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More important than developing ways to control theft is for the executive housekeeper to calculate how much theft costs the hotel and then turn over the challenge to the employees. For example, if a particular hotel is experiencing a theft of $45,000 per year from towels, linens, toiletries, remote controls, toilet paper, tissue paper, light bulbs, batteries, televisions, and so on, the executive housekeeper could develop a committee to address this challenge. The plan might include incentives so a percentage of savings due to theft reduction is passed along to employees.

Cleaning Control The mark of the housekeeping department is cleaning. Most housekeeping departments have one standardized routine for cleaning rooms and another for deep cleaning—a more thorough cleaning of furniture and accessories, windows, flooring, and walls. This process encompasses the guest rooms and the public areas. It requires a plan of communication with the front office manager to determine when occupancy will be low; with the maintenance engineer to identify scheduled repair dates; and with the food and beverage manager to identify down times in which empty banquet rooms can be deep cleaned. The plan is facilitated by a spreadsheet that outlines the room or area that must be deep cleaned and the specific sections of the room or area that need attention; the date is entered to maintain a continuous log of that particular deep cleaning activity. See Figure 15-11 for an example of a deep cleaning control log.

In-house Laundry versus Outsourced Laundry

Choosing how to provide clean linens, uniforms, and other fabric items for the hotel depends on several factors. According to Martin, planning an in-house laundry should include the following ten concepts: determination of needs; system definition and space allocation; equipment layouts; equipment selection, specifications, and budgets; detailed drawing and specification; equipment procurement and shipment coordination; installation scheduling and supervision; start-up, test, and demonstration; operator training; maintenance; and after-sale service.13 These well-thought-out concepts are time-consuming but assure the executive housekeeper the in-house laundry will be operated correctly and efficiently.

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■Encourages employers and employees to reduce workplace hazards and to implement new safety and health programs or improve existing programs.

■Develops mandatory job safety and health standards and enforces them through worksite inspections, by employer assistance, and, sometimes, by imposing citations or penalties or both.

■Establishes responsibilities and rights for employers and employees to achieve better safety and health conditions.

■Conducts research, either directly or through grants and contracts, to develop innovative ways of dealing with workplace hazards.

■Maintains a reporting and recordkeeping system to monitor job-related injuries and illnesses.

■Establishes training programs to increase the competence of occupational safety and health personnel.

■Develops, analyzes, evaluates, and approves state occupational safety and health programs.

■Provides technical and compliance assistance, training and education, and cooperative programs and partnerships to help employers reduce worker accidents and injuries.

If you are an employer covered by OSHA, you must:

■Meet your general duty responsibility to provide a workplace free from recognized hazards.

■Keep workers informed about OSHA and safety and health matters with which they are involved.

■Comply in a responsible manner with standards, rules, and regulations issued by OSHA.

■Be familiar with mandatory OSHA standards.

■Make copies of standards available to employees for review upon request.

■Evaluate workplace conditions.

■Minimize or eliminate potential hazards.

■Make sure employees have and use safe, properly maintained tools and equipment (including appropriate personal protective equipment).

■Warn employees of potential hazards.

■Establish or update operating procedures and communicate them to employees.

■Provide medical examinations when required.

■Provide training required by OSHA standards.

■Report within eight hours any accident that results in a fatality or the hospitalization of three or more employees.

■Keep OSHA-required records of work-related injuries and illnesses, unless otherwise specified.

■Post a copy of the OSHA 200—Log and Summary of Occupational Injuries and Illnesses for the prior year each year during the entire month of February unless otherwise specified.

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■Post, at a prominent location within the workplace, the OSHA poster (OSHA 2203) informing employees of their rights and responsibilities.

■Provide employees, former employees, and their representatives access to the OSHA 200 form at a reasonable time and in a reasonable manner.

■Provide access to employee medical records and exposure records.

■Cooperate with OSHA compliance officers.

■Not discriminate against employees who properly exercise their rights under OSHA.

■Post OSHA citations and abatement verification notices at or near the worksite involved.

■Abate cited violations within the prescribed period.15

Material Safety Data Sheets

Material Safety Data Sheets (MSDS) —a listing of a product’s chemical contents, relative hazards to users, and name and address of the producers—are a mainstay in the housekeeping departments of hotels. MSD sheets are available for employees to read in a readily available area. Each MSD sheet has specific requirements, including the following.

Each Material Safety Data Sheet shall be in English, and shall contain at least the following information:

1.The identity (product name) used on the label, and chemical and common name(s) of ingredients which have been determined to be health hazards, and which comprise 1% or greater of the composition, except carcinogens shall be listed if the concentrations are 0.1% or greater;

2.The chemical and common name(s) of all ingredients which have been determined to present a physical hazard when present in the mixture;

3.Relevant physical and chemical characteristics of the hazardous chemical (such as vapor pressure, flash point);

4.Relevant physical hazards, including the potential for fire, explosion, and reactivity;

5.Relevant health hazards, including signs and symptoms of exposure, and any medical conditions generally recognized as being aggravated by exposure to the chemical;

6.The primary route(s) of entry into the body;

7.The OSHA permissible exposure limit and ACGIH Threshold Limit Value. Additional applicable exposure limits may be listed;

8.Whether the hazardous chemical is listed in the National Toxicology Program (NTP) Annual Report on Carcinogens (latest edition) or has been found to be a potential carcinogen in the International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC) Monographs (latest editions), or by OSHA;

9.Precautions for safe handling and use, including appropriate hygienic practices, protective measures during repair and maintenance of contaminated equipment, and procedures for clean-up of spills and leaks;