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Original poster

Etiquette for cleaner at Christmas

48 replies

CandleWick4 · 02/12/2023 09:01

We have a cleaner who comes every two weeks. She is lovely, happy with how she cleans. This is our first Christmas with her and I’m not sure what the etiquette is around a gift/Christmas tip? Is a nice bottle of wine and a card ok or is a cash tip the norm? And how much? TIA

OP posts:
Floofydawg · 02/12/2023 09:02

Lots of people here would say cash tip, week's wages. But that's not what I do. A small gift is much appreciated by her.

sugarandsweetener · 02/12/2023 09:02

never ever wine

i just give extra cash

mynameiscalypso · 02/12/2023 09:02

I normally give two weeks wages as a bonus and then a token gift like a box of biscuits.

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Twistyripple · 02/12/2023 09:03

Oooh following as we are in the same position!! No idea on the actual expectations.

sugarandsweetener · 02/12/2023 09:03

i have mine 3 hours every fortnight.

£14 an hour

i give an extra £20

sugarandsweetener · 02/12/2023 09:03

Floofydawg · 02/12/2023 09:02

Lots of people here would say cash tip, week's wages. But that's not what I do. A small gift is much appreciated by her.

what sort of small gift?

ramonaquimby · 02/12/2023 09:04

I give the weeks wages (£45) plus a small gift like fancy biscuits/chocolates. She comes here every 2 weeks

DorotheaHomeAlone · 02/12/2023 09:08

Definitely cash tip and some biscuits or chocolates. We usually give the weeks wages to cover her lost earnings over Christmas.

GhostOrchid · 02/12/2023 09:09

Double wages and a gift. She’s not got much of a sweet tooth. Last year we got her a hamper of posh smoked fish. This year I have (at her request) made her a Christmas cake. Will add some nice cheese to that.

WGACA · 02/12/2023 09:11

I just do cash tip in a card.

SutWytTi · 02/12/2023 09:11

I'd give a voucher for M&S or cash.

ALightOverThere · 02/12/2023 09:12

A week’s extra wages, a paid week off and a token gift eg smellies. She has been with us for years though.

Floofydawg · 02/12/2023 09:13

Candle, smellies, something like that.

ShinyBandana · 02/12/2023 09:13

I’m planning to give mine double pay the week before Xmas plus the week off in between, and some nice biscuits.

Mummymummy89 · 02/12/2023 09:15

I give 50 quid which is about a week's pay (for four hours). But I give it as a sainsburys or tesco voucher, dunno why it feels more genteel than cash but it's basically like cash.

I don't bother with a gift-gift like chocolates, I figure she can choose her own with the voucher

Mummymummy89 · 02/12/2023 09:16

Ps I also give a paid week off for Christmas itself

pukkapine · 02/12/2023 09:19

I give a week's wages, rounded up, in cash in a card plus a gift to the value of approximately the same (but she's an absolute gem and I know her well enough in friend terms to choose something she'll love). My former cleaner who was also excellent I gave the cash gift and a token gift.

LittleMousewithcloggson · 02/12/2023 09:19

Weeks wages plus gift (perfume she likes)
Christmas day and New Year’s Day are on a Monday and she usually comes Monday and thursday
She isn’t coming on 28th either so 3 sessions missed
in effect, the weeks wages and the gift is the same money I would have paid her if she had been there so isn’t costing me any extra over budget and will mean a lot to her

ThinkingAgainAndAgain · 02/12/2023 09:22

I give cash (one week’s wage) and some chocolates or toiletries. I also give a beauty advent calendar at the start of December. Our cleaner is absolutely amazing, and I can afford it, so I do. If I couldn’t, then I would give a smaller gift and a heartfelt message in a card.

There are always massive variations in opinions on what to give at Christmas. On the Nannies board, some people are reporting giving/receiving a month’s salary, and others are reporting much, much more modest gifts.

NearlyMonday · 02/12/2023 09:22

I pay our cleaner double time on the last week before Christmas and generally pay her for the week between Christmas and New Year, even though she won’t come to us that week.

Grumpynan · 02/12/2023 09:25

I give mine a box of chocolate and £50 cash which is about a week’s wage. She does work over Christmas for me, she does a Tuesday and Thursday normally and we just move the days around to fit the holiday and we’re both free. She’s a single mum and lovely with lovely children so I’m more than happy she brings the children with her and I look after them whilst she does the chores I can’t manage. I’m more than happy to play granny for the morning

edit to add. I do think the world of her she’s cleaned for me since her eldest was born, she would bring him with her and clean round caring for him, we worked it out together 😂, and this carried on with her second. Now they are at school/preschool so I only have them here on the holidays but I love having them, we do baking and colouring and I love playing granny. I know things are very tight for her so I often bake /cook things for her to take, i offered her Christmas week off but she was adamant she needed a couple of mornings child care 😂, and adult conversation!

EnglishRose1320 · 02/12/2023 09:26

My cleaner doesn't celebrate Christmas, so I don't do a gift. This year I'm paying her not to come, she wanted to do her normal day- but that would have meant her cleaning on Christmas day, she suggested coming a day later, but I still didn't really want her to clean on boxing day. So I've paid her to have the week off.

gotomomo · 02/12/2023 09:27

I just leave a gift wine, card and a £10 Costa card inside but I know she drinks and loves Costa

sugarandsweetener · 02/12/2023 09:27

Grumpynan · 02/12/2023 09:25

I give mine a box of chocolate and £50 cash which is about a week’s wage. She does work over Christmas for me, she does a Tuesday and Thursday normally and we just move the days around to fit the holiday and we’re both free. She’s a single mum and lovely with lovely children so I’m more than happy she brings the children with her and I look after them whilst she does the chores I can’t manage. I’m more than happy to play granny for the morning

edit to add. I do think the world of her she’s cleaned for me since her eldest was born, she would bring him with her and clean round caring for him, we worked it out together 😂, and this carried on with her second. Now they are at school/preschool so I only have them here on the holidays but I love having them, we do baking and colouring and I love playing granny. I know things are very tight for her so I often bake /cook things for her to take, i offered her Christmas week off but she was adamant she needed a couple of mornings child care 😂, and adult conversation!

Edited

but grumpy with your own grandchildren? 😂

StoatofDisarray · 02/12/2023 09:30

When I had a cleaner, I used to give her a week's wages as a tip and a small bottle of her favourite perfume (it was Chanel, the pink one). She only came once a week for three hours so it was a total spend of about £120.