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Laundry worker vs housekeeping/laundry

The differences between laundry workers and housekeeping/laundries can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. Additionally, a housekeeping/laundry has an average salary of $29,777, which is higher than the $27,204 average annual salary of a laundry worker.

The top three skills for a laundry worker include customer service, cleanliness and clean linen. The most important skills for a housekeeping/laundry are fold laundry, public restrooms, and guest rooms.

Laundry worker vs housekeeping/laundry overview

Laundry WorkerHousekeeping/Laundry
Yearly salary$27,204$29,777
Hourly rate$13.08$14.32
Growth rate4%-
Number of jobs25,51381,110
Job satisfaction--
Most common degreeHigh School Diploma, 50%High School Diploma, 54%
Average age5048
Years of experience--

What does a laundry worker do?

Laundry Workers are skilled professionals who oversee laundry machines. They operate washing machines or dryers in a residential home or a commercial establishment. Laundry Workers should know how to wash and care for different types of cloth properly. They should know which detergent type would work best for a specific fabric and which fabrics should be hand-washed instead of machine-washed. At times, Laundry Workers should at least know how to conduct basic repairs and maintenance on machines.

What does a housekeeping/laundry do?

A housekeeping/laundry staff member is responsible for washing clothes, linens, and other washable textiles depending on the needs of the employer or the organization. A housekeeping/laundry worker should carefully sort laundry items, ensuring not to mix laundry for different owners. Housekeeping/laundry personnel must keep the laundry area clean at all times, following the sanitary standards and hygienic procedures before and after doing the task. They should also adhere to specific washing instructions to do the laundry without damaging the item, as well as the knowledge to operate and maintain laundry machines and equipment.

Laundry worker vs housekeeping/laundry salary

Laundry workers and housekeeping/laundries have different pay scales, as shown below.

Laundry WorkerHousekeeping/Laundry
Average salary$27,204$29,777
Salary rangeBetween $20,000 And $35,000Between $23,000 And $37,000
Highest paying CityLos Angeles, CANovato, CA
Highest paying stateNorth DakotaOregon
Best paying companyMessiah CollegeLegacy Health
Best paying industryHealth CareProfessional

Differences between laundry worker and housekeeping/laundry education

There are a few differences between a laundry worker and a housekeeping/laundry in terms of educational background:

Laundry WorkerHousekeeping/Laundry
Most common degreeHigh School Diploma, 50%High School Diploma, 54%
Most common majorBusinessBusiness
Most common college--

Laundry worker vs housekeeping/laundry demographics

Here are the differences between laundry workers' and housekeeping/laundries' demographics:

Laundry WorkerHousekeeping/Laundry
Average age5048
Gender ratioMale, 43.3% Female, 56.7%Male, 16.0% Female, 84.0%
Race ratioBlack or African American, 10.8% Unknown, 3.9% Hispanic or Latino, 16.8% Asian, 6.5% White, 60.5% American Indian and Alaska Native, 1.4%Black or African American, 9.8% Unknown, 4.5% Hispanic or Latino, 19.8% Asian, 5.4% White, 59.1% American Indian and Alaska Native, 1.5%
LGBT Percentage5%4%

Differences between laundry worker and housekeeping/laundry duties and responsibilities

Laundry worker example responsibilities.

  • Work with children with Adhd, bipolar and autism.
  • Comply with EPA and OSHA regulations and other safety policies of the hospital.
  • Receive new shipments, sort, and clean laundry using OSHA requirements on a daily basis.
  • Start washers, dry cleaners, driers, extractors, and turn valves and levers to regulate machine.
  • Sort and count articles remove from dryers, and fold, wrapped, hang, iron or press items.
  • Sort dirty clothes and linens, work with industrial washers and dryers, pack carts, do weekly inventory of linens.
  • Show more

Housekeeping/laundry example responsibilities.

  • Maintain linen room in clean and orderly condition and examine laundered items to ensure cleanliness and serviceability.
  • Used hand and power tools such as dollies, floor polishers, vacuum cleaners and mops.
  • Disinfect equipment and supplies, using germicides or steam-operate sterilizers.

Laundry worker vs housekeeping/laundry skills

Common laundry worker skills
  • Customer Service, 33%
  • Cleanliness, 29%
  • Clean Linen, 19%
  • Dryers, 15%
  • Patients, 1%
  • OSHA, 1%
Common housekeeping/laundry skills
  • Fold Laundry, 38%
  • Public Restrooms, 27%
  • Guest Rooms, 4%
  • Patient Rooms, 3%
  • Infection Control, 3%
  • Customer Service, 3%

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