Working at Green City Hotel Vauban

Green City Hotel Vauban in Freiburg is a very special sustainable hotel. Because here, inclusion is not only an idea, but the daily happening. The inclusion hotel employs 10 people, 5 of them with handicap. A concept that works perfectly and also is well-received among guests.

We asked an employee with handicap to tell us more about his daily work at the hotel. Mr. Wiebe has been working at the reception desk at Green City Hotel Vauban since it opened and explains, why he would not want to work anywhere else.

My start at Green City Hotel Vauban

The concept of Green City Hotel Vauban – sustainable and inclusive – attracted and excited me from the beginning. Once I read about this project in the newspaper, I applied and received an answer from the project managers that they are not yet looking for personell, but would contact me again, once they were.

And thus, after a while I was invited as the first applicant for an interview and after the application round received the very positive feedback that I could start on time for the hotel opening on June 3rd, 2013, which I then did.

Handling with Green City Hotel Vauban Guests

Working at Green City Hotel Vauban brings me lots of fun. It is my pleasure to welcome guests and be a good host for them. I especially love the handling with recurring guests. It is just great to talk easy and non-pressured about their arrival, plans, hometown and so on.

For example, I had a wonderful conversation with a guest who is lives near Cologne, about the city Cologne, the Cologne cathedral and – of course – the Cologne (and Düsseldorf) beer, or with Bavarian guests about Bavarian beer, especially compared to Freiburg beer, Franconia wine compared to wine from Freiburg area, especially Kaiserstühler and Tuniberg wine.

From the guest side, I also experience that I am recognized as an employee of the hotel – despite obvious handicap – and that they do not treat me differently than my colleagues without handicap.

Working together with colleagues at the hotel

It is easy to build up a good communication climate to guests with handicap. It is surely easier than for my colleagues without handicap.

The colleagues have it a bit more difficult, as they have to choose their words wisely, in order to not sound discriminating.

For me, it is easy, as an obviously handicapped person, I do not have mince matters and can say something negative about one or the other with handicap, without being handicap-phobic. Motto: “People who live in glass houses and throw with stones: blame yourself.” The handling with colleagues in the reception area is also easy. I do my work, they do theirs.

In the interpersonal, collegial area I feel accepted. The handicap is not a thing that excludes me.

Thank you Mr. Wiebe for your personal view on your work at Green City Hotel Vauban.