According to hotelbusiness.com:

Approximately 4,000 unionized hotel workers here have agreed to return to work while contract negotiations continue following an eight-week lockout.

The return was announced by Mayor Gavin Newsom and should be a boost to the city’s tourism as the busy holiday season approaches. Newsom said the negative publicity and the union’s ability to extend health care coverage while workers remained locked out were key factors in the hotel operators’ decision.

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The Institute for Conflict Management, LLC (ICM) has launched a new line to its existing dispute resolution panel, specifically focusing on the hospitality industry, according to this press release. The panel "will enable the industry to stop delays on projects and lower the number of potential lawsuits that might occur between different parties. Used appropriately, Alternative Dispute Resolution (ADR) can be a very successful form of risk management."   

It’s unclear whether this is something that could pertain to meetings, or just legal disputes on the hotel end (between owners and operators, say).

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Everything you always wanted to know about Australia, but were too smart to ask: A site full of the dumbest questions and best comebacks you’ll ever hear on the topic of travel in Australia. These supposedly were questions posted by real potential visitors on an Aussie tourism Web site, and answered by good-humored officials.

A few of my favorites:

Q: Will I be able to see kangaroos in the street?
A: Depends how much you’ve been drinking.

Q: Can you give me some information about hippo racing in
Australia?
A: A-fri-ca is the big triangle shaped continent south of Europe.
Aus-tra-lia is that big island in the middle of the Pacific which does
not… oh forget it. Sure, the hippo racing is every Tuesday night in
Kings Cross. Come naked.

Q: Which direction is North in Australia?
A: Face south and then turn 180 degrees. Contact us when you get here and we’ll send the rest of the directions.

Q: Can you send me the Vienna Boys’ Choir schedule?
A: Aus-tri-a is that quaint little country bordering Ger-man-y, which
is…oh forget it. Sure, the Vienna Boys Choir plays every Tuesday
night in Kings Cross, straight after the hippo races. Come naked.

These remind me of a travel agent I spoke with a while back, who said she wished she had a nickel for every U.S. citizen who asked her if they needed a passport to go to New Mexico!

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Everything you always wanted to know about Australia, but were too smart to ask: A site full of the dumbest questions and best comebacks you’ll ever hear on the topic of travel in Australia. These supposedly were questions posted by real potential visitors on an Aussie tourism Web site, and answered by good-humored officials.

A few of my favorites:

Q: Will I be able to see kangaroos in the street?
A: Depends how much you’ve been drinking.

Q: Can you give me some information about hippo racing in
Australia?
A: A-fri-ca is the big triangle shaped continent south of Europe.
Aus-tra-lia is that big island in the middle of the Pacific which does
not… oh forget it. Sure, the hippo racing is every Tuesday night in
Kings Cross. Come naked.

Q: Which direction is North in Australia?
A: Face south and then turn 180 degrees. Contact us when you get here and we’ll send the rest of the directions.

Q: Can you send me the Vienna Boys’ Choir schedule?
A: Aus-tri-a is that quaint little country bordering Ger-man-y, which
is…oh forget it. Sure, the Vienna Boys Choir plays every Tuesday
night in Kings Cross, straight after the hippo races. Come naked.

These remind me of a travel agent I spoke with a while back, who said she wished she had a nickel for every U.S. citizen who asked her if they needed a passport to go to New Mexico!

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It might be a good idea to ask the members of your meeting planning team who their favorite superhero is. Why, you ask? Because, believe it or not, researchers at New York University and MIT have found that “Students who thought of Superman volunteered much less of their time than those who thought about other superheroes. Furthermore, Superman-primed subjects were significantly less likely to show up at a meeting for volunteers held three months after they were initially asked to participate.”

For more, click here. It doesn’t say what the results were for Spiderman, though. Wonder what impact thinking about Archie or Rickie Rich would have?

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…maybe these stories will convince you that it’s a good thing for everyone.

Doing good work with Wyeth

Charity is its own reward

Winners give all

Booth bidding for charity

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The latest to join in the push for a new or expanded convention center is Nashville. A study released last week found that the city would get an immediate gain of $61 million in 2008, and the amount would continue to grow from there. But, as always, there’s a cost–and, in this case, some neighbors who don’t want to give up their place for more convention dollars.

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