So, do you tip your MAID?

[Sharon 1]

As the title says - do you leave a tip for the housekeeping staff in a motel/hotel/inn that you might have stayed at?

I am one of the housekeeping staff in a 5 star inn which houses a 5 star restaurant as well. And while I definitely know that it's not the same as staying in a by-the-road motel for the night, I was curious if anyone here leaves a tip. My question came to mind due to the "Do you leave your wait staff a tip" thread but also because I am in a constant state of amazement at work that people who think nothing of paying more than a thousand dollars a night in our establishment do not leave tips! The majority do not leave a tip for the maids and let me tell you - if you saw the extra-high standards that are expected of us in order to maintain its 5 star status, then you'd be amazed too. Especially in light of the fact that the messes left behind by 2 adults are sometimes worse than what my oldest daughter's room looked like when she was a teen. The valet/doormen get tipped...the wait staff get VERY well tipped....why not the housekeeping staff? I definitely don't make a high wage and I certainly work my butt off, literally. I've lost almost 20 lbs. since working there. It is hard physical labor, not to mention that in our particular inn, I climb up and down a minimum of 600 stairs every single day while doing my job...

So, yea or nay? B) And why or why not?

[CarolineM 0]

i do not - but I didn't know that was an expectation!! Thank you for this post.

[one...two...tree 2,762]

Sharon, I'm wondering why the others (valet, doormen, etc) do not share a portion of their tips with the maids? That's what servers do for the busers (who essentially are like the maid because they clean up after the patrons).

Edited October 8, 2006 by Steven_and_Jinky

[PlatyPius 5]

It depends.

While housecleaning (as most motels call it) is a difficult job, it also doesn't pay $2.10/hour like most waitstaff jobs do.

I've had items stolen from my room by housecleaning, I've found food in and under beds, I've had housecleaning make coffee using my coffeemaker and my coffee (always bring my own....motel coffee sucks), smoke my cigarettes, take my change (that was in a cup in my luggage), and have had my bags gone through while I was at work.

Also, I only stay at hotels/motels when I'm on a contract job. I usually don't have much money. The company I'm working for is paying for the room, and I'm usually lucky to pay for my own food while I'm there.

If I see the "maid" (contact is important....I don't know why), and if she (I've never met a male "maid" at a motel) does an exceptional job of cleaning my room, stocking the soap, shampoo, etc, AND leaves my stuff alone, then yes...I leave a tip. Not much, since I'm poor, but usually $5 for every day I'm there.

[Sharon 1]

Sharon, I'm wondering why the others (valet, doormen, etc) do not share a portion of their tips with the maids? That's what servers do for the busers (who essentially are like the maid because they clean up after the patrons).

In our inn, the valets/doormen/diningroom staff's tips all go into a kitty and are split between all the staff downstairs. The house-keeping staff split whatever tips that have been left in the rooms specifically for the maids.

It would be great if we got a share of their tips too but we don't, it's just the way it works there.

There's also a kind of hierarchy thing going on too, the downstairs staff don't seem to have a lot of respect and kindness towards the maids for some reason or other.

[aliciaandfran 0]

I'm only 21 as of yet I have never stayed in a hotel alone...but I can tell you this. My dad works on the road all of the time...He stays in hotels most of the year. I called him the other day to talk...and I asked him if he tipped his waitress when he went out to eat...(hehe can't you tell the stress of the jobs gets to me sometimes...that i have to make sure my loved ones know how to tip! hehe) Well, he responded with this, "Alicia, I leave a tip everyday for the housecleaning lady...Of course, I tip." So, my dad doesn't stay in a 5-Star or anything special but he does leave a little token of appreciation for the maid...But he's just a good man. I think awareness is a big thing...get the word out...TIP YOUR MAID!!! and your waitress!!!

that's it for now...bye!

[Jamaica to CT 0]

I have never stayed in a 5 star $1,000 a night hotel; but I usually leave about $5 a day. I have noticed that my room looks extra nice when I leave a tip that size. I've seen others traveling in a group leave coins. To me that's an insult.

Edited October 8, 2006 by Jamaica to CT

[Sharon 1]

If I see the "maid" (contact is important....I don't know why), and if she (I've never met a male "maid" at a motel) does an exceptional job of cleaning my room, stocking the soap, shampoo, etc, AND leaves my stuff alone, then yes...I leave a tip. Not much, since I'm poor, but usually $5 for every day I'm there.

Thank you.

If any one of us did any one of those terrible things you described, it would immediately cost us our job, trust me.

Thank you for mentioning the "contact" thing - it's one thing we maids have surmised is why we get very little in the way of tips compared to the valets etc. Because they don't see us. It's a part of our job that we must be in and out and NOT be seen if it can be helped hahaha Then again, do they think the bed gets made, trash emptied, amenities replenished, fresh towels placed and bathroom tidied by magic somehow tho or what? LOL

No we don't make as little as wait staff do, you're right. While they're job isn't easy either, they aren't cleaning nasty toilets and stripping "wet" sheets or emptying used tissues from trash etc either....lol.

[Jamaica to CT 0]

Sharon, I'm wondering why the others (valet, doormen, etc) do not share a portion of their tips with the maids? That's what servers do for the busers (who essentially are like the maid because they clean up after the patrons).

In our inn, the valets/doormen/diningroom staff's tips all go into a kitty and are split between all the staff downstairs. The house-keeping staff split whatever tips that have been left in the rooms specifically for the maids.

It would be great if we got a share of their tips too but we don't, it's just the way it works there.

There's also a kind of hierarchy thing going on too, the downstairs staff don't seem to have a lot of respect and kindness towards the maids for some reason or other.

I'm not sure if you're saying there is a difference between the "maids" that clean the rooms and the housekeeping staff that probably clean the other areas of the hotel? I didn't know that you don't get to keep your own tips.

While they're job isn't easy either, they aren't cleaning nasty toilets and stripping "wet" sheets or emptying used tissues from trash etc either....lol.

[Sharon 1]

I have never stayed in a 5 star $1,000 a night hotel; but I usually leave about $5 a day. I have noticed that my room looks extra nice when I leave a tip that size. I've seen others traveling in a group leave coins. To me that's an insult.

Thank you.

We don't expect much just a small token of appreciation is nice tho. And truth be known while the odd celebrity has left a 50 or 100 dollar bill, when we do get a tip most are in the 5 - 20 dollar range. But split that between the 14 house-keeping staff and well, you know what happens...lol. Nothing is UNappreciated, trust me. It shows us and lets us know that our hard work shows.

I'm not sure if you're saying there is a difference between the "maids" that clean the rooms and the housekeeping staff that probably clean the other areas of the hotel? I didn't know that you don't get to keep your own tips.

Sorry for the confusion...the housekeeping staff/maids are one and the same. We clean the WHOLE place, rooms, lobby, dining room, library....everything.

But we do not keep the tips we find in the rooms we go to clean. We mark down on a sheet - which room number - how much the tip was and we put it in a envelop noted with that day's date. the envelope is put into the inn's safe at the end of each workday and at the end of the 2 week pay period it is all tallied and distributed between all of the house-keeping staff. It goes by however many hours you worked during the 2 week period (we have several part-time staff) as to how much of the tips you're entitled to.

[aliciaandfran 0]

Wow...I think you should be able to keep your own tips.

Edited October 8, 2006 by aliciaandfran

[w¡n9Nµ7 §£@¥€r 123]

I've been told the rule of thumb is to leave $5 per bed, per night. I don't have a problem with the rule and leave a tip right before it's time to check out.... when I remember. I frequently forget.

Edited October 8, 2006 by Gupt

[Sharon 1]

Wow...I think you should be able to keep your own tips.

In our particular establishment, it really wouldn't be fair for a multitude of reasons. If a guest was staying for more than one night for instance, and you got their room to clean when they checked out but hadn't "serviced" the room the day before because it was your day off for instance, it wouldn't be fair to keep the tip as "yours", know what I mean?

I've been told the rule of thumb is to leave $5 per bed, per night. I don't have a problem with the rule and leave a tip right before it's time to check out.... when I remember. I frequently forget.

Sorry to ask in quite this way...lol...but how often do you forget to tip your waitress in a restaurant?

And by the way....5$ a bed per night is very nice.

Edited October 8, 2006 by Sharon

[w¡n9Nµ7 §£@¥€r 123]

I've been told the rule of thumb is to leave $5 per bed, per night. I don't have a problem with the rule and leave a tip right before it's time to check out.... when I remember. I frequently forget.

how often do you forget to tip your waitress in a restaurant?

Never.

Not to make excuses, but when I'm checking out of hotel rooms I'm usually in a rush to catch a flight or something. Not the case when I leave restaurants. And besides, at restaurants, when I'm filling out that credit card slip, there's a line for entering the tip amount. They remind me to pay up. Ya'll don't

[Sharon 1]

I've been told the rule of thumb is to leave $5 per bed, per night. I don't have a problem with the rule and leave a tip right before it's time to check out.... when I remember. I frequently forget.

how often do you forget to tip your waitress in a restaurant?

Never.

Not to make excuses, but when I'm checking out of hotel rooms I'm usually in a rush to catch a flight or something. Not the case when I leave restaurants. And besides, at restaurants, when I'm filling out that credit card slip, there's a line for entering the tip amount. They remind me to pay up. Ya'll don't

And how might you suggest we give a gentle 'reminder" to a guest, then? LOL