Housekeeping Stats & Facts
DID YOU KNOW?
Housekeeping cleaners are most often employed by the Traveler accommodation industry. The average yearly wage for Maids & housekeeping cleaners was $20,629 in 2016. The top 3 most similar occupations to Maids & housekeeping cleaners by wage are Nonfarm animal caretakers, Food preparation and serving related workers, all other, and Food servers, nonrestaurant.
Background: Hotel employees have higher rates of occupational injury and sustain more severe injuries than most other service workers.
Method: OSHA log incidents from five unionized hotel companies for a three-year period were analyzed to estimate injury rates by job, company, and demographic characteristics. Room cleaning work, known to be physically hazardous, was of particular concern.
Results: A total of 2,865 injuries were reported during 55,327 worker-years of observation. The overall injury rate was 5.2 injuries per 100 worker-years. The rate was highest for housekeepers (7.9), Hispanic housekeepers (10.6), and about double in three companies versus two others. Acute trauma rates were highest in kitchen workers (4.0/100) and housekeepers (3.9/100); housekeepers also had the highest rate of musculoskeletal disorders (3.2/100). Age, being female or Hispanic, job title, and company were all independently associated with injury risk.
Conclusion: Sex- and ethnicity-based disparities in injury rates were only partially due to the type of job held and the company in which the work was performed.
As of May 2018, there were over 3.24 million people working in the cleaning services industry in the United States. Janitors and cleaners (not including maids and housekeeping cleaners) made up the largest portion of employees in this industry and earned a mean annual income of 28,950 U.S. dollars. Janitors and cleaners are largely employed within the services to buildings and dwellings industry and in elementary and secondary schools. In 2019, the revenue of janitorial services in the U.S. reached 61 billion U.S. dollars.
Across North America, provision of janitorial and cleaning services predominantly occurs in-house. In a 2019 survey of facility managers, just over 24 percent of respondents stated that they outsource cleaning and maintenance, compared to 51.7 percent of respondents who stated that outsourcing is simply not an option. It is most common for organizations who require facility management to employ less than ten full-time equivalent (FTE) employees in their cleaning/ maintenance department. Overall, just under 61 percent of relevant organizations employ less than 50 FTE for cleaning and maintenance and just over 65 percent have 20 or less buildings to take care of.
Of the outsourced providers in the U.S., by far the largest company in terms of revenue is ServiceMaster. In 2018, the Memphis-based company reported an annual revenue of 1.9 billion U.S dollars and franchised around 5,000 cleaning establishments worldwide. However, their operations are diversified, meaning this figure includes revenue from other areas such as pest control. When looking only at cleaning services, the largest U.S. provider is in fact Jani-King. Founded by a university student in Oklahoma in 1969, Jani-King generated 727 million U.S. dollars in sales from around 7,600 franchise establishments across the world. Rounding out the top three providers by revenue is Coverall, who generated 457 million U.S. dollars in sales from around 8,300 franchises worldwide in 2018.
1. The Cleaning Industry Is Experiencing Above-Average Growth of 10% in the US
According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, the average job growth across all industries is currently 7%. By contrast, the cleaning industry stats reveal a job growth of 10%. That’s 3% more than the national average.
2. There Were 2.3 Billion Cleaning Services Jobs in the US in 2016
The latest edition of the BLS’s Occupational Outlook Handbook reports that there were 2.3 billion janitorial and building cleaning jobs in the US in 2016.
3. An Estimated 236,500 Jobs Will Be Created by 2023 in the US
Faster-than-average growth means new jobs! By 2023, the BLS estimates that about 236,500 more janitorial jobs will be created.
4. There Are Over Twice as Many Commercial Cleaning Jobs as Residential Cleaning Jobs
According to the BLS’s Occupational Employment Statistics, over 2.15 million people worked as janitors and cleaners in May 2018. By contrast, only 924,290 people worked as maids/housekeepers.
While this does not include self-employed individuals, it still shows that over twice as many people work as janitors/cleaners than maids/housekeepers.
5. Almost a Quarter of Facility Managers Outsource Cleaning Services
According to a Statista report, in 2019, 24.15% of facility managers surveyed reported that they currently outsourced cleaning services. This is a big jump from 2018 when only 15.35% reported outsourcing. Similarly, the number of facility managers that reported ‘outsourcing is not an option’ decreased from 2018 to 2019. This is indicative of a trend toward more outsourcing in the future. However, currently, the majority of janitorial and cleaning services are performed in-house.
6. Floor Cleaning Is One of the Largest Areas of the Commercial Cleaning Industry
Commercial Floor Cleaning is a very in-demand industry. Across the global market, we’ve seen an increased demand for commercial floor cleaning services for schools, hospitals, and buildings. Vacuum cleaning services are expected to grow the fastest.
7. Construction and Post-Construction Cleaning Have a Major Impact on Commercial Cleaning Services
Commercial cleaning services make up the largest revenue of the industry. According to an Allied Market Research report, commercial cleaning earned an overall revenue of $37,217 million globally in 2015. A huge contributor to this revenue was construction and post-construction commercial cleaning services.
8. North America Has the Largest Cleaning Services Market, but the Asian Market is Catching Up
Currently, North America has the largest market for cleaning services, However, from 2016-2022, the Asia-Pacific market is expected to have the fastest growth according to Allied Market Research.
9. Cleaning Services Revenues Fell during the Recession, but Have Bounced Back
The recession had a negative impact on the cleaning industry due to increased unemployment. In 2008, revenues fell 5.3%. In 2009, they fell another 6.1%. In recent years, however, the industry has seen an upswing, bouncing back with a $51 billion revenue in 2015.
10. California Is the Top Employer of Residential Cleaners (Maids/Housekeepers)
According to the BLS’s latest OEW report, California is the #1 employer of maids and housekeepers in the US.
11. California Is the Top Employer of Commercial Cleaners (Janitors/Cleaners)
Similar to residential cleaners, California is also the top employer of commercial cleaners.
12. Janitorial Services Have an Estimated Annual Revenue of $47.5 billion in the US
According to a Statista report of the industry’s revenue from 2011-2023, estimates of the current and anticipated revenue from janitorial services is nearly $50 billion.
13. Revenues of Janitorial Services in the US Will Increase About $2 billion by 2023
The same Statista report shows that by 2023, industry revenue from janitorial services will equal an estimated $49.5 billion. That’s about a $2 billion increase in revenue.
14. Carpet and Upholstery Cleaning Earns an Estimated Annual Revenue of $4.08 billion in the US
One of the largest niches within the cleaning industry is upholstery and carpet cleaning. According to a Statista report on the carpet cleaning and upholstery industry, the estimated annual revenue is $4.08 billion.
15. About 36% of Janitors Work in Buildings and Dwellings
The top employers of janitors and building cleaners are buildings and dwellings. According to the BLS, they accounted for about 36% of commercial cleaning jobs in 2016.
16. The Second Largest Employer of Janitors and Cleaners are Elementary and Secondary Schools
After buildings and dwellings, the second most common employer of janitors and cleaners are schools. This includes state, local, and private elementary and secondary schools. They accounted for about 13% of janitorial jobs in 2016.
Other common work environments include healthcare and social assistance services, government buildings, religious organizations, and other professional environments.
17. 68.8% of Janitors and Cleaners Are Male
When looking at the demographics, there are more male janitors and cleaners than there are female. In 2017, about 68.8% of building cleaners and janitors were male versus 33.2% female.
18. About 85.6% of Maids and Housekeepers Are Female
By contrast to the titles ‘janitors and building cleaners’, there are significantly more female housekeepers and maids. According to Data USA, about 85.6% of housekeepers and maids in 2017 were female.
19. 55% of Commercial Cleaners Lose Business Due to Customer Satisfaction
According to market research, the main reason why commercial cleaning businesses lose customers is because of inadequate services. This is why business owners must hire skilled employees and offer proper on-the-job training. This will help retain a client base and improve annual revenue.
20. The Demand for Janitorial Equipment Is Expected to Rise 15% Annually by 2023
With an above-average growth rate in the industry, it makes sense that there is an increased demand for janitorial equipment. According to market research cited by the ISSA, this demand is projected to increase 15% annually through 2023. This is something we have already noticed at MRO Supply, as a proud carrier of some of the top janitorial supplies on the market.