New Hotel Managers Must Keep Abreast of Laws Governing Housekeepers

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If you’re interested in pursuing a career in hotel management, you’ll want to be aware of the changes some states are making governing housekeepers. 

 

California, for example, is considering a bill to outlaw housekeepers from having to clean bathroom floors on their knees and lifting heavy mattresses for lack of fitted sheets.

 
Hotel housekeepers often clean bathroom floors on their hands and knees, which some consider unsafe and degrading. The proposed bill also seeks to end the failure of some hotels to provide fitted sheets, which some claim causes back and other work-related injuries. 
 
 
A study led by a team of researchers from four universities and UNITE HERE concluded that hotel female housekeepers had the highest rates of injuries of any hotel service workers in the study. Hispanic service women were among those suffering the highest risk of injury—nearly twice as likely as white housekeepers.
 
 
Proponents of the bill noted that hotels should finally allow long-handled mops and fitted sheets. They insisted that the time is now to end the practice of housekeepers cleaning bathroom floors on their hands and knees. 
 
 
One Hispanic female housekeeper complained that she works in pain constantly, that her body aches all over, and that she suffers from back pains due to the bending and lifting she does throughout the day. She wakes up in pain and has trouble going back to sleep. And she can't lift her arms above her head to wash her hair. She added that many of my co-workers work with injuries.
 

Do you agree that it is time for some changes to be made?  Let me know your thoughts in the comments.
 
 
 
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