Housekeeper job description template

What a housekeeper does

Housekeepers do physically demanding, often invisible work that guests and patients notice immediately when it's not done well. The job description should be honest about room quotas, physical demands, and the equipment and chemicals involved, and should describe the safety measures you provide. That honesty is what keeps experienced housekeepers from leaving after the first week.

Housekeeper job description template

Copy the description, replace everything in [brackets], and cut any line that isn't true for your job. The duties and requirements are a starting point written by HR practitioners, not a legal standard, so edit them to match the real work.

Housekeeper

Details
- Department: [Department]
- Reports to: [Manager title]
- Location: [City, State, or remote]
- Employment type: [Full-time, part-time, or seasonal]
- FLSA status: Nonexempt
- Pay range: [$X to $Y per hour]

About [Company]
[Two or three sentences about what your company does, who it serves, and why people like working here.]

Job summary
We're hiring a housekeeper to clean and refresh [guest rooms, patient rooms, or common areas] to a high standard, so every guest walks into a space that feels spotless and safe.

What you'll do
- Clean and sanitize rooms, bathrooms, and common areas to company standards.
- Change linens, make beds, and restock supplies and amenities.
- Vacuum, dust, mop, and remove trash.
- Report maintenance issues, safety concerns, and lost items.
- Use cleaning chemicals safely according to labels and training.
- Respect guest privacy and property.
- Keep carts and storage areas organized and stocked.
- Follow infection control procedures in healthcare settings.

What you'll need
- Ability to stand, bend, push carts, and lift up to 30 pounds for the full shift.
- Attention to detail and pride in clean work.
- Reliability and good attendance.
- Availability for [shifts], including weekends.

Nice to have
- Previous hotel, healthcare, or commercial cleaning experience.
- Second language spoken by our team or guests.

Skills
Thoroughness, Time management, Chemical safety, Physical stamina, Discretion, Teamwork.

Physical demands and work environment
Hotel or facility. Requires standing, bending, kneeling, pushing carts, lifting up to 30 pounds, and using cleaning chemicals with protective equipment provided.

Pay and benefits
[$X to $Y per hour], based on experience and location. [List benefits, such as health insurance, retirement plan match, paid time off, and training.]

Equal opportunity
[Company] is an equal opportunity employer. We consider all qualified applicants without regard to race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, national origin, age, disability, genetic information, veteran status, or any other status protected by law. If you need a reasonable accommodation to apply or interview, contact [name] at [email or phone].

How to customize it for your job

• State the typical room quota or cleaning area per shift.
• Describe safety measures, such as panic buttons and lifting equipment.
• Say whether you provide uniforms.
• List shift times clearly.

Then check it against the HRTally job description standard, our 10-point checklist, and run it through the inclusive language swap list. Both take about five minutes.

How much to pay a housekeeper

Half of US maids and housekeeping cleaners earned more than $17.07 an hour in May 2025, and half earned less, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics. That national figure is a starting point, not a pay range. Pay for the same job can differ by 30 percent or more between metro areas, so check the BLS occupation profile for state and metro data before you set your range.

For hourly roles, the legal floor matters as much as the market rate. Check the current rate where the job is based in our minimum wage by state table, and the state's overtime and break rules in our state labor law library.

To convert between hourly and annual pay, use our salary to hourly calculator. If you hire in a state or city with a pay transparency law, the range must appear in the posting itself. Our pay transparency laws guide lists where, and our guide to salary bands explains how to set ranges you can defend.

Exempt status, licenses, and legal notes

FLSA status: Nonexempt (overtime eligible). Job titles don't decide overtime eligibility. Duties and pay do. Our guide to exempt vs non-exempt employees walks through each test, and the overtime calculator shows what a nonexempt employee is owed.

Housekeepers are nonexempt and must be paid for all time worked, including required meetings and time spent getting carts ready. OSHA's Hazard Communication Standard requires training on the chemicals employees use and access to safety data sheets. Several cities require hotels to provide panic buttons to room attendants, and some limit daily room quotas or square footage. Healthcare housekeeping also involves bloodborne pathogen training.

This is general information for US employers, not legal advice. Laws change and vary by state and city, so confirm the current rules or talk to employment counsel before you rely on them.

Interview questions to ask

Ask every candidate the same core questions and score answers against the same criteria. Structured interviews are fairer and predict job performance better than open conversation.

1. How do you make sure you don't miss anything when cleaning a room?
2. What would you do if you found a guest's valuables left in a room?
3. How do you handle chemicals safely?
4. Tell me about a time you had more rooms than usual. How did you manage?

When you're ready to schedule, use our interview invitation email template. For a full hiring process, read the recruitment process guide.

Frequently asked questions