‘Upstairs, Downstairs': An Analysis of Low Paid Work in Australian Hotels

In spite of recent research, it remains difficult to obtain accurate data regarding low paid work in Australia. This research generates an initial baseline of data reflecting the legally enshrined and actual wages and conditions of employment, characteristics and work experiences of a poorly understood group of low paid workers employed in hotels housekeeping departments. Overall, the case study evidence reveals that room attendants' work is indeed low paid and it is typically performed by females from a wide range of non-English backgrounds working full-time hours and finding it difficult to get by financially. The work is hard, repetitive and increasingly intensive. While many room attendants take great pride and pleasure in their work, others tend to find it demoralizing and less rewarding. Most significantly, the data reveal a proliferation of illegal underpayment associated with an increasing reliance on temporary work agency employment and the need for more effective enforcement mechanisms.