Retaining Hourly Employees

A two-night stay in a hotel last week left me less than impressed. I'm sort of a neat-freak (my bare foot has never touched a hotel-room floor), but what I found when I checked into my room was outright disgusting. The hotel wasn't a budget brand, so why was the housekeeping staff so bad?, I thought to myself on several ocassions. Too bad I didn't have this article on hand to recommend to the manager when I checked out.

There are lots of articles written on how to retain workers. Offering perks like time off for family events, flexible hours and training opportunities are touted as good ways to retain key employees. But most of the ideas I read about seem geared to salaried employees. This article focuses on what one San Francisco hotel did to satisfy more of its hourly staff. Since two-thirds of hotel and restaurant staff turnover each year, finding ways to keep them around is a good idea for the industry--and any other that employs lower-income workers.