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It's
a crime many of us have been guilty of at one time or another: forgetting to
tip the hotel maid. According to a TripAdvisor
survey from 2014, 31% of Americans admit to not tipping the
maid, compared to 29% for bartenders, 27% for room service, and 21% for porter
service. (One guess why -- most hotel guests don't see or interact with the
maid, which makes skipping the gratuity less awkward.) And since Americans
tip more generously on vacation than other nationalities, according to the same
survey, hotel maids are getting seriously stiffed.
A
few incidents over the past year have sparked conversation about
the working conditions of hotel maids, including the video of a hotel
maid rifling a hotel room that went viral in November. Also in the news
lately: hotel workers' successful fight for a minimum wage
raise in Los Angeles.
So
just how guilty should you feel about skipping the tip? To answer that, we've
rounded up monthly salary information for hotel maids in countries around the
world. We used data from http://www.wageindicator.org/ (for
hotel maids with a year of experience) as well as other reliable sources,
and converted the salaries into USD. To give some context for these wages,
we've also listed nightly cost of a four-star hotel in each destination. We
don't know about you, but we'll probably remember to leave a few bucks on the
nightstand next time we're in a hotel room.
Brazil:
$365.23/month
With
a monthly salary under $400 a month, it's unsurprising that 51%
of hotel maids in Brazil are dissatisfied with their jobs (and
that 52% are dissatisfied with their salary). To give some context to that
pay, a McMeal at McDonalds is $7.55 and a liter of milk is $1.03. Oh, and a
four-star hotel such as the Royal Tulip Rio
de Janeiro, where such a maid might work? That'll cost you somewhere
between $200 and $300 a night this February.
United
States: $1,816.67/month
According to the Bureau of Labor
Statistics, the mean annual wage for cleaners of traveler
accommodations in the United States is $21,800, which works out to $1,817
a month. It's slightly higher in states such as New York and California, and
lower in Texas. A Quarter Pounder with Cheese meal in the U.S. will run you
about $5.49, so with an hourly wage of $10.48, a U.S. hotel maid isn't quite
earning enough to buy two McMeals an hour. A four-star hotel like the Omni Austin Downtown
will cost travelers between $200 and $300 a night next month.
Thailand:
$220.97/month
The
daily minimum wage in Thailand is 300 baht,
or a little over $9, which works out to around $221 a month (given a six-day
week). The two million Burmese migrant workers in Thailand -- many
employed at hotels -- are working for
half of that. A liter of milk in Thailand is 45.66 baht, or $1.40. A
four-star hotel such as the Haad Tien Beach
Resort on Koh Tao costs between $100 and $200 a night in
February.
Italy:
$1,803.73/month
In
Italy, 60% of hotel maids report
being very dissatisfied with their salary and their job. Not surprising given
the cost of living; in Rome, it's $8.45 for a McMeal at McDonalds and $1,204.85
for a one-bedroom apartment in the city center, according to
Numbeo.com. In April, a nightly stay at the Hotel Campo de'
Fiori in Rome will run you about $250/night.
Cambodia:
$124.53/month
Despite
having the lowest wages on this list, Cambodian hotel maids were
surprisingly not as dissatisfied as those in other countries, with 48% reporting their
job satisfaction as neutral, and 43% dissatisfied with the wage. A one-bedroom
apartment in the city center of Siem Reap costs
around $237.50 a month -- more than a hotel maid could afford. In February,
most four-star hotels start at around $100 a night, and some, such as the Angkor Paradise
Hotel, are significantly more than that.
Costa
Rica: $643.60/month
Though
some may find the hotel maid pay in Costa Rica meager, 49% of employees in the
field report
high satisfaction with their jobs, and a whopping 78% are satisfied or highly
satisfied with their salary. A one-bedroom apartment in a city center is about $456.16,
so we'll have to attribute this satisfaction to ticos' cheerful outlook on life
(or, as they would describe it, "pura vida"). Of countries analyzed
by the Happy Planet Index, Costa Rica
ranked #1. A four-star hotel such as Arenas Del Mar
Beach and Nature Resort often has prices for over $400 a
night.
Sweden:
$2,655.83/month
Even
though Swedish hotel maids have the highest salary on this list, they're not as
satisfied with their wages as the Costa Ricans, with 42% reporting satisfaction or
high satisfaction with their job. With this wage, the cost of living seems more
manageable than in other countries -- a one-bedroom apartment in the city
center is around $803
-- though in Stockholm, there's a notoriously long waiting
list for rentals. Four-star hotels such as the Hotel Rival
are often over $200 a night.
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