Study: Hyatt housekeeper injury rate higher than at other major chains

By Julie Wernau, Chicago Tribune

Housekeepers at Hyatt Hotels are more likely to get injured on the job than at other major hotel chains, according to a study set to be published in January's American Journal of Industrial Medicine. The study, led by researchers at the University of Illinois School of Public Health, is based on data from 50 unionized hotel properties of various brands.

Hyatt was not named in the study but was identified by Unite Here, the union that provided the data.

Across the chains studied housekeepers were the most at risk for injury, at 50 percent higher than for hotel workers overall. The study said women workers were 1.5 times more likely to be injured than men, Hispanic women had almost double„© the risk of injury of their white female counterparts, and Hispanic and Asian males were about 1.5 times more likely to be injured than white males.

"These are extremely alarming results. They raise many questions as to why the injury rates are so high for these workers," said Dr. Susan Buchanan at the University of Illinois, the study's lead author. Buchanan said it is nearly impossible to collect such data from non-unionized hotels.

Amy Patti, public relations manager„© for Hyatt, said the company has not had the opportunity to thoroughly review the data and design of the study. "It is clear to us that the union's conclusions are not consistent with the workplace environment in our hotels," she said. "In fact, we have been achieving significant year-over-year reductions in both the frequency and severity of workplace injuries across U.S. Hyatt hotel properties."

Patti said housekeepers undergo extensive workplace safety job training and that the hotel chain continuously monitors its safety record.

The findings come as Unite Here is locked in tense contract negotiations with downtown Chicago hotels. During a conference call, the union said the release of the findings was unrelated to the contract talks.

Francine Jones, a Francine Jones, a room attendant at the Hyatt Regency in Chicago for 18 „©years, said injuries stem from changes to hotel rooms. ¡V including heavier beds and linens.

"It's all due to the rooms and the bending and the pulling and the pushing that we do. The rooms are complex now," said Jones, who has had surgery for carpal tunnel. "The mattresses are double now, they're very heavy, the linens are even heavy. The carts and vacuum cleaners are heavy."

John Wilhelm, president of Unite Here, said mattresses are two to three times heavier than when Francine started, with four to eight pillows per bed. The union said, has managed to lower room quotas to 16 rooms per shift in Hyatt hotels and has worked with the hotels to make concessions ¡V like using fitted sheets which require less bed lifting, but more needs to be done.

Celia Alvarez, a former room attendant at the Hyatt Regency in Long Beach for 19 years, a non-unionized hotel, said she cleaned 25 to 30 rooms in an 8-hour shift.

"We have to work very rapidly, not thinking about whether we're going to get hurt or not,'' said Alvarez who added that she can no longer work after permanently injuring her lower back and undergoing shoulder and knee surgeries.

"Hyatt has always been for the last 20 years the most aggressive hotel company in trying to indicate ways to get hotel workers to work faster and clean more rooms," Wilhelm said. "¡KThis ought not to be a subject of adversarial fighting. This ought to be something we can come together on."

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