The First Star has heard recently the main complaint from this hotel is that housekeepers are being over worked. They are doing 15, 16, 17 and even 18 rooms (at check out) which means that room attendants constantly feel stressed and overwhelmed. Many have complained about how this constant stress and pressure has impacted on their health.
And if the pressure isn’t bad enough, staff also feel bullied.
Housekeeping staff feel like the supervisors don’t respect them, but the staff certainly take pride in their work. Many in housekeeping have told The First Star that over the past 3-5 years, the standards in ‘luxury’ hotels have dramatically slipped. The overall cleanliness and detail once given to rooms no longer exists and housekeeping regularly cut corners because they feel they don’t have time to clean things properly.
The First Star has also been informed that housekeeping workers have also had their morning and afternoon tea breaks taken away. They are now given just half an hour for lunch, in which they are often interrupted by managers or supervisors with questions about unfinished rooms.
As part of the Accor chain, Sofitel Wentworth has participated in Earth Hour and introduced a formula to determine how much savings can be made through towel re-use and pledged to donate funds to the United Nation’s reforestation program.
Sofitel was also the first hotel brand to undertake Green Globe certification in Pacific region. They are attempting to be the first hotel group in the region to be fully certified by Green Globe by June 2009.
However, as with every other hotel in this sector, guests need to ask if this is just greenwash or an authentic commitment to preserve the environment for future generations? This lack of a consistent, authoritative and transparent environmental rating system really means that no one can be sure if they’re being snowed by marketing or actually making a difference.
