Say's who?
I've been told what I stated by many Ritz Carlton managers and have experienced it as well

We do Marriott stays under my name, and Ritz under husbands

On one trip we booked two separate rooms (I use my maiden name with Marriott, to hard to change), two separate reservations - he had a lower status with Ritz than I did in Marriott. He got an upgraded room - I did not.