美国国家公共电台 NPR--Want your hotel room cleaned every day? Hotel housekeepers hope you say yes

Want your hotel room cleaned every day? Hotel housekeepers² hope you say yes

Transcript³

More than a hundred hotel workers and their supporters marched on a grey day last February, wearing bright red knit hats and carrying signs with a message: CLEAN HOTEL ROOMS SAVE JOBS.

In the tourism heart of Washington, D.C., ringed by posh hotels and globally famous landmarks⁴, they marched to a familiar beat, chanting "What do we want? Clean rooms! When do we want it? Every day!"

Their demand may have sounded simple: that the D.C. council extend a temporary ordinance⁵ that in effect required hotels to clean rooms daily, unless a guest opts⁶ out. (The council complied just days later.)

But for the hospitality union UNITE HERE, that requirement is so important to its members, it's waged a fight over the issue across the U.S. and Canada.

A room that hasn't been cleaned in days

Daily room cleaning was never a big issue before 2020. But at the beginning of the pandemic, when anxieties ran high about how COVID is transmitted, many hotel guests declined to have housekeeping workers enter their rooms. Fewer rooms to clean meant hotels didn't need as many workers.

Through collective bargaining agreements in some places and legislative⁸ efforts in others, the union has pushed to make daily room cleaning standard practice once again, both to preserve jobs mostly held by women of color, and to ensure that the cleaning task itself doesn't become more taxing than it already is.

Because a room that hasn't been cleaned in days?

"The day you check out, that room is terrible," says Chandra Anderson, who as a housekeeper¹ in Baltimore has encountered overflowing⁹ trash bins¹⁰, piles of wet towels, and toilet paper strewn everywhere.

"You never know what you're going to see."

Taking the fight to another popular destination

This spring, the union focused its efforts on a key battleground: Nevada.

The state's most famous city, Las Vegas, is home to more than 150,000 hotel rooms, according to its visitors authority. Thousands more rooms can be found in Reno.

As the pandemic upended tourism in the summer of 2020, Nevada passed a law creating COVID protections for hospitality workers, like paid time off for quarantining.

It also included a daily room cleaning requirement.

This was back when people would wash groceries before putting them away. Relying on research that found the COVID virus could live for days on hard surfaces, the union successfully argued that frequent and enhanced cleaning was safer for both guests and workers.

But times have changed.

This spring, State Senator Marilyn Dondero Loop, a Democrat¹¹ from Las Vegas, introduced a bill repealing¹³ the COVID law.

"It's time to sunset a COVID house cleaning policy that served its purpose but outlived its necessity," said Loop at a hearing in May.

On Thursday, the Nevada Assembly passed her bill, 33 to 9. It now awaits the governor's signature.

UNITE HERE's Nevada affiliate¹⁴, Culinary Union Local 226, had warned that if hotels aren't required to clean rooms daily, they will cut back, putting profits over jobs.

"We think the industry is attempting to change guests' behavior based on the pandemic, and we think that's bad for everyone," said the union's secretary-treasurer Ted⁷ Pappageorge. "Customers are still paying for first class service and first class rooms, but not getting the first class service."

Hotels say it's all about guest preferences

Hotel executives have in fact touted¹⁶ plans to save on labor¹⁷, including in housekeeping, in earnings¹⁸ calls and industry presentations.

And in the past, major hotel groups have offered guests loyalty¹⁹ points for forgoing²⁰ room cleanings, calling it the environmentally-friendly choice. The union calls this greenwashing.

But Ayesha Molino, a senior vice¹⁵ president with MGM Resorts International, said in testimony²¹ that MGM is just responding to changing guest preferences. More than 40% of MGM's guests in Las Vegas put out do not disturb signs or otherwise declined cleaning over the past 12 months.

"It doesn't matter if a customer's staying at the Bellagio or the Luxor. What we have seen is that our customer behavior is very consistent," Molino told state lawmakers. "The rate at which our guests are declining daily housekeeping is nearly double what it was before the pandemic."

Molino added that MGM is not incentivizing guests to do so, nor advertising²² it as an option.

Nationally, the number of people working in hotel housekeeping is down more than 20% compared to before the pandemic, according to the Labor Department's most recent figures from May 2022.

Supply and demand both appear to be factors. Since the pandemic, hotels have faced steep competition for workers.

"It's not a matter of us trying to have fewer. It's that we can't, rather, attract enough," Molino said.

Beyond jobs, cleaners worry about safety and security

UNITE HERE says the problem is cyclical. With fewer housekeepers on staff, it's a less attractive job.

Union housekeepers testified about feeling scared now that they're often working alone on a floor of a megaresort on the Las Vegas strip. They shared stories of coworkers being attacked by drunk and drugged guests.

Others spoke²³ of how much harder it is to clean a room after several days.

"The linen²⁴ is very heavy from the mountain of wet towels that have been piled up for days," housekeeper Rawanda Rogers told lawmakers. "We have a lot of party people in the rooms who trash the rooms, and it's so hard on my body."

The union says the Nevada legislature's repeal¹² of the daily room cleaning requirement won't be the last word. As it's done elsewhere, the union plans to raise the issue in collective bargaining when its contract expires later this year.

"We think these may be strike issues, and we will fight for the very best contracts for our members," said Pappageorge.

1 housekeeper   

n.管理家务的主妇，女管家

参考例句：

• A spotless stove told us that his mother is a diligent housekeeper.炉子清洁无瑕就表明他母亲是个勤劳的主妇。
• She is an economical housekeeper and feeds her family cheaply.她节约持家，一家人吃得很省。

2 housekeepers   

n.（女）管家( housekeeper的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• Can you send up one of your housekeepers to make bed? 请你派个女服务员来整理床铺好吗？ 来自互联网
• They work as gas station attendants, firemen, housekeepers,and security personnel. 本句翻译：机器人也能够作为煤气站的服务员，救火队员等保安作用。 来自互联网

3 transcript   

n.抄本，誊本，副本，肄业证书

参考例句：

• A transcript of the tapes was presented as evidence in court.一份录音带的文字本作为证据被呈交法庭。
• They wouldn't let me have a transcript of the interview.他们拒绝给我一份采访的文字整理稿。

4 landmarks   

n.陆标( landmark的名词复数 )；目标；（标志重要阶段的）里程碑 ~ (in sth)；有历史意义的建筑物（或遗址）

参考例句：

• The book stands out as one of the notable landmarks in the progress of modern science. 这部著作是现代科学发展史上著名的里程碑之一。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》
• The baby was one of the big landmarks in our relationship. 孩子的出世是我们俩关系中的一个重要转折点。 来自辞典例句

5 ordinance   

n.法令；条令；条例

参考例句：

• The Ordinance of 1785 provided the first land grants for educational purposes.1785年法案为教育目的提供了第一批土地。
• The city passed an ordinance compelling all outdoor lighting to be switched off at 9.00 PM.该市通过一条法令强令晚上九点关闭一切室外照明。

6 opts   

v.选择，挑选( opt的第三人称单数 )

参考例句：

• One player hoping to get another chance to shine if Mourinho opts to rest Cole backBridge. 假如穆里尼奥安排阿。科尔轮休，那么同一位置上的将会得到一个上场的机会来证实自己。 来自互联网
• If he opts out this summer, he d sign a five year deal. 如果今夏跳出，他估计会签五年。 来自互联网

7 ted   

vt.翻晒，撒，撒开

参考例句：

• The invaders gut ted the village.侵略者把村中财物洗劫一空。
• She often teds the corn when it's sunny.天好的时候她就翻晒玉米。

8 legislative   

n.立法机构，立法权；adj.立法的，有立法权的

参考例句：

• Congress is the legislative branch of the U.S. government.国会是美国政府的立法部门。
• Today's hearing was just the first step in the legislative process.今天的听证会只是展开立法程序的第一步。

9 overflowing   

n. 溢出物,溢流 adj. 充沛的，充满的 动词overflow的现在分词形式

参考例句：

• The stands were overflowing with farm and sideline products. 集市上农副产品非常丰富。
• The milk is overflowing. 牛奶溢出来了。

10 bins   

n.大储藏箱( bin的名词复数 )；宽口箱（如面包箱，垃圾箱等）v.扔掉，丢弃( bin的第三人称单数 )

参考例句：

• Garbage from all sources was deposited in bins on trolleys. 来自各方的垃圾是装在手推车上的垃圾箱里的。 来自辞典例句
• Would you be pleased at the prospect of its being on sale in dump bins? 对于它将被陈列在倾销箱中抛售这件事，你能欣然接受吗？ 来自辞典例句

11 democrat   

n.民主主义者，民主人士；民主党党员

参考例句：

• The Democrat and the Public criticized each other.民主党人和共和党人互相攻击。
• About two years later,he was defeated by Democrat Jimmy Carter.大约两年后，他被民主党人杰米卡特击败。

12 repeal   

n.废止，撤消；v.废止，撤消

参考例句：

• He plans to repeal a number of current policies.他计划废除一些当前的政策。
• He has made out a strong case for the repeal of the law.他提出强有力的理由，赞成废除该法令。

13 repealing   

撤销，废除( repeal的现在分词 )

参考例句：

• In addition, repealing the alternative minimum tax would also help. 此外，废除替代性最低税也会有所帮助。
• Repealing the investment tax credit. 取消投资税款扣除。

14 affiliate   

vt.使隶(附)属于；n.附属机构，分公司

参考例句：

• Our New York company has an affiliate in Los Angeles.我们的纽约公司在洛杉矶有一个下属企业。
• What is the difference between affiliate and regular membership?固定会员和附属会员之间的区别是什么？

15 vice   

n.坏事；恶习；[pl.]台钳，老虎钳；adj.副的

参考例句：

• He guarded himself against vice.他避免染上坏习惯。
• They are sunk in the depth of vice.他们堕入了罪恶的深渊。

16 touted   

v.兜售( tout的过去式和过去分词 )；招揽；侦查；探听赛马情报

参考例句：

• She's being touted as the next leader of the party. 她被吹捧为该党的下一任领导人。
• People said that he touted for his mother and sister. 据说，他给母亲和姐姐拉生意。 来自辞典例句

17 labor   

n.劳动，努力，工作，劳工；分娩；vi.劳动，努力，苦干；vt.详细分析；麻烦

参考例句：

• We are never late in satisfying him for his labor.我们从不延误付给他劳动报酬。
• He was completely spent after two weeks of hard labor.艰苦劳动两周后，他已经疲惫不堪了。

18 earnings   

n.工资收人；利润，利益，所得

参考例句：

• That old man lives on the earnings of his daughter.那个老人靠他女儿的收入维持生活。
• Last year there was a 20% decrease in his earnings.去年他的收入减少了20%。

19 loyalty   

n.忠诚，忠心

参考例句：

• She told him the truth from a sense of loyalty.她告诉他真相是出于忠诚。
• His loyalty to his friends was never in doubt.他对朋友的一片忠心从来没受到怀疑。

20 forgoing   

v.没有也行，放弃( forgo的现在分词 )

参考例句：

• Everything, in short, is produced at the expense of forgoing something else. 总之，每一种东西的生产，都得以牺牲放弃某些其他东西为代价。 来自互联网
• These aren't the only ones forgoing the morning repast, of course. 当然，他们并不是放弃早餐的唯一几个。 来自互联网

21 testimony   

n.证词；见证，证明

参考例句：

• The testimony given by him is dubious.他所作的证据是可疑的。
• He was called in to bear testimony to what the police officer said.他被传入为警官所说的话作证。

22 advertising   

n.广告业；广告活动 a.广告的；广告业务的

参考例句：

• Can you give me any advice on getting into advertising? 你能指点我如何涉足广告业吗?
• The advertising campaign is aimed primarily at young people. 这个广告宣传运动主要是针对年轻人的。

23 spoke   

n.（车轮的）辐条；轮辐；破坏某人的计划；阻挠某人的行动 v.讲，谈（speak的过去式）；说；演说；从某种观点来说

参考例句：

• They sourced the spoke nuts from our company.他们的轮辐螺帽是从我们公司获得的。
• The spokes of a wheel are the bars that connect the outer ring to the centre.辐条是轮子上连接外圈与中心的条棒。

24 linen   

n.亚麻布，亚麻线，亚麻制品；adj.亚麻布制的，亚麻的

参考例句：

• The worker is starching the linen.这名工人正在给亚麻布上浆。
• Fine linen and cotton fabrics were known as well as wool.精细的亚麻织品和棉织品像羊毛一样闻名遐迩。