If you work as a cleaner in a Fairfax hotel, you know the reality is not as glamorous as Jennifer Lopez made it look in Maid in Manhattan. Working in housekeeping is hard: You work long hours, you push and lift heavy things, you spend a lot of time bent over or crouched down, you repeat the same movements, and to top it all— you get paid low wages.
All of this can take its toll on your body. So it is no surprise that workplace injuries are commonplace among hotel housekeepers. Figures from the Bureau of Labor show 16,520 maids and housekeeping cleaners reported workplace injuries in 2018. Here is a breakdown of the workplace injures housekeepers suffered:
- 6310 sprains, strains or tears
- 630 fractures
- 460 cuts or lacerations
- 210 puncture wounds
- 2000 bruises or contusions
- 70 heat burns
- 220 chemical burns
- 30 carpal tunnel syndromes
- 330 multiple traumatic injuries with sprains
- 4430 soreness
- 1730 unclassified injuries
As you can see, many of these injuries could lead to your needing time off work. In some cases, you may not be able to continue in the same link of work. Fortunately, workers’ compensation exists to help you out in these cases. If you need help to file a workers’ compensation claim for an injury or accident that you suffered while working in a Fairfax hotel, we have a team of lawyers who speak Spanish and Korean fluently, as well as English.
