasonable adjustment at the workplace for
facilitating the movement of disabled people (Kelly, 2010).
Human Rights Act 1998: is an act passed by the UK parliament on 9th November 1998. This law
makes it mandatory for individuals and for organisations such as Police and local councils to
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treat everyone with fairness, dignity and respect (Fredman, 2017). The rights provided in the
Equality law 2010 are based on the European Convention on Human Rights.
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TASK 3
3.1 EXPLAIN CONTRACT
LEGISLATION IN RELATION TO
TRAVEL AND TOURISM CUSTOMERS
Contracts for the supply of goods
This contract makes it mandatory that the
goods which are supplied by the company
should be of reasonable quality. For
Thomas cook, this contract means that the
hotel room should follow proper cleanliness
standards and the food that is served in the
hotel should be hygienic (Schwenzer et al.,
2012). This also makes it mandatory that
the details of the holiday package and
different services to be provided during the
tour should be mentioned clearly on the
brochure or on the website of the company.
Contracts for provision of services
The contract of the services makes rules and
regulation for different business when they
provide certain services to the customers.
These services should be provided according
to the details provided in the brochure or the
website of the company. Thomas cook should
ensure that the employee behaves in a polite
manner and deliver the services in a
professional manner (Medlik, 2012).
Contracts related to package holidays
While purchase a tour package a customer
is offered facilities like accommodation,
transportation or entertainment facilities.
The Package Travel Regulations 1992
regulates all such contracts and makes sure
that tour operating companies adhere to
these contracts fully (Cherapanukorn and
Focken, 2014). The Package Travel
Regulations makes sure that customer
should know what exactly he is going to get
in a purchased holiday tour. This legislation
restricts tour operator from adding extra
charges in the holiday package and making
changes without informing the customer.
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