cleaner pay

[uwila]

So, what do people pay their cleaners? And where do you advertise for them? I'm in Sunbury, so I don't expect to pay central London rates.

[auntymandy]

I heard its about £11 an hour but dont know. I charge £7 an hour to iron if that helps!

[stitch]

i pay £5 an hour. once paid £6.50. in essex paid 4.5, but that was five years ago.
i dont know where to get one
its cheaper cash in hand than going through a company. i phoned up one place and they said 14 if i provided my own equipment, 16 if they brought there own..........
er, i do posess a vacuum, and dust clothes....

[uwila]

I'm thinking £6 and they can bring their own consumables. I'll provide rags, dust cloths, vacuum, etc.

[motherinferior]

£7 an hour is the going rate round here.

[Bellie]

I used to pay £10.50 an hour and she used all my equipment and stuff too!!

[Twiglett]

By consumables do you mean cleaning products? If so, I think that's a bit off personally, I think you should be providing them

MI right that £7 is about right .. that's what I pay for an agency cleaner (give or take a few pennies) per hour

[uwila]

twiglett, yes I do mean cleaning products. Why do you think that's a bit off? If I pay someone to come pain my house, I don't provide the brushes.

[motherinferior]

No, but your rate of pay will cover the materials. If you aren't providing materials I think you should be looking at closer to a tenner an hour.

[Twiglett]

No but you'd either provide the paint or pay for it. I have never had a cleaner who provides their own cleaning products, in fact I've never heard of it before but that may well be my own naivety.

I would be concerned that be using the stuff you think they should .. eg wood cleaner for wood floors not flash, and most kitchen cleaners are not for use on stone / granite worktops

[motherinferior]

Yes, I've just firmly told our (very nice) new cleaner the products I want her to use, ie the Ecover ones already here.

[donnie]

I have a cleaner ( to whom I pay £7.50 per hour) and so do several of my circle of friends - none of us expect our cleaners to bring and use their own cleaning products! if you were a copy typist would you provide your own paper ???

[motherinferior]

More to the point I reckon you won't find someone who brings their own cleaning stuff or charges much under £7.

[uwila]

I was actually thinking that a cleaner is much better qualified to choose the cleaning products than I am. I suppose if I wanted her to use a specific cleaning product I'd expect to provide it.

Don't mind raising the hourly rate to cover cost of supplies. I just don't want it to be my fault when the supplies aren't there when she shows up to clean. (and good chance they won't be if it's left to me)

[donnie]

but if you are the employer is it not your responsibility?

[uwila]

Who said anything about employer? IF I was the employer I would expect to provide all equipment necessary to do the job. But I am not considering a cleaner as an employee.

[donnie]

well that says it all IMO !!!!

[uwila]

Donnie, are you saying your cleaner is your employee?

[binkie]

I think it's an issue of norms in the market.

If you use an agency they would normally bring their own stuff (because they get it wholesale, and because they'll come in a van).

Local cleaners popping round for a few hours on foot or on the bus won't expect to tote around a great bagful of bleaches and Toilet Duck.

If you think she'd be better at choosing, get her to say what she prefers - that's what we do - & buy in bulk. And our cleaners have never been above nipping round the corner for some more Windolene where needed.

[dinosaur]

Most cleaners I know travel by public transport, or walk, from job to job - it would be a tall order to expect them to lug a bag of cleaning products hither and thither, wouldn't it?

[dinosaur]

Ours does have a peculiar addiction to Viakal - she gets through bottles and bottles of the stuff.

[uwila]

Ah, valid points about lugging it round. But I'm in Sunbury where she/he will likely arrive by car anyway.

[flutterbee]

Does no one on here actually clean there own house

[Twiglett]

my agency cleaners don't provide their own supplies

if they run out they leave the bottle on the side, its not difficult to have a quick look under the sink or wherever to see what's left every so often and add it to the next shop

[uwila]

Weel, Twiglett, you should hear my DH when he arrives home on Friday evening to find no food (that he likes) in the fridge. To his groan I reply, "and when should I do that? while I'm sleeping or between meetings?" A bit of drama added here to make a point, which is if I can't be relied upon to deliver the grocceries on time, it probably won't happen for the cleaning supplies either.

Anyway, perhaps I'll start my hunt with £7/hour then ask how much more it will cost me for them to procure the supplies. It's not so much the cost as it is the time and responsibility of putting them into the cupboard.

[uwila]

Anyone else? I was really hoping for people in Surrey to provide hourly rates? Or possibly in Middlesex?

And, since there hasn't been a reply, Donnie, I gather you don't take on your cleaner as an employee.