Cleaner leaves early.

[Greyoutkelly]

Not really a AIUB but just wanted opinions of others.

Have recently hired a cleaner to clean my house once a week. Never had a cleaner before, so went on their recommendation of 4 hours per week at hourly rate. I am usually out early on the clean day and don't come back until late on. Anyway, I came back half an hour earlier on Monday and cleaner had gone..

I don't know when she had left. I pay by the hour. Would others be bothered by this? I know it's only half an hour but if she's left an hour early, then I'm effectively paying 4 hours instead of 3.

@Slimanda- the difference between other professions like hairdresser or plumber is there is a set specific task which they will complete for the money. With a cleaner it’s not a specific task it’s ‘cleaning the house’ which frankly can never end. There is something more than can always be done to make it clean. I have my cleaner 3.5 hours a week and it’s a basic job that can be done in that time but I know that there is a never ending list of things that could also do with a clean that we never round to looking at. So I don’t think your comparison works.

(unless like you say charge by the clean. However my cleaner regularly goes over 3.5 hours and I pay her 4- she would be losing out if it was by the clean.

I also spent 11 years working for a firm of tradespeople (vague) and we charged by the hour for call-outs and jobs where we didn't know roughly how long it was going to take to find and fix a fault.

We would quote for larger jobs that we'd been to see - but if extra work was discovered, or things took longer than we'd quoted for through no fault of our own, we would charge additional hours on top. All itemised on a professional invoice.

Cleaning is a never ending job. There's no reason whatsoever to say to a client "I think it will take me 3 hours per week to do the jobs you've asked for in your house and that will be £60 please" and then only spend 2 hours there and still pocket the £60. It's underhand and dishonest and gives cleaners a very bad reputation.

She’s stealing from you. And lying. I’d sack her. Also don’t pay her the last hour she was there as she clearly didn’t work it

You need to give her a list of things to do should she finish early so that there's no such thing as finishing early.

I tried this and my cleaner took great offence

If she wants to be paid by the job not the hour she should agree that at the outset and then everyone would be clear. If she’s specified an hourly rate she gets paid for the hours worked. It’s not difficult.

I’m having a similar issue at the moment. We agreed number of hours and hourly rate and she almost invariably leaves half an hour early. When I messaged to check what was due she just texted back with the same amount it would have been for the full time, so we’ve apparently moved seamlessly from an hourly rate to a job rate. I told her yesterday I have a couple more jobs for next week so we’ll see.

She would have lost all my trust, so personally I would set up a secret camera, allow her to do one more clean and then let her go.

And I absolutely would be telling everyone I knew that a) she thinks it’s acceptable to leave early and take peoples money for work not done and b) anything she did that was not acceptable that I found on the camera footage.

Thats disgusting. Just speak to her, and it's illegal to do that too.
Have you ever finished all your work at work and gone home early???

You don't seem to understand how business's work. If you quote a price then you get a specific level of service for that price, regardless of how long it takes. If you quote an hourly rate then you provide the number of hours you quote for. A hair dresser isn't going to say I'll do highlights and cut for you and I charge £30 an hour and it will take four hours and then finish it in two and still charge you for four.

The cleaner needs to tighten up her terms and conditions and be clear about exactly what services she offers and the pricing structure. If a plumber quotes me a price I don't care how many hours it takes if he quotes me a day rate then I expect him to work a full day.

Blimey - that's not good. What happened?

Sometimes our cleaner at work deep cleans a room and goes over her time so finishes early another week to level it up. I would check that’s not the case first.

The kind of person who does that is also the sort of person that lies to your face - she has proven she cannot be trusted.

I have absolutely left work early… with permission from my boss.

I would message and say. “Hi arrived home early today and noticed you had left early . Is everything okay?”
Either she will have a reason ie child ill etc. Or she will say she finished the work which is an opportunity for you to say “would you prefer to reduce the hours or would you like additional jobs to make up the time”

This is insane. Secret cameras? WTF.

My previous cleaner would leave 20mins or so early on a 2hr clean, I didn't mind so much because the house was spotless everything was done. I viewed it as paying for the job to be done rather than the time.

Recent cleaner left 20mins early but there was dust on surfaces and things missed. This was not okay, I raised it with the owner and she apologised said it wouldn't happen again. But they've never been back, they just don't turn up, so now I need to find a new cleaner!

My cleaner is lovely. I have to stop her working more than her 4 hours which she used to do regularly, not expecting payment and blaming herself for being slow. She is slow but very thorough. I try to balance it by sometimes paying more but other times telling her to go early the next week. I did have a cleaner who regularly went early and I’m afraid it left a bad taste and spoiled what was a really good relationship otherwise. I had 4 young children, worked full time and really needed the help I was paying for.

Oh trust me, I know a lot of people who employ cleaners who have secret cameras 😉

Thats disgusting. Just speak to her, and it's illegal to do that too.
Have you ever finished all your work at work and gone home early???

??? Well for me, No!!! There is always something I could do at work (and I've had 30/40 jobs over the years)!!!*###$$$%%%

Well, I'm disagreeing. you sound...painful to work with.

Love & Light

Really? You don’t think someone who is dishonest enough to say they work X amount of time when they didn’t, and to take your money for work not done, isn’t going to also lie to your face?

You’re naive at best.