This is mostly just a rant/ vent, but feel free to discuss and give advice. Capitalism needs to end.
About a year ago i moved to my parents place at the coast where they are retired. There was a load of family drama and tragedy going on and they needed me to come, and i am now paying the mortgage on their house. I needed a job, and wanted something relatively low stress that i could just go, do my work, then go home and not worry about it with everything else going on, so i applied to a few of the many hotels in this tourist town, and got a job as a housekeeper.
Even though work sucks, i know i have to do it to live, so i try to keep a positive attitude as best i can.
It really wasnt bad to start out. It turns out i am very good at housekeeping, and after a month or two i could keep up with or surpass all the other housekeepers. Not only that, but our manager would desperately try to get people to clean up the property after the rooms were clean (vacuuming the halls, picking up the parking lot, clearing cobwebs etc.) Nobody seemed to want to do it, and just left as soon as their rooms were clean. I was the only one who always volunteered to do the extra work, and was willing to do basically whatever they needed. After a couple months my manager offered to have me learn from the maintenance guy, and do building maintenance a couple days a week on his days off, allowing me to get 40 hours a week no matter how few rooms there were to clean. I accepted, and started learning to fix things, and maintain the pool and spa. Over time i ended up filling in for multiple other jobs, like houseman, and laundry. And about 4 months ago, i was also offered the head house/supervisor position on the days the other head house was off. I accepted. At this point i do about 5 different jobs at this hotel, sometimes multiple duties in the same day. I can clean a room better than anyone here. I inspect rooms more thoroughly than anyone here. I have never been late, and never called out aside from a single day when i was literally unable to get out of my driveway due to a freak ice storm.
Ive known for a good while that a couple housekeepers are making about 4 dollars an hour more than me. They were worked here a year before me, and due to some bad management from the previous GM (general manager), they were having a hard time keeping employees, and they were the most reliable housekeepers there. (SIDE TANGENT) –One of them now has a grudge against the current GM because he was caught smoking weed while the GM was giving a new employee a tour of the property, and got written up for it. This GM is one of the only managers ive met who genuinely cares about his employees and wants to have a relaxed and fair work environment. Hes a genuinely nice guy, but he had to do a write up to cover his own ass from the regional manager. This housekeeper now puts in little to no effort, and will tell everyone he meets that our GM is a horrible monster. Honestly, he didnt even put that much effort into anything aside from cleaning rooms before this happened. This guy is making 4 dollars more than me an hour.
I didnt worry about it too much at the time, but at this point i have thoroughly demonstrated that i go above and beyond, am reliable, and am committed to doing an outstanding job. Not to mention the fact that i do FIVE DIFFERENT JOBS HERE. They recently hired a NEW housekeeper that i found out makes more than me.
The GM regularly tells me how great i am, and will tell other people how hard i work and how much i do. I eventually asked when i was going to be seeing a significant raise. He agreed that i had earned it, and would consult the regional manager. The regional manager denied my raise.
I asked again when i will be seeing a raise. The regional manager denied my raise.
Im not making as much as new housekeepers. Im not making as much as the laundry guy. Im not making as much as the other head house, who works really hard, but certainly doesnt inspect rooms as thoroughly as i do (ive gone into rooms after her and found egregiously dirty things)
I dont mind that they make as much as they do. But im starting to realize that im being F$%#K#D around here. Im under WAY more stress now than i was when i started, and i have nothing to show for it. I would rather stay here than find another job because i like the GM, and am friends with some of the other staff.
Im starting to loose motivation. Im browsing other jobs, and am thinking about applying till i get an offer, then threatening to quit if i dont get at least a 4 dollar raise. Though the best worker at the front desk was also denied a well deserved raise, and put in her two weeks notice. The regional manager responded with “sorry to hear that”.
I know im a vital member of this company, and my leaving would put a massive and sudden workload on the GM, but i dont know if telling them i want to leave will get me what i want. Ive been getting depressed over the last couple months. The stress of being head house, trying to get the housekeepers to put out perfect rooms in too small a timeframe when we are selling rooms for OUTRAGEOUS prices (500-700 dollars a night on super busy weekends) is getting to me, and im realizing its not worth the amount im getting paid, especially when other people who put in no effort make way more. I need them to give me a god damn raise. A GOOD ONE. But the regional manager is a massive C$NT. Im being exploited. I knew this is how it works under capitalism, and ive experienced it before, but this is just next level fuckery.
It sucks, and i just need to vent.