Hotel Housekeeping

Ask a Question Feedback Printer-friendly What kind of work do people do in housekeeping in a hotel? What are the risk factors of housekeeping? How can we reduce the risk factors for RMI? How can job rotation reduce the risk for RMI? How can job enlargement and enrichment reduce the risk for RMI? How can team work reduce the risk for RMI? How can improved work practices reduce the risk for RMI?

What kind of work do people do in housekeeping in a hotel? Housekeeping in a hotel is a very physically demanding job that includes many, varied tasks. Typically, in this case study, housekeepers were responsible for cleaning 16 rooms per shift. The actual amount of work depends on the size of the room and the number of beds. A housekeeper needs between fifteen and thirty minutes to do one room. A housekeeper carries out the following tasks: making beds (Figures 1a, 1b, 1c) tidying rooms (Figure 2) cleaning and polishing toilets, taps, sinks, bathtubs and mirrors (Figures 3a, 3b) washing floors removing stains vacuuming Figure 1a - Making beds Figure 1a

Figure 1b - Making beds Figure 1b

Figure 1c - Making beds

Figure 1c Making Beds Figure 2 - Tidying a room Figure 2 Tidying a room Figure 3a - Cleaning Figure 3a Figure 3b - Cleaning Figure 3b Cleaning

What are the risk factors of housekeeping? The main risk factors for repetitive motion injuries (RMIs) in housekeeping are: heavy physical workload and excessive bodily motions which are a high risk for back injuries forceful upper limb motions in awkward positions which are a high risk for neck or shoulder and arm injuries Space limitations require workers to use many uncomfortable postures. These are: standing or walking stooping squatting kneeling stretching reaching bending twisting crouching A housekeeper changes body position every three seconds while cleaning a room. If we assume that the average cleaning time for each room is twenty-five minutes, we can estimate that a housekeeper assumes 8,000 different body postures every shift.

In addition, forceful movements while using awkward body positions include lifting mattresses, cleaning tiles, and vacuuming every shift. Housekeeping is a physically demanding and very tiring job. It can be classified as "moderately heavy" to "heavy" work because the energy required is approximately 4 kilocalories per minute (4 kcal/min.) How can we reduce the risk factors for RMI? Hotel housekeepers work in a unique place. Hotels are usually designed for the comfort of their guests rather than their housekeeping staff. This fact makes it very difficult to improve working conditions for housekeepers by means of better engineering. However, some improvements can be made by selecting more appropriate equipment. Lighter vacuum cleaners (preferably the self-propelling type), and lighter service carts with wheels designed for carpeted floors would ease the workload for their operators providing this equipment is always kept in good repair. When new vacuum cleaners are purchased, low noise emissions should be one of the criteria. Improving the body postures that pose a major risk for musculoskeletal disorders seems an unachievable task. Again, this fact results from the peculiarity of hotels as a workplace. To attract guests and remain competitive, hotel management pursues a policy that everything should be "so clean it sparkles". Floors, walls, windows, mirrors, and bathroom fixtures might be adequately cleaned with some form of an extension tool to reduce bending and over-stretching. However, the demand for spotless cleanliness and hygiene, management often requires their cleaning staff to spend extra time and effort cleaning by kneeling, leaning, squatting, crouching, slouching and stretching. These postures will in time contribute to new musculoskeletal injuries and aggravate old ones. New approaches, other than strictly ergonomic ones, need to be investigated. For example, action can be taken from the administrative level. Options for improvement include: job rotation job enrichment and job enlargement team work education and training on work practices

How can job rotation reduce the risk for RMI? Job rotation is one possible approach. It requires workers to move between different tasks, at fixed or irregular periods. However, it must be a rotation where workers do something completely different. Different tasks must use different muscle groups to allow muscles already stressed to recover. How can job enlargement and enrichment reduce the risk for RMI?

Another approach is job enlargement. This increases the variety of tasks built into the job. It breaks the monotony of the job and avoids overloading one part of the body. Job enrichment involves more autonomy and control for the worker. How can team work reduce the risk for RMI? Team work can provide greater variety and more evenly distributed muscular work. The whole team is involved in the planning of the work. Each team member carries out a set of operations to complete the whole product, allowing the worker to alternate between tasks. This reduces the risk of RMI. How can improved work practices reduce the risk for RMI? A well-designed job, supported by a well-designed workplace and proper tools, allows the worker to avoid unnecessary motion of the neck, shoulders and upper limbs. However, the actual performance of the tasks depends on individuals. Training should be provided for workers who are involved with housekeeping activities. It is important that housekeeping staff be informed about hazards in the workplace, including the risk of injuries to the musculoskeletal system. Therefore, identification of the hazards for such injury at any given hotel is fundamental. Individual work practices, including lifting habits, are shaped by proper training. Training should encourage employers and workers to adopt methods that reduce fatigue. For example, it is advisable to plan one's workload and do the heavier tasks at the beginning of the workshift, rather than at the end, when fatigue is at its maximum. When a person is tired, the risk of injuring a muscle is higher. Training should also explain the health hazards of improper lifting and give recommendations on what a worker can do to improve lifting positions. Training should also emphasize the importance of rest periods for the workers' health and explain how active rest can do more for keeping workers healthy than passive rest. The effect of such training can reach far beyond occupational situations because the workers can apply this knowledge also in their off-job activities.

About Hotel Housekeeping About Hotel Housekeepingthumbnail Hotel housekeeping is demanding work. When selecting the best hotel for a vacation, most people will assess the size of the rooms, hotel amenities, location and reviews. An important factor that is usually overlooked unless it is unsatisfactory is the work of the housekeeping staff. These hardworking individuals ensure that messy rooms are miraculously spotless at the end of the day. Hotel housekeeping is a difficult and demanding job that requires much more than might be expected. Function The job of a hotel housekeeper is to keep an assigned number of rooms clean. This includes a variety of services depending on the room's occupants. For a standard occupied room, this will involve basic cleaning duties. For a room where the occupants have just checked out, the job is more difficult and involves turning over nearly everything in the room. A check-out room must be so neat and clean that the new occupants cannot tell that another family may have vacated the room only a few hours earlier. Some occupants who are in the hotel room when the housekeeper arrives or are perhaps ill and spending the day in bed may prefer service known as trash and towels. This is exactly how it sounds. The housekeeper will provide fresh clean towels and toiletries and remove the trash, but otherwise leave the room alone. If a guest leaves a later service sign on the door, the room must be revisited, perhaps several times throughout the day until the sign is removed. However, some guests forget to remove this sign entirely. Depending on the hotel this may mean that they will not receive any service, or it may mean they receive a phone call offering later service. Some locations will even leave a set of clean towels and toiletries outside the door. One last consideration is rooms that have been vacant for several days. Though they have already been cleaned and turned over, these rooms must be revisited so the housekeeper can sweep and dust, ensuring that the room doesn't look dusty and abandoned when new guests arrive. Features The specific duties of a housekeeper may vary from one hotel to the next, but usually include several standard jobs. The first is making the beds. A good housekeeper should be able to make each bed in about a minute. Unless there are very obvious stains, the sheets and pillowcases are rarely changed daily. The average amount of time for sheets to be left unchanged is three days. However, this also varies from one hotel to the next. In very expensive locations the sheets are changed daily. The number of sheets and pillows on the bed can also vary. While a standard hotel bed has a bottom sheet, top sheet, blanket and comforter, nicer hotels will have a sheet both beneath and on top of the blanket. Some less-expensive hotels may not have a blanket at all. Hotel beds are typically made with the comforter covering the entire bed and are almost always made this way when guests first check in. However, during a guest's stay, the comforter may only be folded neatly at the bottom of the bed. Next, the housekeeper must refresh any amenities in the room, such as coffee. End tables and desks may be straightened, but the guest's items are generally left as they are. Small touches such as closing the doors of a television cabinet can give a room a finished look very quickly. If there is a porch or balcony, this

should be swept and any ashtrays need to be emptied. Lastly, the trashcans in the rooms will be emptied, and the carpets swept. Moving on to the bathroom, the housekeeper will wipe down the tub, toilet, sink and counter. Towels will be changed and amenities will be refreshed. In a check-out room, the bathroom is cleaned more thoroughly with a variety of cleaning agents, usually including bleach. Small touches are important here, such as carefully folding the towels. Each hotel has its own preferred method for folding and placing the towels. The toilet paper must be folded to a neat point as well. In some hotels, the tip of the toilet paper is even pressed with a stamp featuring the hotel's logo or name. Time Frame Most housekeepers work a typical eight-hour day. However, this day is usually filled with nonstop activity. Most hotels give each housekeeper between 15 and 20 rooms each day. An occupied room should take no more than 15 minutes to complete and a check out should take no more than half an hour. This is often a difficult schedule to keep considering the state of some rooms. In hotels with large suites, a housekeeper may be given around 10 suites to complete each day. Suites often take much longer because of the additional amenities. Stoves, counters and refrigerators need to be cleaned. If a dishwasher is present, the housekeeper will often be required to load and unload any dishes. In a suite there are also usually several bedrooms and bathrooms, all requiring attention. Housekeepers must always stay conscious of the time of day. The typical hotel check-out time is 11 a.m. Vacated rooms need to be cleaned as soon as possible to be ready for the usual 3 p.m. check-in time. Most housekeepers have a set area in the hotel for which they are responsible. This means that they are not assigned an equal number of occupied rooms and check-outs each day. Some days can be very easy, with all rooms occupied. However, some days--especially weekends--can be extremely difficult when nearly every room is a check-out. Types Though the typical housekeeper is responsible for a number of hotel rooms, there are many other important roles in the housekeeping team at most hotels. In large hotels, there is usually a houseperson for each floor or section. This person is responsible for emptying the dirty linens and trash in housekeepers' carts and refilling their towels and amenities when needed. In some locations it is not possible for each housekeeper to empty and his cart throughout the day, so the houseperson is essential and makes his rounds continually, at least once an hour. The houseperson is also responsible for vacuuming hallways, dusting banisters and woodwork and cleaning any common areas on the floor. Another member of the housekeeping staff is usually assigned to the lobby area. In large hotels this can include the check-in area, pool, fitness center, childcare center, laundry facility and a variety of other areas. Lobby housekeepers usually make their rounds through these areas several times throughout the day. If a guest calls for special amenities such as a microwave or crib, or other items that are not typically left in the room such a toothbrush, sewing kit or matches, these are often provided by another hardworking member of the housekeeping staff, sometimes called a runner. Hotels with minibars and turn-down service usually leave these specific tasks to separate members of the staff as well. Considerations

When staying in any hotel, it is considered polite to tip the housekeeper. If you decline service for most or all of your stay your tip can be significantly less, but you should still keep in mind that the housekeeper prepared the room before you arrived, and will need to turn it over after you leave. For guests who receive service every day, a typical tip is two or three dollars per day. You can leave this tip daily or in a lump sum when you check out. The tip should be in bills, not change. For the housekeeper to be sure that the tip is intended for them, it should be left in a conspicuous place such as on the pillow. You may also want to leave a note with it. If you are only leaving a tip when you check out it can be left most anywhere and the housekeeper will assume that it is intended for them. Either method will work, but leaving a small tip daily will often let the housekeeper know that you are a considerate guest and may earn a few special touches.

Housekeeping Services Home Housekeeping Services

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