Do you tip the hotel maid? This used to be rather common decades ago – just watch any motion picture from the 1930s or 1940s and characters situated in hotel rooms will regularly tip the maid, server, baggage carrier or telegram deliverer. One hotel chain is attempting to bring it back again.
Marriott Hotels (NASDAQ: MAR) is launching a program with Maria Shriver that would encourage its guests to tip room attendants during the International Housekeepers Week (Sept. 15 to 19). Called “The Envelope Please,” Marriot is establishing the campaign this week that will place envelopes in more than 160,000 rooms in as many as 1,000 hotels located in Canada and the United States.
Each envelope will consist of the name of the attendant cleaning the room and with a brief message: “Our caring room attendants enjoyed making your stay warm and comfortable. Please feel free to leave a gratuity to express your appreciation for their efforts.”
It is suggested by Marriott International CEO Arne Sorenson to leave between $1 and $5 per night, but it varies on the type of room. Meanwhile, Shriver, who founded A Woman’s Nation, an organization which is meant to empower women, explained that many customers were unaware that this is a customary practice and were unsure how to go about it.
“The Envelope Please was born from having conversations with women I’ve met who have taken care of my room during hotel stay,” Shriver said in a statement. “Their stories of hard work and perseverance inspired and informed me. They told me that room attendants, who are often the primary breadwinner for their families, are often forgotten when it comes to tipping, unlike other front-of-house employees, since most travelers don’t see them face-to-face. I hope this gratitude initiative will make these women feel seen and validated.”
Ai-jen Poo, Director of the National Domestic Workers Alliance, celebrated the newest initiative. Poo averred that the move would help bring awareness to the work that room attendants complete every day of the week to ensure that guests are as comfortable as possible all year long.
Although hotel housekeepers are tipped like waiters and servers, they are still paid the minimum wage. According to some reports, quoted housekeepers said they received as much as $20 per week, if they’re lucky. Author Barbara Ehrenreich, who tried working as a hotel maid for her 2001 book “Nickel and Dimed,” told the Associated Press that it shouldn’t be the responsibility of guests to pay room attendants a decent wage but rather the hotel itself should be paying their staff members more.
However, Sorenson noted that its housekeepers working in expensive markets often start out with wages in the mid-teens. Also, it is reported by the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) that the mean hourly wage for a maid or housekeeper is $10.64, or a little more than $22,000 per year.
“Room attendants are the largest employee group within Marriott International and the heart of the house. We are proud to offer opportunities for job growth, strong training programs and competitive wages and benefit packages,” said Sorenson.
