Exploitation Exposed: Shocking Truth of Cancun Hotels

Workers in Northern Cancun and Riviera Maya hotels have raised concerns about poor working conditions. They claim that in 7 out of 10 hotels, the majority of staff are paid minimum wage, tip distribution is unclear, and they are required to take an unpaid "Solidaridad break" weekly.

These allegations come from employees at four and five-star hotels. They support data from the National Institute of Statistics and Geography, indicating that 47% of tourism sector employees earn between 18,000 to 20,000 pesos monthly, with a significant portion coming from tips.

Gabriel N, an employee at a Riviera Maya hotel, shared that despite the hotel charging an average of 16,135 pesos per night, the waiters, housekeepers, and cooks receive a mere 242 pesos daily. "Most of us stay for the tips, which can be between 7,000 to 13,000 pesos monthly. But there's an issue with this: the day's earnings first go to the Revolutionary Confederation of Workers and Peasants (CROC), so we don't know how much we actually earn," he explained. Gabriel also alleged that the union takes a cut of the tips.

The work schedule is another point of contention. Employees start work at seven in the morning and are supposed to finish at five in the afternoon. However, due to additional tasks such as inventory, meetings, maintenance, and training, they often have to stay until eight at night without receiving overtime pay. Plus, they are required to take an unpaid day off each week, meaning they are paid for 13 days instead of 15 on their biweekly payroll.

According to INEGI, the tourism sector has some of the most demanding and worst-paying jobs. Gabriel added, "Even though they say we earn 20,000 per month with tips, rent due to gentrification costs between 7,000 to 10,000 pesos monthly, almost half of the salary. After groceries and transportation, there's barely anything left. And since we earn minimum wage, it's nearly impossible to afford a house with a mortgage."

INEGI's data shows that over 200,000 people work in the food and temporary accommodation sector in Quintana Roo. However, the Mexican Social Security Institute only has about 160,000 people registered from the hotel sector, with roughly 37,000 earning between one to three minimum wages.