Housekeeping
Housekeeping
Importance of Housekeeping Department
Cleanliness of hotel
Roles of Housekeeping Dept.: Guestrooms
Public spaceslobby areas / public restrooms / front desk areas / management offices / game rooms / exercise areas / pool & spa areas / employee break rooms & locker rooms / selected meeting & food service areas
Guestroom areas
Properly cleaned by Housekeeping
Verified as clean by second member of Housekeeping
Room’s status has been reported to Front Desk
Roles of Housekeeping Dept.: Guestrooms
Elevators/ corridors/ stairwells/ guestrooms
Room will be assigned, when:
Communication role to Front Desk staff (room status info) & Engineering / Maintenance Department ( room maintenance issues)
Roles of Housekeeping Dept.: Guestrooms(continued…)
Clean & Vacant Room vacant, has been cleaned and can be assigned to guest
Occupied Room registered to a current guest
On-Change Room vacant but not yet cleaned
Do not disturbRoom is occupied but not yet cleaned, due to guest request not to be disturbed
Sleep-outRoom reported as occupied, but room was not used, and guest may have left
Stay-over Guest will stay in room at least one more night
Room status terminology
Roles of Housekeeping Dept.: Guestrooms(continued…)
Due-out Guest has indicated that is last day he/she will use room
Check-out Guest has departed
Out-of-order Room is not rentable, thus not assignable
Lock-outGuest’s items still in room, but guest will be denied access until management approval of re-entry
Late check-outGuest has requested and has been allowed an extension of regular check out time
Room status terminology (continued…)
Laundry
areaslaundry preparation areas/ laundry supply closets/ guest linen, terry and supplies storage areas
Managing “On Premise Laundry (OPL)” and its effective operation
Housekeeping Dept. & Executive Housekeeper’s role
Laundry often represents one of the hotel’s largest expenses.
Roles of Housekeeping Dept: Laundry
Organization Chart for a Housekeeping Department, Large Hotel with In-house
LaundryExecutive
Housekeeper
Assistant Supervisor
Floor Supervisor
Room Attendant – AM Shift
Laundry Supervisor
Laundry Attendant – AM Shift
Room Attendant – PM Shift Laundry Attendant – PM Shift
Public Area Attendant
Assess quality of room cleanlinessPoint out deficiencies to room attendants, get those deficiencies corrected, & report revision of room status to Executive Housekeeper or Front Desk
have management skills (planning, organizing, directing and controlling departmental activities). have commitment to cleanliness and impeccable cleaning standard.create an appropriate inspection checklist and revise it as necessary.know about personal administration, budgeting, laundry sanitation, fabrics & uniforms, room cleaning chemicals and routines.be guest oriented.
Executive Housekeeper should:
Room Inspector’s major responsibilities:
Staffing the Department
Treat them at all times with respectEnsure they are supervised by excellent supervisorsHave room cleaning assignment policies perceived by them as fair Provide excellent, ongoing trainingProvide a realistic career ladder for room attendantsEnforce Housekeeping Department policies consistently and without favoritismEnsure room attendant safety through training and appropriate hotel policiesProvide benefit packages that are competitive for the areaPay fair wages
Approaches to build highly motivated, dedicated Room Attendants:
Staffing the Department (Continued…)
Housekeeping employees are one of the hotel’s largest groups
Physical nature of jobs
Managing Housekeeping: Safety
this group’s accident rates generally the highest in the hotel.
thus
Equipment & supplies
RuleHousekeeping employees should handle only those machinery items and supplies they are properly trained to handle.
Chemical handlingCleaning proceduresCorrect lifting techniquesProperly entering guestroomsContending with guestrooms containing:
firearms/ uncaged animals/ individuals perceived as threatening/ ill or unconscious guests/ drugs and drug paraphernalia / blood and potential bloodborne pathogens
Guest serviceGuestroom securityLost & Found procedures
Areas of training concern
Managing Housekeeping: Safety
Hotel must safeguard mislaid property until rightful owner returns Hotel must hold lost property until rightful owner claims it Hotel not required to find abandoned property’s owner Property left behind in room or found in lobby to be treated as mislaid or lost Establish how long any mislaid/lost property to be held before disposing it
Three types of unclaimed property
Managing Housekeeping: Lost & Found
Law and/or policy requirements:
Mislaid property Owner unintentionally has left item(s) behind
Lost propertyOwner unintentionally has left item(s) behind, then forgotten it/them
Abandoned property Owner intentionally has left item(s) behind
Date item is returnedOwner’s name/ address/ phoneHousekeeping Manager returning itemMethod of returnDate property is declared as abandonedName of hotel employee receiving abandoned property
Date item is foundDescription of itemLocation where item is found (room #, if applicable)Name of finderSupervisor who receives item
Managing Housekeeping: Lost & Found(continued…)
When item is found
Written report
When returned to rightful owner, or disposed of
Effective guestroom cleaning is heart of HousekeepingDepartment
Determines long-term success or failure of propertySleeping area: the first part seen by guest when entering roomBathroom area: closely inspected by guests for cleanliness
Forms basis for a guest’s initial impression of property
Public space cleaning
Guestroom cleaning
Facility Care & Cleansing
G.M.s should know what to look for when inspecting the hotel
G.M.s must inspect public space, guestroom and laundry
operation areas regularly
G.M.s should not evaluate effectiveness of their
housekeeping departments based only on lower costs per
occupied room or fewer minutes per room cleaning
(these factors are not always better!)
G.M.s’ roles in facility care and cleaning
Facility Care & Cleansing (continued…)
Collecting
Operating an effective “on-premises laundry” is a multi-step process
Laundry
Delivering
Sorting
Watching
Drying
Finishing / Folding
Collecting
Laundry: Operating an Effective OPL (continued…)
Dirty linen and terry should never be used as guestroom cleaning rags.Bloodstained linen or terry must be placed separately in a biohazard waste bag (pre-sort in guestroom).Biohazard waste bag should be on every housekeeping cart.
Sorting Once in OPL, laundry is sorted both in terms of fabric type & degree of staining.
Washing
This step is the most complex part.Monitor a: washing times, b: wash temperatures, c: chemicals, d: agitation length and strength
Drying
Laundry: Operating an Effective OPL (continued…)
Drying is simply a process of moving hot air (140-145 degrees F.) through fabrics to vaporize & remove moisture.Fabrics that are dried must have cool-down period in the dryer before they are removed from it
Finishing/Folding
Space for finishing laundry must be adequate
Storing
Many fabrics must “rest” after washing & drying 24-hr rest time for cleaned laundryHousekeeping Dept. should maintain laundry par levels of three times normal usage
Delivering Storage areas containing these items should be locked