Room Attendant Job Description - Responsibilities, Skills, Career
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What Does a Room Attendant Do?
Room attendants are responsible for ensuring that rooms and common areas in a hotel, resort, lodge or other hospitality establishment are kept clean and tidy at all times.
But what do room attendants do exactly?
Room attendants clean, tidy and prepare hotel rooms, while respecting guests’ privacy and their belongings. Working under the supervision of a head room attendant or housekeeper, they ensure that rooms and bathrooms, but also a hotel’s common areas, such as stairs, corridors and lifts, are maintained to a high standard of cleanliness. Room attendants are required to wear a uniform when performing their duties.This usually consists of a dress, or a blouse/tunic and skirt/trousers (for women), and a shirt and trousers for men.
Demand for room attendants is high, especially in tourist areas such as beach and ski resorts in which there are a large number of hotels and other hospitality establishments. Employment opportunities for room attendants tend to be seasonal, with peaks in summer and winter. Work may be part-time (usually mornings), full time, or on a shift basis, depending on a hotel’s requirements. Due to the seasonal nature of the work, vacancies for room attendants often include free room and board within the hotel.
Other common names for this position: Hotel Room Cleaner
Duties and Responsibilities
The principal duties of a room attendant are as follows:
- Clean and tidy rooms
- Make beds and change bed linen
- Clean bathrooms, change towels, replenish bathroom supplies
- Perform general cleaning of common areas, such as stairs and corridors
How to Become a Room Attendant - Education and Requirements
Room attendants are often required to have prior experience cleaning in hotels or similar establishments (or alternatively in private homes). There are no specific educational requirements, although some form of professional cleaning qualification represents an advantage, as does a knowledge of foreign languages.
What Skills Are Needed?
Room attendants require the following skills:
- Ability to quickly and efficiently perform cleaning duties
- Precision and attention to detail
- Ability to work as part of a team
- Polite and professional manner
- Flexibility (e.g. availability to work part time)
Room Attendant Career Path
The career path for a hotel room attendant - especially within a large hotel or national or international hotel chain - offers the opportunity to progress to a supervisory position as a head room attendant, housekeeping supervisor or assistant executive housekeeper - and from there to the role of executive housekeeper. This latter is a position of responsibility within a hotel hierarchy, reporting directly to hotel management. The role involves coordinating with the other hotel departments and supervising the work of room attendants, with the aim of ensuring that rooms and surrounding areas are clean and tidy at all times and that guests receive an impeccable service.
Top Reasons to Work as a Room Attendant
A job as a room attendant has the advantage of not having any specific entry requirements, with the exception of prior experience. The work is often part-time, making it particularly suitable for anyone looking for a second job, or for just a few hours’ work in the morning.
Hospitality and tourism is a sector that offers a wealth of jobs opportunities and in which demand for personnel is always high. A job as a room attendant can therefore also be seen as a way of acquiring useful hotel work experience, which may subsequently offer a route into other jobs in the sector.
