Do cleaners not do dishes?

My mind is blown at the concept that a cleaner wouldn’t clean a few dishes left on a bench.

It is literally their job. To leave the place clean.

Why is it OK to expect them to clean your loo, but not some dishes…..?

Not in the UK, and always do dishes before leaving the house, but I can’t imagine coming home to a house that had been cleaned by a cleaner, and seeing dirty dishes left on the bench.

Throw in that they left half an hour early, and … 🤯

Went to bed thinking I was being unfair to my cleaner but having slept on it in my opinion it is like any other service I pay for

I say what I want and a price is agreed
If cleaner doesn’t want to eg do the dishes they should say so

YANBU.

I get that they can't do "deeper cleans" normally, but if they had 50% of their time left I'd expect them to use it cleaning, whether that's the dishes, the fridge, the doors, the skirting, whatever!

Cleaning is cleaning. Time paid is time worked.

I work 9-5. If I finish my tasks at 1pm, I don't go home and put my feet up. I find more work to do, or I plan, or I use that time to help colleagues. Their work isn't my responsibility but equally I'm being paid to work.

I'd sack them. It's YOUR money, trust your instincts.

I've had good and bad cleaners AND worked as both a commercial and domestic cleaner and it's totally reasonable to wash a few dishes and do a bit extra if the place is already clean for whatever reason. Ask your cleaner if you're paying for a to do list or paying for their time. If you're paying for their time then find a new cleaner, they aren't worth the effort of micromanaging.

Cleaners and housekeepers are different, in my experience. Our cleaner wouldn't get involved in tidying up, including doing the dishes. She does offer some housekeeping services and an ironing service but they are completely different to cleaning services. She said she has had to create the boundaries otherwise some clients treat her like a slave and as if she's there to do everything. She'd get into trouble if she didn't do those chores but also into trouble if she did them and something broke (she shouldn't have touched them!).

Even if the toilet looked clean and the floors recently vacuumed, the cleaner would still do those things.
Mine does dishes but I pay for enough hours that she has time. If you pay for bare minimum of time then the cleaner will need to crack on with main cleaning tasks like toilet and floor. She won't have time to also wash up.

Just talk to her about it. They are all a bit different.

You can't clean and mop the house before the cleaner comes then moan when she leaves early OP. Just do your own cleaning....issue resolved and no they don't do your dishes.

The cleaner is there to do whatever tasks you have agreed with them.
Perhaps OP it is time to compile a list of their duties in order of priority... with the final one being:
" … and time permitting, any other household cleaning tasks that need doing (e.g. dishwashing."

Also, if your daughter having pals over required you to do a full clean of the entire place then surely you’re all leaving it a bit slovenly? There’s no reason why someone with a cleaner at least once a week would need to do a full clean of their house because a few teens are coming round. Unless you literally don’t clean up anything after you. Which would make me think she’s probably used to doing a lot of cleaning and the dishes on top didn’t occur to her.

Your attitude is shit. If you want to hire someone for a service at least have an idea what the norm is for it. If she has extra time because you decided to clean the bloody place first, then suggest extra tasks such as the dishes. You really do sound snobby tbh. Don’t do the work you hire someone to do and then complain when they don’t go out with the job description, because you decided to do the work. That is not their issue.

Why are dishes beneath toilet cleaning? How peculiar that you are happy for someone to clean where you shit but think only serfs wash dishes. Truly mind boggling.

You seem to be mistaking cleaners for serfs...

I must admit I don’t interfere with my cleaner. If there’s the odd mug, she’ll wash it (I’d never leave serious washing up). She has her hours and does what she thinks needs doing.

One time I found her dismantling my oven door, she cleaned it beautifully, I didn’t know how to do that! She folds clothes and pairs socks - she is supposed just to to do ironing.

She treats my house as she would her own.

She also always brings me cakes.

My cleaner does everything but she's probably more of a housekeeper.
But I've never had a cleaner who didn't do the dishes or at least shove everything in the dishwasher.

You speak for all cleaners? Mine does. Every cleaner I've had over 35 years has done.

Weird cleaner rules going on here. My cleaner and every cleaner I've ever had just gets on with whatever needs doing. If there are a couple of mugs and a plate in the sink, she just washes them. Or pops them in the dishwasher. Same with any pots or pans lying about. Why in heavens name not? You think they clean floors, loos, fridge, vacuum etc but for some weird arse reason, not dishes? So weird.

Mine does if there's a couple, and occasionally empties the dishwasher (it's almost always done before she comes but on occasion it hasn't been).

She doesn't clean the inside of windows though which I found out when I asked her to when half the house was out of action so her cleaning took loads less time.

It does sound like you need more of a housekeeper/home help/PA rather than a cleaner. Work out what jobs you want done then advertise for someone who will cover that.

@Fifi00 when I hired my cleaner I did explain some housekeeping tasks are required so she makes beds up etc. she does however leave dishes in the sink as we have two dishwashers and I don't expect her to know which one we are currently using

I am a cleaner and with every post like this am realising how much extra I do and probably don't charge enough! I regularly wash pots, clean the fridge out, help with laundry, set up devices for my elderly clients and if it's clients that are at work, I get them a cup of tea/coffee ready out on the side so they can just add water and milk. The only time it bothered me and I gave notice was when they were leaving days worth of pots for me to do. Literally had nothing clean left in the house and were leaning pots next to their bed and dirty underwear on the floor 🤢

It's two questions really...do cleaners do the dishes? Most don't. Should they have left early? Absolutely not!

It just depends what’s been agreed. With my cleaners I’ve always discussed at the outset what I want done, what to prioritise if time is short, and what to do if there is spare time. Making sure they were happy with that, and we were all agreed, was done straight away to avoid this kind of situation. Then if something different was required one week I would let them know and check if it was ok. All based on the advice my mum gave me (including her advice to have a cleaner if at all possible!) If Op is ok with cleaning and doesn’t hate it like some people, or find it hard physically, then it’s fine for her to agree with whoever will be coming, what they need to do, whether that person is a cleaner or a home help etc.