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AIBU?

What to expect from a cleaner

267 replies

broodymamma · 23/11/2016 11:52

Is it too much to expect my cleaner to actually tidy my house. I have 5 kids the eldest being 8. They are very efficient at turning my house upside down. But up till now I have had a cleaner every day for at least 4 hours. If she finds a kids skipping rope say on the kitchen floor she will pick it up and put it on a chair and tuck chair in rather than find the appropriate place to put it. Worst still if she goes to the playroom to tidy and finds feltips with the lids off she will not replace the lids. She will gather the whole lot and toss them into the nearest toybox. She will often be met with a mixture of games of various sorts that have been played with but unfortunately not been put away. She will make no effort to tidy each game into the appropriate box but toss the whole lot in to whichever toy box is nearest. I guess that if this doesn't suit me I should look for a replacement cleaner. but just wondering if I am expecting too much and a replacement wouldn't be any better. I know my kids need to learn to tidy up after themselves and I am working on this.

OP posts:
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SukeyTakeItOffAgain · 23/11/2016 11:54

What did you agree at the start? If she spends her whole time tidying so she can start to clean she's not going to be able to clean in the time is she? Do be sensible.

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ShowMePotatoSalad · 23/11/2016 11:55

I thought cleaners cleaned rather than tidied/sorted? Does she actually clean the house? I would perhaps ask her to focus on cleaning rather than organising and sorting things. Your kids can replace pen lids can't they? And put games away?

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RebeccaWithTheGoodHair · 23/11/2016 11:57

If she's there for 4 hours every day then there is plenty of time to do the sorting/tidying as well as the cleaning. Definitely think you need to have a word as what you want isn't excessive for that amount of time.

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LizzieMacQueen · 23/11/2016 11:58

YABU, how is she expected to know where things belong. If the playroom is messy and she is coming every day then i think you'll need to set aside time to tidy up first.

Have you not read the numerous threads on here about this ?

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Lightthelittlelights · 23/11/2016 12:00

4 hours a day?!

I'm a cleaner but I don't tidy I clean but I don't do 4 hours a day clearly. I do put the odd thing away but my houses are always tidy before I arrive.

You need to set out what you want from her. It sounds like she is more of a housekeeper than a cleaner.

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SukeyTakeItOffAgain · 23/11/2016 12:02

Perhaps the children can be taught how to replace felt tip lids, put games away etc? If the eldest is 8 s/he ought to be starting to clear up his/her mess.

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FrazzleRock · 23/11/2016 12:04

I would never expect my cleaner to tidy. That is my children's job. They get it out, they put it away. No one else.

We make sure our house is tidy before our lovely cleaner comes so that she can get to surfaces to actually clean.

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YelloDraw · 23/11/2016 12:06

how is she expected to know where things belong

Be case she is there for four hours a day. Plenty of time to lean where things go. Or, you know, at least put the tops on the felt tips.

Personally I don't like the set up where children are taught that if they leave their felt tips on the floor with the lids off the magic fairy will find the lids and put them away... but whatever.

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havalina1 · 23/11/2016 12:06

You're not B U at all. Cleaner is there to help you so 4 hits a day she can certainly tidy the stuff away appropriately and then clean.

Lucky you getting 4 hrs a day - I assume the house is spotless?!?

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Underthemoonlight · 23/11/2016 12:08

I do think your exceptions of her to literally tidy up after yourself and your children is appalling in all honestly, she isn't there to pick up after your stuff but to clean the house. I'm guessing you have a big house if it requires 4 hours a day cleaning? I do think you need to redirect this to your dc to look after and teach them to tidy up after yourselves

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Bluntness100 · 23/11/2016 12:13

Well, have you told her thats what you want? If you've told her and she is simply refusing, then yes it's an issue, but if uou have never requested this of her then you're being unreasonable.

However I too think you should be telling your kids to put their stuff away and to put lids back in felt tip pens, not complaining the cleaner doesn't do it for them.

Four hours a day is a lot, is she really coming in to tidy up after the kids instead of them doing it for themselves? My cleaner has a woman like this and it drives her crazy, she spends half her time just tidying crap up so she can see the floor to clean it, rather than cleaning and a couple of times has told the woman no more, but the woman begs and says she needs her.

So for me, maybe the issue is the kids not putting their stuff away, treating their things with respect rather than the cleaner doesn't sit putting their games away properly.

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BradleyPooper · 23/11/2016 12:15

My cleaners are paid to clean, not tidy. My kids today the day before they come and I ask my cleaners to clean round areas that aren't tidy. They don't go into dds wardrobe for example because I'm not paying them to pick up her clothes, that's her job.

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SukeyTakeItOffAgain · 23/11/2016 12:15

But how on earth are the children ever going to learn to clear up after themselves if the maid (because that's basically what she's being treated as) just swoops down and attends to their mess? I used to teach and there was a pair of twins in my class one year. Getting them to tidy up after painting etc was extremely difficult. They said "That's the cleaner's job." These kids were eleven. It was pathetic.

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FlyingElbows · 23/11/2016 12:18

You are doing your children no favours by teaching them that it's a skivvy's job to clean up after them. Children like that are insufferable. If you genuinely can't manage to teach your children to tidy up after themselves at all then you need to employ a nanny who will do that job for you alongside a cleaner who can clean.

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broodymamma · 23/11/2016 12:25

This reply has been deleted

Message withdrawn at poster's request.

Mulberry72 · 23/11/2016 12:25

Our cleaner is paid to clean and not tidy up after us, how big is your house if it needs cleaning for 4 hours a day?

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Bountybarsyuk · 23/11/2016 12:28

I don't think what you have is a traditional once a week cleaner, but more of a housekeeper and so I do think they should be able to follow instructions such as pairing socks correctly or putting away toys in the right boxes. Her job is tidying as well, that's what you are outsourcing, and therefore of course she should do it to a minimum standard.

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Jackiebrambles · 23/11/2016 12:29

Days of the week socks?

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Jackiebrambles · 23/11/2016 12:31

Sorry posted too soon!

My cleaner does tidy, a bit, but she's once a week and I don't expect her to put toys back in the 'right' place at all.

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peggyundercrackers · 23/11/2016 12:32

a cleaner is tere to clean not tidy up or pick up after people. your looking for a skivvy not a cleaner.

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Bountybarsyuk · 23/11/2016 12:35

Why is it skivying to tidy away some toys in a playroom, which mums and dads do every day, but not to clean someone's toilet?

Surely what you have is four hours paid work and you just have to agree between you what is done.

Why is it offensive to ask a cleaner to tidy anyway if they had time? Surely the reason you don't is as they have two or three hours to clean an entire house, so they don't have time to tidy.

Washing up takes time, tidying takes time, changing bedding takes time, ironing takes time, so does cooking. Surely it's up to you and the person you employ to negotiate tasks for the week or day and expect them to do a good job. My cleaner washes up, my last one didn't, that's their prerogative, but I wouldn't expect them to then do a poor job and leave dishes dirty if they accepted money for doing so.

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RentANDBills · 23/11/2016 12:36

Your husband is being unreasonable for wearing socks with sandals

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SusanneLinder · 23/11/2016 12:37

I had a cleaner, and my kids were warned that she wasnt there to pick up their shit. She is there to clean.

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MauiWest · 23/11/2016 12:38

Of course your kids should learn to tidy up, but that's not the point. The eldest of 5 is 8yo, they are not a group of 5 teenagers here. I am sure all the posters on here have little angels who keep the house spotless from birth Hmm

You need to be clear with your cleaner about what you expect. She might be rushing to spend as much time cleaning as possible. It's not unreasonable at all to employ a cleaner, 4 hours a day, and ask her to tidy up and clean. You just have to be clear that if she does a deep tidy of the playroom for 1 hour, it's fine if she only has 3 hours left to clean.

What's wrong with a cleaner tidying up a house? Some people see nothing wrong in their cleaners doing the laundry/ changing their bed sheets. If you give a fair wage, what is the problem. With 5 kids, 4 hours a day doing house chores doesn't sound that much at all.

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SnotGoblin · 23/11/2016 12:39

Your husband is being unreasonable for wearing socks with sandals

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