A hotel without a reliable and consistent housekeeping staff will likely experience diminished cleanliness, face lower quality assurance scores from inspectors, be subjected to higher labor and training costs due to frequent employee turnover, and experience more complaints from guests. All this translates into lower profitability. Here are three suggestions for sourcing reliable housekeeping employees:
Seek Out Experienced Employees. Candidates who have prior experience caring for others, such as homemakers, nurses’ aides, and those who work with the elderly, often thrive in housekeeping positions. These are individuals who get satisfaction from serving others.
Seek Out New Employees. Employers can collaborate with refugee settlement organizations, alien assistance groups, disability support agencies, and county and state social welfare agencies to recruit motivated entry-level workers. These types of employees may require a semi-structured training program coupled with positive supervision, but they are loyal and hardworking.
Seek Out Referred Employees. Referrals that come from your best and most reliable employees usually result in a great hire. Good, hard-working people typically associate with others of the same work ethic. Consider establishing an employee referral reward program as an incentive.
About the Author
Dr. William D. Frye is an associate professor in the College of Hospitality and Tourism management at Niagara University and co-author of AH&LEI’s housekeeping textbook Managing Housekeeping Operations.
