Hotel housekeeping department

On successful completion of this module, students will be able to:

• Explain the key roles of the housekeeping department

• Understand the duties of key positions in the housekeeping department

• Explain the organization of the housekeeping department

• Explain the relationship between housekeeping and other departments

• Understand the procedures involved in cleaning tasks

• Understand and explain room status codes

• Explain security procedures

Learning Outcomes

On successful completion of this module, students will be able to:

• Explain the Key roles of the housekeeping department

• Understand the duties of key positions in the housekeeping department

• Explain the organization of the housekeeping department

Housekeeping Operations

The housekeeping department is responsible for cleaning and maintaining the guest rooms, public
areas, office spaces and back of the house areas in the hotel so that the property is as fresh and
attractive as its first day of business.

For both business and leisure travelers, having a clean room is the basic requirement for their
staying in a hotel.

It is also supported by numerous surveys conducted by the hotel industry which constantly indicate
cleanliness as the prime factor in guests' decision of selecting a hotel.

Housekeeping

A hotel which fails to provide clean rooms to their customers would lead to less business received by
the hotel. Therefore, the housekeeping department and its staff play a critica role to ensure the
profit and success of the hotel.

In general, housekeeping maintains the cleanliness of guest rooms and public areas in such a way
that reflects the hotel's commitment to standards of excellence. In many hotels, the housekeeping
department is the largest department in the hotel.

Key Roles of the Housekeeping Department

As a support center, the main duty of housekeeping department is to maintain the cleanliness of the
hotel, including both back-of-the-house and front-of-the-house areas.

Setting good standards in room cleaning and public area cleaning can ensure a comfortable, safe and
hygienic environment for hotel guests and staff in the property.

A detail description of the responsibilities of the housekeeping department includes the following
areas:

1. Guest Areas

The cleaning of guest areas involves the following:

• Guest rooms

• Corridors

• Service lift and floor storage areas

2. Public Areas

The cleaning of public areas involves the following:

• Lobby and lifts

• Public restrooms

• Recreation facilities

• Guest self-serviced laundry

• Business centers

• Concierge areas

• Food and Beverage operations

3. Staff Areas

The cleaning of staff areas involves the following:

• Offices of different departments

• Staff canteen

• Changing and locker rooms

• Storage areas

4. Other Utilities

Other utilities which are the responsibility of housekeeping include:

• Laundry services

• Linen and uniform control

• Gardening

• Pest control
• Flower shops

Organization of Housekeeping Department

The organization of the housekeeping department will vary from one hotel to another depending on
the number of rooms and the hotel management.

This department is usually headed by an executive housekeeper, who is often assisted by an

assistant and several supervisors.

In the case of a small hotel, an executive housekeeper might have no assi assisted by smaller number
of supervisors.

Housekeeping Structure

Increasingly hotel management are streamlining their organizational structures and employing
casual employees.

However, set standards may be sacrificed and staff must assume a larger responsibility.

Organization of Housekeeping Department

As a result of streamlining many hotels have substantially reduced the number of staff and increased
the role of existing housekeeping staff.

This helps reduced the bottom line.

Housekeeping departments are usually composed of the following sections:

The attached image shows the housekeeping organization chart of a large-sized hotel.

Laundry department, Uniform and linen room, Housekeeping office, Guest floors, Public areas,
Health club, Floral and plant arrangement

Organization of Housekeeping Department

The laundry department provides laundry, dry cleaning and pressing services to guests. Some hotels
maintain their own laundry, while others rely on commercial operators.

In either case, close teamwork is necessary to assure a steady flow of linen back and forth for
restaurants, banquet areas, floor pantry and recreational areas.

Examples of hotel linen are as follows: towels, blankets, sheets, pillowcases, mattres protector,
tablecloths, napkins, cleaning cloths.

Imagine yourself as the executive housekeeper of a large-sized hotel.

Due to recent financial difficulties, your hotel has decided to cut costs by streamlining the
organization structure.

As the Executive Housekeeper, how would you redesign the organizational chart of your
department, to suit the needs of your hotel?

Duties of Key Positions

The housekeeping department is generally the largest department in most hotel operations. A
sizeable hotel would typically employ more than 100 housekeeping staff.

Owing to its sometimes complex organizational structure, it is important for every housekeeping
staff member to clearly understand their own responsibilities in order to provide the most efficient
service to guests.

The two top housekeeping positions and their descriptions are listed below:

Executive Housekeeper

The duties of the executive housekeeper include :

• Interviews, selects and engages staff in conjunction with human resources

• Training

• Deployment

• Prepares work schedules, work procedures and job descriptions

• Compiles duty rotas, holiday lists

• Personnel records

• Arranges supervision

• Staff welfare

• Orders and controls equipment, materials and linen

• Handles complaints

• Key control

Assistant Executive Housekeeper

The main duties of the assistant executive housekeeper include:

• Assists executive housekeeper in day-to-day operations

• Assumes responsibilities of executive housekeeper in his/her absence

• Revises daily work schedule depending on the occupancy rate

• Inspects work to ensure prescribed standard of cleanliness

• Inspects rooms, lobbies and restaurants for cleanliness

• Determines need for renovations and makes recommendations

• Coordinates with the front office to screens applicants, train new employees and recommends
disciplinary actions or dismissals

Duties of Key Positions

Housekeeping staff should be fully aware of all hotel services and ensure the daily cleaning and
tidying of all hotel bedrooms and any public areas.
Staff must also ensure that high standards of cleanliness are maintained throughout the hotel.

General housekeeping positions and their descriptions are listed below:

Floor Supervisor

Duties include:

• Checks staff on duty

• Supervision of staff

• Checks and completes the room inspection list

• Conducts induction and general training

• Orders and issues cleaning materials

• Linen checks

• Maintenance checks

Assistant Housekeeper

Duties include:

• Assists executive housekeeper in day-to-day operations

• Dispatches room attendants and floor supervisors to assigned floors

• Checks equipment and recommends new purchases

• Inspects guest rooms, lobbies and back stairs

• Keeps records of extra work performed by housekeeping department

• Takes inventory

• Prepares attendance records

Room Attendant

Duties include:

• Cleans rooms, bathrooms and suites

• Handle dirty and clean linen

• Provide turn-down service

• Reports faults, maintenance and peculiarities

Duties of Key Positions

The main function of the housekeeping department is to maintain the cleanliness of the hotel.

Further housekeeping positions and their descriptions are listed below:

Public Area Supervisor

Duties include:
• Inspects public to see whether cleaning is adequate

• Creates maintenance reports for items in need of repair

• Supervises cleaning of public areas, corridors and offices

• Train cleaners, advises executive housekeeper if performance is not satisfactory

• Liaises with other departments regarding the cleaning schedule.

Linen Room Attendant

Duties include:

• Sorts and counts dirty linen and uniform

• Checks and counts clean linen and uniform

• Issues and receives linen and uniform

• Assists in inventory taking of all linen/uniform

Cleaner

Duties include:

• Maintains the cleanliness and order of the hotel premises

• Keeps corridors dust free

• Moves and arranges furniture

• Carries out special work assigned by the public area supervisor.

Tailor and Seamstress

Duties include:

• Alters and repairs linens, uniforms, curtains and drapes

• Distributes and measures uniforms for new employees and keeps record

• Keeps records of all discarded items

• Prepares inventory

• Repairs guest clothing

Brainstorming

Using the information you learned, imagine yourself as a tourist or business traveler, what kind of a
hotel would you like to stay in?

Think about a list of the qualities of an ideal hotel. Use as many adjectives or phrases as possible to
describe your ideal hotel.

Study the following list of housekeeping staff. Do you think some of the responsibilities of one post
can be taken up by another post in the housekeeping department?

Why/why not?
• Executive Housekeeper

• Assistant Executive Housekeeper

• Assistant Housekeeper

• public area Supervisor

• Floor Supervisor

• Room Attendant

• Linen Room Attendant

• Tailor/Seamstress

• Cleaner

Learning Outcomes

On successful completion of this module, students will be able to:

• Explain the relationship between housekeeping and other departments

• Understand the procedures involved in cleaning tasks

• Understand and explain room status codes

• Explain security procedures

Housekeeping

No matter what the type of hotel or the category of traveler, hotels are in the service industry and
their goal is to meet the guest expectations.

To help achieving this goal, all hotel staff must work as a team to provide consistently high quality
service that promotes guest loyalty.

The housekeeping department is responsible for cleaning and maintaining the guest rooms, public
areas, office spaces and back-of-house areas in the hotel so that the property is as fresh and
attractive as on its first day of business.

For Example

When the housekeeping and front office departments work closely together as a team to ensure
that the guest rooms are cleaned and made ready for arriving guests.

If housekeeping cannot provide clean rooms quickly enough to the front office for sale, especially in
peak season, the result will be a loss of sales and guests.

The following are brief descriptions of the relationships of the housekeeping department with other
hotel departments:

Front Office
Rooms are the main concern of both departments. They must continually exchange information on
room status so that check-out rooms can be returned to use as quickly as possible.

In addition, renovations, repairs and maintenance can be scheduled during periods of low
occupancy. The housekeeping department needs to report to the front office any unusual guest
behaviour that may result in loss of revenue or bad publicity for the hotel.

Security

Responsibilities for security include patrolling the property, monitoring surveillance equipment, and
in general, ensuring that guests, visitors, and employees are safe and secure at the hotel.

Since housekeeping personnel work in every area of the hotel, they are in a position to contribute to
the hotel's security efforts. For example, when cleaning guest rooms, attendants are usually
responsible for locking and securing doors and windows.

Engineering

It is the housekeeping staffs responsibilities to request the engineering department to complete

minor repairs in order to avoid a major breakdown. They must work closely as a team, to complete
preventive maintenance and renovations with minimum disturbance to guests.

The engineering department also expects housekeeping staff to contribute to the efforts of
conserving heat, water and electricity.

Human Resources

The relationship between human resources department and housekeepi similar to those mentioned
earlier with the front office department.

Listed below are the descriptions of the relationship of the housekeeping department with all
remaining hotel departments:

Food and Beverage

The relationship between the housekeeping department and the food and beverage department
involves the supply of table linen and uniforms. The banquet department, in particular, must advise
housekeeping of its anticipated needs since banquet business may fluctuate considerably.

A good relationship should be maintained between housekeeping and room service to ensure
provision of timely housekeeping services.

Purchasing

The Purchasing department buys all cleaning and guest supplies. Its relationship with the
housekeeping department is self-evident.

When it comes to deciding what brand, quality or size should be stocked - whether the item is
cleaning powder or mattresses - the executive housekeeper and the purchasing agent must pool
their knowledge to consider the cost and availability of the products.

Sales and Marketing

The sales and marketing department relies heavily on the housekeeping department for prompt
delivery of goods/services as promised to the guests.
The major problems, especially in large hotels, is back-to-back conventions and groups. Front office,
sales and marketing and housekeeping share the responsibility to ensure that rooms are ready and
cleaned for the arriving groups of guests.

Accounts

The hotels controller manages the accounting division which is responsible for monitoring the
financial activities of the property.

As the housekeeping department maintains inventories of cleaning supplies, equipment, linen,

uniform, and other guest amenities, the executive housekeeper must often work closely with the
storeroom manager, who reports to the hotel's controller.

What would be the correct hotel department/staff involved so as to meet customer needs in the
following scenarios.

1. A guest wants to get a bouquet and some chocolate for her girlfriend's birthday.

2. A guest calls the housekeeping department to complain that there is no hot water in the
bathroom.

3. A guest orders room service.

4. A business traveler discovers that his personal computer left in the guest room has been stolen.

5. An old lady feels sick in her room

Cleaning Tasks

The main function of housekeeping department is to maintain the cleanliness of a hotel property.
Cleaning tasks are mainly divided into two different categories:

1. Room Cleaning

2. Public Area Cleaning

Room cleaning refers to the cleaning tasks of all guest rooms in a hotel property.

It is the responsibility of the room attendants to follow the proper procedures of room cleaning so
suitable rooms can be provided to guests during their stay in the hotel.

Room attendants should ensure that the rooms are, tidy, clean and comfortable.

Briefing

Most hotel room attendants work the a.m. shift as checkouts usually happen before 12 noon. Prior
to the commencement of their duties, attendants are required to attend a morning briefing
conducted by the executive housekeeper or the supervisor.

Issues such as complaints or problems associated with conduct or work procedures will be
addressed during the meeting, which also provides important information and direction to room
attendants which include:

• How many rooms are required to be cleaned for the day?

• Will any large groups or tours arrive early and request rooms?

• Are there any special cleaning requests, such as the setting up of extra beds before guest arrivals?
Cleaning Times

Room assignment sheets and room key cards will be distributed to room attendants during the
briefing. The number of rooms to be cleaned by each room attendant ranges from 10 to 15, which
varies according to the room sizes, room grades, complexity of room settings (e.g. supplies and
amenities provided) and also the cleaning standard as required by the hotel.

The time taken to clean a standard check-out room is around 30 minutes.

Less time is required for cleaning an occupied room, this should be considered by supervisors in
room assignments to ensure workloads can be fairly assigned to all room attendants.

Cleaning Preparation

The preparation works to be completed by room attendants before their cleaning tasks include
stocking the maid cart and prioritizing the room cleaning orders.

The maid cart should be filled with sufficient linens and guest supplies required for the days
workload.

Rooms being cleaned are always prioritized in a logical order as listed below:

1. Occupied rooms with service request

2. Rooms blocked for arrivals

3. Check-out rooms

4. Occupied rooms

Cleaning Procedures

The standard procedures of cleaning a guest room are more or less the same in all hotels. Room
attendants with no experience are always provided with training in order to learn the skills and
methods for performing their room cleaning duties.

The attached table summarizes the major steps performed by room attendants during the room
cleaning process.

Public Area Cleaning

Jar
Public areas refer to all front-of-house and back-of-house areas inside the hotel property. Generally
floor plans are sub-divided into sections which help assign job duties to cleaners or public area
attendants.

The schedules and frequencies of cleaning depend mainly on the level of traffic and also the
convenience and safety of both staff and guests.

For Example

Deep cleaning of the lobby can only be conducted on the overnight shift when traffic is low in the
hotel.

During the day, public area attendants can only perform minor and routine cleaning to avoid any
disturbances to hotel guests.

Other

It should be noted that areas, such as restaurants, kitchens and banquet rooms are always cleaned
by their own waiters, waitresses, chefs and banquet servers, respective Departmental staff are
responsible for maintaining a clean and safe environment for their guests and other staff members.

Housekeeping, would usually take a supportive role in assisting these departments to conduct some
deep or routine cleaning during off peak hours.

In-room Guest Supplies and Amenities

Hotels provide a variety of guest supplies and amenities for the guest's needs and convenience.

Guest supplies refer to items the guest requires as part of the hotel stay, e.g. toilet tissues, hangers
etc. Guest amenities refer to the nonessentials that enhance the guest's stay, e.g. in-room safe etc.

The housekeeping department is responsible for storing, distributing, controlling and maintaining
adequate inventory levels of both guest supplies and guest amenities.

Supplies and Amenities

Some hotels may charge the guest if they request to add a rollaway bed in the guest room. Note that
some properties provide only the basic items of guest supplies to guests, while others pamper guests
with extra items like fresh fruits and flowers etc.

Housekeeping staff may be called upon to provide special amenities and stock guest loan items to
meet requests. These items include everyday items such as:

. Plug adapter

• Fan

. Additional furniture

• Air-purifier . Bed board

. Crib/Baby cot

• Heater

• Humidifier

• Dehumidifier
• Rollaway bed

• Extension cord

• Transformer

• Extra bedding supplies

Room Status Codes

Special codes and terminologies are widely used by hotels in enhancing the interdepartmental
communications.

Room status codes are mainly applied by the housekeeping and front office departments and

can always be seen in the reports of rooms division and on computer systems.

Code Example

An example of how codes and terminology are used can be seen when a guest checks-out from the
front desk and settles his account. The front desk computer system will automatically change the
room status to Vacant Dirty or (VD).

This enables housekeeping staff to make up the room promptly and once the room is ready ,
housekeeping will notify the front desk by changing the room status to Vacant Clean (VC).

Security Procedures

The security division is responsible for maintaining and implementing procedures which protect the
personal property of guests and employees and the hotel itself. Every hotel has its own procedures
and guidelines for staff on how to handle guest valuables, keys and telephone calls.

Any unauthorized disclosure of guest information to anyone by hotel staff will be regarded as
misconduct. Hotel staff should never disclose guest's information.

Guest Valuables
A room attendant must report to the housekeeping office any guest valuables found inside the guest
room during cleaning. It is important that the room attendant stays in the room until the assistant
manager, floor supervisor and the security officer arrive at the scene.

The case must then be recorded very clearly in the Housekeeping Log Book The guest room will then
be double locked until the guest returns.

Suspicious Person

The housekeeping staff must report any suspicious person loitering on guest floors and public areas
to the housekeeping office.

The housekeeping coordinator will in turn inform the floor supervisor/assistant housekeeper, the
assistant manager and the security officer.

Key Control

All keys must be kept securely and each room attendant is responsible for taking care of the keys
under their charge. The misplacing or loss of key is a very serious matter and should be reported to
the executive housekeeper and security officer immediately.

Every member of staff in the housekeeping department is trained to handle and use the correct
procedures when someone asks to open a quest room.

Lost and Found

All staff should hand in items found inside the hotel premises. Most hotels assign this duty to the
housekeeping or Security department.

All information is recorded in the Lost and Found Logbook for prompt and easy reference.

Brainstorming

Think about the following scenario: A guest enquires about a missing item in his room, but the Lost
and Found Log book has no record of it.

How would you handle this situation if you were the assistant executive housekeeper?

Give the correct room status codes or terminologies according to the following cases.

• A room attendant found a small handbag in an occupied room.

• A receptionist has just confirmed that a guest has left without checking-out.

• A guest has requested to extend his stay for 1 more night.

• A room has been blocked for maintenance by the engineering department.

• The hotel G.M. has reserved a room for the regional director who will be staying in the hotel for a
meeting with hotel staff.

Summary

Housekeeping operations:
The housekeeping department is responsible for cleaning and maintaining the guest rooms, public
areas, office spaces and back of the house areas in the hotel so that the property is as fresh and
attractive as its first day of business.

• Guest areas

• Public areas

• Staff areas

• Other utilities

The housekeeping department is generally the largest department in most hotel operations:

• Executive Housekeeper ■ Public area supervisor

• Assistant Executive Housekeeper • Cleaner

• Floor supervisor • Linen room attendant

• Assistant housekeeper • Tailor/Seamstress

• Room attendant

Rooms being cleaned are always prioritized in a logical order as listed below:

1. Occupied rooms with service request

2. Rooms blocked for arrivals

3. Check-out rooms

4. Occupied rooms

Public areas refer to all front-of-house and back-of-house areas inside the hotel property.

Hotels provide a variety of guest supplies and amenities for the guest's needs and convenience.

Security Procedures

The security division is responsible for maintaining and implementing procedures which protect the
personal property of guests and employees and the hotel itself.

• Guest valuables

• Key control

• Suspicious person

• Lost and found