Why Housekeepers Don't Make Enough

Have you ever went to a hotel that was a “little gem” or like a hole in the wall hotel that surprised you with cleanliness or something small that they have shown gratitude for even staying with them? Well. I work at one.

But, let me tell you something. It’s not at all what it is cut out to be, I work behind the scenes. So I make sure your linen is very clean before you check in, make sure the dirt and grime is gone from the floors, appliances and remote controls. I make sure that the hair from the towels are gone and removed, because the dryer is working at half capacity. I am her. I am the housekeeper.

I look worn out and tired. Maybe have a face that doesn’t look so friendly. You don’t know what I just went through. You don’t know the mess I just cleaned up.

There was a sweet couple that had thrown their Do Not Disturb sign up for three days, only to request towels and their garbage’s changed, I didn’t know they were using substances, or that the girl had her monthly visit, I wouldn’t have known that they had hidden stuff under the mattress for me to find. Or the mess left in the bathtub because the guy was too intoxicated to use the toilet. No, I guess you didn’t know.

But, YOU decided that it was okay to give me attitude when I had told you that I had no towels at the moment to give to you because my laundry person was so overwhelmed with piles of laundry to wash and fold, so that YOU could have a comfortable stay.

Yes, I am tired. I do at least 13 to 16 rooms a day, I am lucky enough to see stay over’s with a Do Not Disturb sign thrown on the handle like a college dorm room with a sock on it.

I still smile and say “Hello” to you, even though the day I just had.

You think I make good money or get tipped often, but I don’t. I have been with this company for years and never seen a raise. Never felt what it’s like to be higher on the ladder. I do an amazing job, I know this for a fact. Guest’s and my supervisor tells me so, but that is not enough. Not enough to keep the lights on at home, food in my fridge or warm clothes on my back.

“Housekeeping is so easy, my 5-year-old can do it.”

Uh, if your kid can lift a fully stocked cart I am impressed. Those things weigh more than I do. You have to push, pull and lift them all the time, and for me, even though for doing it for years, I still struggle. Plus I am on a time limit in each room, for every minute you pull me from cleaning my room is another reason for my manager to get mad at me, to “fire” me or to simply let me go because I was taking too long in rooms. So for every question you ask me or try and walk into my room just to “look” is another minute I get repercussions for.

Did you know, that when housekeepers get “tipped” they have to share with anyone else who had cleaned that specific room?

True story. That’s what we call being “equals” in a privatized hotel. You have to share.

In Canada, smaller scale brands, I will not list them if you want to email me and ask which brands you can. They pay minimum for what we do. Minimum wage is $15.50 here. That’s not enough, especially for people doing as much work as someone working in construction, or a nursing home. Housekeepers, don’t get paid a lot.

I’m going to clarify what we do. What we deal with, who we deal with.

Cleaning rooms is easy right? Uh, nope.

You get the people in hotels that trash the room, and I mean trash it, like human waste, drugs, food, you name it, it’s in one room. Broken mirrors, dishes, torn sheets, smells like smoke, smells like alcohol. All the smells. This actually happens, ask any housekeeper.

We clean up so much bio-hazardous waste it’s not even funny.

Sure, we wear gloves, we sanitize, we do anything to protect ourselves, but that’s not the point. For bare minimum, it’s absolute bull.

This is my least favourite topic, because this has happened to me. I am always on edge now.

So, where I work, we have outside rooms, so it’s more private, more easy access for the guest to go to their car, and if you have pets, it’s kinda more ideal.

Well, let me tell you about them people who stay in those rooms.

They scare me. They give me anxiety. Unless it’s a family then I am a little more laid back about working out there, but man.

Okay, so I was working out there the one day, I was already having a bad day and there was a whole lot of people checking in early so I needed to be fast, I was in my last room and it was a mess, like a room that was turned upside down and all around. I was doing my thing, in there like a cleaning tornado. This guest was next door and he had asked me for a broom and I was like “Yeah, I seen one. Let me go get it for you.” So I did, handed him the broom and carried on cleaning. He was lurking in the doorway when I went to go get towels for my clean bathroom, I told him he needed to get out of my way please, and if he needed service to let me know, I already was terrified. I asked him several times to please leave me alone and let me do my job, he was asking me all these questions about my life, like they were personal, like where I live, if I have kids, who my friends were. I was scared. So I called my boss and closed the door to the room, locked it, and he came and rescued me from this potentially dangerous guest, he had told the guest to leave. Turns out this guy was a sex-offender. This is why we need danger pay. We need more than minimum.

That’s only one out of a million stories.

So when a housekeeper asks you to leave when they are cleaning you room, it is not to be rude or anything. They just don’t feel comfortable. It is nothing against you. It is solely based on policy and preference.

When our supervisor is checking rooms, they have to be nit picky and they will not hesitate to send you back to a room if you end up missing something, they are there just to keep an eye out for something that you have missed. Like I said it is not easy and after you just cleaned a very messy room your sense of motivation has fallen out the window.

Carts. This is something that bothers me a lot. Especially when I do not make enough for what I do. Like I had said before; every minute I take out of cleaning a room is a minute that I get yelled at for. So, when you need basic stuff, just take it. Unless it’s towels. We really don’t have enough to give out 6 extra towels. Then you give me attitude.