Is my cleaner overstepping?

I used to work as a cleaner and find this insane. For a while my boss tried to insist we all put the soap back on the opposite side of the sink, as an indication we’d definitely cleaned it! I always said it would drive me mad if I was a customer so I never did. I had one client with 2 teens sharing a bathroom, narrow shelf behind the sink that was always full of all sorts of lotions and potions, the number of times I removed them all to clean and then thought shit, I’ll never get them back in the right spots!

"that’s something you DISCUSS FIRST and include in your contract?"

Yes. In your first discussions, you might mention these things if you can see they are likely to be an immediate issue. You also try to find out what type of cleaner they want. Some people are always planning to hire a cleaner and for that cleaner to be in their home alone at times where they might not be immediately contactable. This was nuts to me but people are fine with that. That means of course they expect you to use your initiative and only contact them for emergencies.

"Because the way you describe it is that you go by feel, try to move things and if theyre back to their original place then you assume the person is resistant to change and wants that thing there."

Yes that is something I do. If I move something without asking and it is moved back, I leave it where it was. Most times I move something, it is not moved back.

"mean like the OP is talking about her bras being out in a different o,ace. How woukd it impact your image if a great cleaner? No one goes to look inside other people’s cupboards!"

Yes I spoke about the OP's cleaner. She's funny but way too much. What I am pushing back on is that nobody ever wants a cleaner to do things like reorganise or tidy. Many do. Many are disappointed that some explicitly cleaners do not do things like that as that's what they thought they'd be getting.

"So yes if your customer wants you to tidy up, you need to agree to it first.
And to agree where things go.
But I’m stunned by the idea you ASSUME they’ll want you to.
Or that you can just decide fur them wo asking."

Because when you are a cleaner with years experience and a waiting list, you realise that all clients are different and have different needs. Some want the emotional labour of housework to be alleviated as well as the physical. Some just want the scrubbing done.

The problem comes when what they want isn't aligned with what they have, whether that be in terms of their budget or their current living circumstances.

This is why some people find it so hard to find a cleaner that will commit to them. One thing we do to feel out a client is commit to one (deep) clean and then if we like the client and the home, we do have availability for something regular. If we do not, then we absolutely don't have space. You can join the (fake) list.

Well that depends on whether there are loads of things cluttering the counters that could be put way in a more organised drawer or cupboard. This isnt something in every house, but it is something that occurs.

People typically don't want cleaners that are reliant on instruction. They want less work, not more.

Oh my word - she should NOT be even opening your drawers! (Apart from maybe kitchen drawers to put things away from dishwasher...
She is clearly overstepping...no question!

That’s just not true. You can properly clean the house without rearranging what’s inside the cupboards and drawers. Because regular weekly cleans don’t require cleaning inside. Also if you have stuff outside like laundry you can just move it and then put it back

You can also tidy away some items but it’s just not for you to permanently rearrange and reorganise things - unless specifically asked to - and if that’s what you like to do maybe you should pitch yourself as home organiser instead

Our cleaner has a habit of shoving things in drawers and then I end up looking for it. We don't leave tonnes of stuff lying around. It's like, we know drawers exist so if we wanted stuff crammed in randomly we'd just do it ourselves!

Once she randomly cleaned out our bathroom cabinets and chucked a load of stuff that was still in use. I had a Word after that. It's so arrogant to assume that you know better than the person that lives there what they want to do with their own stuff.

But surely, as you were going in about boundaries, that’s something you DISCUSS FIRST and include in your contract?

Because the way you describe it is that you go by feel, try to move things and if theyre back to their original place then you assume the person is resistant to change and wants that thing there.

ai mean like the OP is talking about her bras being out in a different o,ace. How woukd it impact your image if a great cleaner? No one goes to look inside other people’s cupboards!

So yes if your customer wants you to tidy up, you need to agree to it first.
And to agree where things go.
But I’m stunned by the idea you ASSUME they’ll want you to.
Or that you can just decide fur them wo asking.

A simple please don't do that and sack if she continues

Agree, it is a very weird, overstep.

I wouldn’t want her as a cleaner.
Seriously, what’s the point is you end up spending hours looking for stuff?

I’d hate it if someine did that.

Ok usually things are organised but when they’re not and it’s ‘untidy’ I still know exactly where each things. If I kept a piece if paper with let’s say a number, an address on it, I’d know where it was so moving it woukd 1- mean I’d spend hours looking fir it and 2- stress me out A LOT.

Even dh knows not to move my stuff because of that.

Same with the kitchen. We bith know where a h thing is. It migut not be someine eise organisation but this is what works. I wouldn’t to start looking for the kettle because my cleaner has decided somewhere else is a better place. I know we would both be looking towards the original place fur months. More likely tye kettle would be moved back to its original place sharp ish.

Oh no, I think your cleaner is batshit. I'm just saying there are grey areas when it comes to how much you do without asking or when you as the cleaner say something needs to be done.

Sorry OP but you do realize you have to keep her on just to keep us updated with the new locations? I'm loving the thought of her rearranging your home to suit her preferences!

And I have to say, probably the least good cleaners we have had, have been the ones that have moved things around just for the sake of it. I think it is to give an illusion that they have been there. The really good cleaners left everything in their place, but cleaned. We are a very tidy household though.

We have had loads of cleaners over the last 20 years. Some do this and some don’t. Some just swap things around and I wonder if it’s to give us the message that they have actually cleaned! Some cleaners like to go above and beyond but that can mean playing a game of hunt the item when they have left!

And we are back to my point that you cannot properly clean an untidy house. Not unless you tidy it.

If someone has the budget for 2hrs of cleaning every 2 weeks, but you need to tidy for 90mins so only 30mins of actual cleaning can get done, then you need to find a way to cut down on tidying time. The client is already overrun, that is why they have hired you.

The next solution to the issue is to employ better organisational systems so the house is tidier when the cleaner visits. Sometimes, it is the cleaner who has the experience of many homes, including their own, who has the best ideas for that.

I had a cleaner that did this sort of stuff INSTEAD of cleaning - I told DH we had a rearranger rather han a cleaner
Asked her once then sacked her

Good for you. I bet you feel validated

I mean, I wouldn’t even ask her if the house is DIRTY. But if it’s just untidy that’s not a reflection on a cleaner

but if Sharon will tell me that her cleaner is rearranging her things and pestering her about where everything should be because she knows better I am not going to ask for a recommendation either. Even if the house looks like a show home

You'll be glad to know that today, I purposely tidied up a regular client's home, including moving some stuff to better places and made things more orderly. They've already thanked me profusely for doing so.

If Sharon tells you that her cleaner is good but you consider her house to be a tip, you aren't going to heed her recommendation.

Yes. IF and ASK are the key words there

people will ask for a recommendation instead of constantly inspecting their friend’s house as if it’s a cleaner’s portfolio

and only if and when they are looking for a cleaner which is not very regular occurrence

so your justification that you move things around where you think they should belong not because you were asked to do so, but because it’s naturally part of your job because some visitors will be constantly checking the overall state of the house as an outcome of your work, is just… a massive jump

This is not part of your job unless your client specifically made it part of your job

If you are seeking a cleaner, the first thing most people do is ask for recommendations from people they know.

I think you have OCD issues and I’m glad for you that you found a career that scratches your itch 😂😂😂

most people come to other people’s houses to see their friends and family and interact with them as people, not judge their clutter or trying to suss out a cleaner. Generally marking the quality of work of someone’s cleaner is the bottom of the list for any sane person. It’s the backend.

literally never I have thought - oh they must have an amazing cleaner if I’ve been to a beautiful house. I’ve just thought to myself- what a beautiful house. How a hostess gets there I don’t care. And if it’s not a beautiful house, what does it matter too? It’s just a lived in house and I’m there to see people in it.

Well it is. If people come in your house and see dirty surfaces and clutter, they'll definitely not be interested in your cleaner. You can try and be hostile and attempt to belittle me for being a decent cleaner, but my income and demand speaks for itself.