My cleaner chucked her cigarette butt into our hydrangea bush

I’d say the same if a man had started the thread.

to be fair thought the hydranger really is the perfect shrub to cover for ciggie butts. Almost like they were developed to be a sneaky ashtray

I think provide an ashtray.
Like others have said, You are lucky to be able to afford a cleaner, and not have to do all the dirty jobs.
She'll die of lung cancer or copd one day but that's her choice. Let her have her pleasure during her break

I’d be more worried about a fire starting, I’d ask her to stop smoking on my property

The cleaner works FOUR hours a week and is paid £18 per hour! Not one minute within those hours should be used having a bloody cigarette break! It’s FOUR hours, whether that’s four hours together or throughout the week matters not and then she has the cheek to discard it in the garden! Not ok!

Tell her you are a non smoking household and that includes your garden but given her behaviour, I’d start looking for her replacement.

Jesus. Surely one for MN Madness.

If its so quick, why doesn't the smoker do it?

I would get a new cleaner.
She's using things out of your cupboards as an ashtray and then leaving them out for you to clean up. I use those gu glasses for food, it's like her using a mug as an ashtray.

She's leaving her dirty mug around the house for you to clean up.

She can't clean a bloody toilet properly.

She's throwing fag ends in your garden.

She's bad at her job and grubby and disrespectful to your home. Get a new cleaner.

Great thread title, sounds like 'overheard in Waitrose'

Why DO people say this? She could be disabled or flat out busy or loathe cleaning or just want to sit with her feet up because she can. It's such a strange attitude. People outsource all kinds of jobs they can't do or don't want to do but it's always women who get told to do their own cleaning if they're not happy with a cleaners work.

Was it a rolly end (paper and cardboard) or a filter tip? Because this would radically change my answer. The first is fine, it’s biodegradable. The second is not.

The fact that you couldn't "cope" with a cleaner is irrelevant. Millions of people do. I'm a cleaner. I used to be a senior manager in the corporate world but my world changed and now I do this job. I do it very well and am very much in demand. Im a real human being you know. Why do you find it funny to say you wouldnt make a cleaner a drink? Why are you 'othering' cleaners? I don't smoke, never have and I'd personally never use a cleaner who smoked. I couldn't bear the 2nd hand smoke smell in my house. As for flicking used ends in your garden, I really do think that's revolting. She's littering your own home.

This thread is peak Mumsnet 😂😂

New cleaner time.
This is akin to leaving a dog shit on your patio.

Cleaners are there to make lives easier for their clients. They are not there to flick their fag ends into clients gardens and leave mess everywhere. They’re literally being paid to tidy up - not make a mess.

I’d get rid of her and I’d say why - her attitude and cleanliness are grim.

Tell her no smoking on the premises. Also discarding cigarette butts in the garden could have potential for a fire risk, especially during hot weather.

I would get a new cleaner. I think her behaviour was very disrespectful and I don’t think complaining would help. I wouldn’t want someone smoking while working and then in my house after that.

👏 👏

She saw two so could assume there were more. In any case her house her rules.

I'm so sorry - on re-reading OP's post I see it was two. Shocking!!!

Get her an ashtray or a Gu pot, or ask her to smoke off the premises.

It's not like she's taken a shit on your patio before wiping it all over the conservatory window.

I wouldn't be happy with my cleaner smoking on my property, but then I would have made it clear we have a non-smoking home at the time of employment. Just ask her politely not to smoke?

My exDH used to throw cigarette butts in my garden when he came to visit. I picked them up and put them in the rubbish. It took seconds.

Good for you. Mine is 80 odd metres back up a steep garden so I resent having to walk back up with them because my gardener can't be arsed to.

They take ages to decompose and it's disrespectful to throw litter in my garden when I'm paying him. It's not hard to leave them on a wall to cool and chuck them in the bin (which he parks next to) as he leaves.

Hi, OP -

Do you wish to continue employing this woman, or not?

I need a short coffee break during a four hr stint of hard work and inhale the stuff at my desk. Sounds like she is using a short cigarette break and water or tea in the same way. I hate smoking also but that much is reasonable.

Of course she shouldn’t litter on your property. You can solve that by giving her a cup or small plate to use as an ashtray. I wouldn’t offer bone china but anything normal will clean up fine and odour free in the dishwasher. This is what I do for smokers.

If you start putting biscuits on it you can even ask her nicely to bring her tea cup or water glass to the kitchen. Decent cleaners can pick their clients right now and I think you and all the PPs on high horses (not that you were) need to keep that in mind.

Really glad to hear about the annual bonus!