Module 4 HOUSEKEEPING DEPARTMENT POLICIES Uniform Policies To ensure that all uniformed staff has available and presentable

uniforms at all times some Hotels (the large one especially) have seen to it that they are provided with uniforms and uniform accessories as well as uniform maintenance free-of-charge  Issuing Hours - Uniforms shall be issued only during the designated issuing hours that should be clearly posted at the door of the Linen/Uniform Room. A memorandum stating the specific hours will be sent to all departments for guidance purposes Inventory - Uniform inventory will be conducted at least once every 3 months. The quality and styles will have to be reviewed annually and recommendations made to the appropriate Division Head if change or additions are necessary. Lost or Damaged Uniforms - Uniformed employees are held responsible for any loss or damaged to uniform due to negligence. Uniform Exchange Logbook - In order to monitor discrepancies between soiled uniforms turned-in to and clean ones received from the Laundry and whether employees are exchanging uniforms as per schedule, the Uniform Exchange Control System is to be implemented with the use of Uniform Exchange Control Logbook. Uniform Control Log Card - Each type of uniform control Log Card will be established for each new employee. Under the section Changes issue of new uniforms (old new design) or issue of new shoes, etc, is to be recorded. On the reverse side, all special remarks are to be recorded, such as uniform misuse, damage, loss, etc. Uniform Design Cardex - Each type of uniform is to be given a design number, which makes reordering later easier. In the Uniform Design Cardex, all relevant information about a type is to be recorded, such as:        Design no. Department/outlet uniform is intended for Position Pieces of the uniform (jacket, blazer, pants, skirt, blouse, scarf, etc. Material requirement needed to make each time of the uniform Material color/name/composition Material swatches

 

     

Photo of the uniform

Employee Attendance Record An individual record is prepared for each employee fro one calendar year and kept in the employees file. On a daily basis, the coordinator completes the attendance record recording to the legend. The Coordinator alerts the Executive Housekeeper to pattern of repeated and regular absenteeism, tardiness and under time. The attendance logbook can be used as the basis for the preparation of the payroll. The attendance logbook be used as reference in evaluating the attendance of each employee for given period.

Signing In & Out Procedure At the start of the shift:       Report for work at least 30 minutes before your official work schedule. Proceed to the timekeeping area and PUNCH IN on the Bundy clock. Proceed to your respective locker and change your clothes to the proper uniform. Proceed to the Housekeeping Office and SIGN IN on the Time Sheet/Attendance Logbook. Report to your Supervisor, attend the briefing, and ask for any special instructions. Proceed to your respective workplace and perform your tasks.

At the end of the shift:      Clean your work area making sure that everything is in order. Inform your Supervisor that you are now leaving your workplace. Proceed to the Housekeeping Office and SIGN OUT Proceed to locker and change into street clothes. Return your soiled uniform to the Linen Section and Exchange with a clean uniform and keep it in your locker ready for the next day,. When you have no time to got to the linen Section to return your soiled uniform, you may keep your soiled uniform in your locker and exchange it with a clean one the next day at the beginning of your shift. Proceed to the timekeeping section and PUNCH OUT. Leave the Hotel premises.

 

Housekeeping Logbook

 

Endorsement Logbook - Filled out by supervisor, who summarize the remarks and the comments written by the attendants in their work assignment sheets. Attendance Logbook - This logbook cross checks the daily time cards and keeps track of the working time and schedules of the Housekeeping staff. This system will help deter employees from loitering after they have punched their time card at the designated work time. Master Linen Logbook - Kept by the Linen Supervisor, this logbook will record dates and quantities of original purchases of linens, purchase cost linen, linen specifications, damages, losses and replacements. This logbook will keep track of the Linen history of the Housekeeping department and provide information on linen status at any time. Master Equipment Logbook - Filled out by the Linen Supervisor, this logbook traces the equipment history of the department by recording such information as date and quantity of original purchase of equipment, purchase cost, equipment specification, damages, losses, and replacements

Key Control Logbook. Enables the daily inventory of keys. Keeping track of the staffs access to such keys at any time is also facilitated. This information will be helpful in pinpointing who had access to certain areas especially when there is a report of theft in the premises. Lost and Found Logbook - Keeps a record of all items that may have been misplaces or lost by guest or anyone in the establishment, and those found by any of the housekeeping staff or surrender to them by others. This logbook helps to return the found items to the right owners as records the following information:

         

namely/type of item (color, size, marking, etc.), date and time lost date and time found area last seen area found founders name and address name of owner (if known), date claimed name and address of claimant Telephone Logbook - Records all incoming messages for the department and for whom the messages were intended. Calls that are accepted and logged should only be those that pertain to the business of

the hotel. Such calls should immediately be relayed to the section or person concerned and the message receiver should be noted down for verification purposes.  Extra Item Logbook - Keeps tracks of extra items such as electronic shavers hair dryers, baby cribs, extra beds, extension cords, adaptors, etc., that guest may request to be provided in their rooms for a certain fee. In bigger properties the number of rooms may necessitate preparation of one such logbook for every floor level. Loss and Breakage Logbook - In the absence of a loss and Breakage Report Form or a Master linen/Master equipment logbook, this logbook will record the loss or breakage or items provided in various areas for purposes of assigning responsibility, and for replacement of such items when called for. Uniform Logbook - Keeps track of all uniforms issued to full-time and part-time employees. Records any damages, losses, repairs and replacements of uniforms. Generally traces the Hotels uniform history and gives information on uniform status. Checkout Logbook - List down the rooms that are going to be checked-out for the day. This record will aid the Desk Control and Guest Floor Supervisors to follow-up on rooms that are given first priority in the cleaning schedule, as they are sources of income.

Housekeeping Keys & Control Policies  Emergency Key sometimes called the Grand Grand Master Key as it opens all doors

Module V. THE LINEN ROOM Linen Room is the hub of the department. The center of all housekeeping activities is where linens are stored, where employees check, in and out, and where the professional housekeeper formally has her office.

Keys and supplies are dispensed from here and sometimes uniforms or clean laundry and the lost and found operates from the linen room. - is a misleading term for the area; actually, it is far more than a place to store and issue linens. It is in reality the housekeeping headquarters and many different activities go on there. It is the heart of the housekeeping department where, All housekeeping personnel report.. Inspectors, maids and housemen receive their station assignments, work orders, and pass keys. All housekeeping telephone calls are received. All check-out and in-order room are recorded All guest rooms not cleaned by a specified and are reported. All household supplies are issued. Handling of commercial laundry counting the outgoing linens and counting and checking all the incoming linens and billings done. Table linen are issued (to the food and beverage department). All uniforms and costumes are issued on a one for one exchange basis(unless they are in a uniform room in another location). Working are kept. All housekeeping pass keys are kept and controlled. Linen Room Function and its Purpose To store, care for and control the following: Initial purchase of linen Uniforms Losses of the linen and uniforms Replacements or additional purchases of the above All other housekeeping cleaning supplies and equipments Lost and Found items Linen Room and its Function: 1. The linen room is the heart of the housekeeping department. 2. All rooms, restaurants, kitchen linen issuance

3. All uniforms are issued (uniform room) here. 4. All floors, restaurants, kitchen linen are issued on an exchange basis, a clean for dirty one. 5. All uniforms are issued (uniform) on an exchanged basis a clean one for a dirty one. 6. All repairs of linen and uniform are carried out. 7. Linen stocks is counted on a periodical basis every three (3) months and is supervised and executed by the help of linen room supervisor or attendant, with the cooperation of all department. 8. Uniforms are counted on a yearly basis, unless otherwise requested, with the help of all departments. 9. New linen requisition are processed through the accounts department. 10. There should be absolutely no smoking or eating in the linen room. 11. The shelves of the linen room must be made to fit uniformly folded linen. Types of Linen Room BED Bed cover/night spread/comforter Bed sheets Fitted sheet Flat sheet Pillow Case Pillow Slip Pillow Bathrooms Beach towel Bath towel Hand towel Fade towel Wash cloth Bath mat Curtain Bath robe

Table Linen Table Cloth Top cloth Runner Table napkin Placemat Linen Control Policies and Procedures Daily handling of Guestroom Linen The establishment par stock for every linen storage are should be enough to last 24 hour operation. Pas for the room attendants cart should be enough to service 6 rooms to be refilled as needed. Carts must be neatly arranged and stocked. The A.M. Asst. Housekeeper gathers the requisitions of the Floor Supervisors and at 3:00 p.m. prepares the daily linen requisition which is then sent to the Housekeeping office for the signature of the Executive Housekeeper. The requested items will be distributed in the evening to the different Floor Stations by a Linen Distributor. The linen room supervisor should check occasionally to ensure that requisition made are accurate, especially if total count of requisitions and laundry figure of total dirty linen washed vastly differs. (Minor discrepancies in count, either way, is possible.) Linen Control Policies and Procedures Daily handling of Guestroom Linen The establishment par stock for every linen storage are should be enough to last 24 hour operation. Pas for the room attendants cart should be enough to service 6 rooms to be refilled as needed. Carts must be neatly arranged and stocked. The A.M. Asst. Housekeeper gathers the requisitions of the Floor Supervisors and at 3:00 p.m. prepares the daily linen requisition which is then sent to the Housekeeping office for the signature of the Executive Housekeeper. The requested items will be distributed in the evening to the different Floor Stations by a Linen Distributor. The linen room supervisor should check occasionally to ensure that requisition made are accurate, especially if total count of requisitions and laundry figure of total dirty linen washed vastly differs. (Minor discrepancies in count, either way, is possible.) Distributions to the floor stations must be based on requisition made to same day. The Executive Housekeeping is to be advised if a certain item starts to run short (such as face towels, where loss can be very high.)

 When the housekeeping uses a chute (a hole in the wall leading to a narrow slopping passage along which something may be passed, dropped or caused to slide) soiled bed sheets and towels will be sent directly through it except bed pads, blankets, bedcovers, shower curtains, bathrobes and cloth slippers which shall be brought down separately to the laundry by the linen distributor before 4:00 pm. Stained bed pads, blankets, bedspreads, bed sheets and other linens are to be brought down to the laundry and the stains treated separately prior to regular processing. Inventory of Guestroom Linen Inventory shall be done every three months under the supervision of the Accounting Department. A linen inventory from shall, be used to record all count. If high losses of certain items are experienced, it is advisable to make inventories of major like sheets and towels on a monthly basis. Inventory should be completed with one day. First to be counted are the linens found in the floor station and room attendants carts before room attendants starts their duties. All linen chutes must be locked/sealed before the room attendants go up to the guests floors. The chutes will remain closed and no dirty linen are be thrown therein. The chutes can be opened when all linens dropped into the soiled linen area in the laundry have been removed, counted and processed, in other words, the soiled linen are empty. Only then will the laundry manager advise housekeeping that soiled linens can be now be dropped into the linen chutes. It is understood that all linens to be dropped have been counted. Inventory of F & B Linen A memorandum will be sent by the Accounting Department announcing the date of the inventory and the time each outlet will be inventoried. A day prior to the inventory taking all outlets must return all their dirty linens and exchange them for clean ones, No issuance of clean linens will be entertained on the day of the inventory. Dirty linen will be counted by the Laundry or Linen Supervisor if not yet given to the Laundry for washing. Linens in the linen rooms and storeroom are to be counted at the same time using the F&B linen inventory by outlet form linen room/storeroom. Combine all figures into the F&B Linen inventory master summary by outlet form. Loss/condemned figures will be discussed with the F&B manager. After inventory taking all par stocks per outlet will be adjusted according to the established par level. Bath master summaries for guest room and F&B linen will be forwarded with all supporting papers to the accounting department. Both inventories will be taken separately a day each. Sufficient staff should be on duty to ensure a smooth and accurate count. Whenever one or more items fluctuate strongly from one inventory period to the next, monthly inventories of such items should be taken to find out the cause.

Linen Circulation Cycle and the Par Stock Linen in the guestroom or outlets being used by the guest. Linen in the attendants cart/floor stations to replace soiled linen in the guestrooms or outlets. Linen going to the laundry to be cleaned Linen in the laundry being cleaned Linen in the linen room storage area stocked in reserve. Par Stocks is the minimum linen and uniforms required to meet the daily demand so as to ensure smooth operations. Importance of Par Stocks To make correct and efficient investment of capital. To prevent overstocking and thereby avoid chances of spoilage during storage, storage space problems, etc. To ensure proper supply at all times. To help in effective budgeting. To simplicity inventory taking. To bring about manageable control. Stock Taking is the physical verification by counting of stocks of all items in the cycle at periodic intervals at the time of closing of books for valuation purposes or for the accuracy of recording entries in books, so that the coverage's or shortages can be found out by a variance in physical balances and the accounts inventory ledger balance.