Active discussions

Meet the Other Phone. Flexible and made to last.

Meet the Other Phone.
Flexible and made to last.

Buy now

Please or to access all these features

Talk
AIBU?

Share your dilemmas and get honest opinions from other Mumsnetters.

Original poster

to think i am a cleaner, not a fucking housekeeper/general dogsbody!!

146 replies

superv1xen · 05/04/2011 16:14

i have a small cleaning business, ok its basically just me, my mop and my hoover, and a gumtree ad :o i have got 3 clients and work 3 days a week.

one of my clients has the most cluttered house i have ever seen, it makes it really hard for me to clean at the best of times as i don't like to move stuff too much plus she always leaves stuff that looks like rubbish lying around but i darent chuck it in case its important (she works from home). she also expects me to change her beds and clean out her coffee machine, which is a right fiddly arse of a job. also i usually have to fill the dishwasher as theres usually a few pots and pans lying about in the kitchen. i think this is a bit above and beyond what i would ask of a cleaner, (my other clients wouldnt dream of asking me to do that) but i need the money work so i just accept it. but today they really took the piss IMO.

i got there and her and her DH were cooking a fry up (hmm) so i went and did the upstairs first to stay out of their way. and came down to find that there were greasy, filthy pots and pans ALL over the work surfaces, the cooker was swimming in grease and the sink was overflowing with dishes. in the sitting room the dining table was covered with dirty cups, plates etc, it looked like they had had some kind of dinner party last night. so i had no choice but to empty their (full) dishwasher and put everything away so i could put all their dirty pots in there and do a new load (to clear them out of the way more than anything) and there wasn't even enough space in there for everything so i had to handwash a load too. and it took me ages to rid the cooker top of its horrible black greasiness. there was also disgusting bits of food and stuff all over the worktops which i had to bin, i was nearly sick i swear.

AIBU or does that take the piss a bit? when i was growing up we had a cleaner when i lived at home and my mum used to make sure it was tidy-ish for when she came so she could do a decent job. as do my other clients!

OP posts:
mickeyjohn · 05/04/2011 17:10

Oo i like this thread! I have been a cleaner before, and now have my own, so can see if from both sides!! WHen i was a cleaner we were not expected to do washing up etc- my cleaner doesn't either - I try to do it before she comes, if not then she just dumps it all in the washing up bowl! You're there to CLEAN not do daily household chores - they can get a housekeeper for that!! Occasionally we used to be asked to do stuff like that (incl ironing, making up beds etc) but we were entitled to say no (eps once they saw my ironing, no-one asked me again, haha) as it's not really part of the job.

However, think you need to spell this out! Do you have some Ts&Cs for new clients?? You need to make it really clear in them what you will and will not do before you start working for them and then you can tell em where to go if they are breaching them!! It sounds as if people expect different things from their cleaners - which is fine, but it needs to be clarifed first!! they prob think they are being perfectly reasonable!!

I think with the current people, if you can't afford to get rid of them, then maybe explain that if you do all their tidying up, you won't have time to actually CLEAN the house...unless they want to pay you for another hour (if this is what you want of course...they sounds pretty grim but if you need the money, then you need to make it work for you!)

Hope you can work it out! It's a tough job....however, my old boss was onto a winner - she worked 6 months a year, and in the summer she took 6 months off and employed us all (5 of us) - she charged $30 per hour per cleaner , and we got $15 each (which was back in late 90s when I was a student so was GREAT riches! Still is pretty good!) and she went sunbathing all day, earning $60 an hour. Sweet! This was in posho Cape Cod though. Not sure it works like that over here!

MrSpoc · 05/04/2011 17:14

i dont get it. if i hired a cleaner, i would expect him/her to clean. If the stove if dirty clean it, otherwise what is the point.

My MILF has a cleaner but spends ages cleaning before she comes. WHY!!!!

bibbitybobbityhat · 05/04/2011 17:14

I agree that its very iffy indeed to ask cleaners to do your washing up (and laundry). Those are just jobs that you can't be arsed to do that day because your cleaner is coming, whereas every other day of the week you have to get on and do them yourself.

Yanbu.

DuplicitousBitch · 05/04/2011 17:19

roar @ spoc's milf!

shushpenfold · 05/04/2011 17:23

It depends what they pay...if it's for certain jobs to be done and you can't get to them because of other things, it's not on. If though they would rather you did the stacking, kitchen stuff and you have not specifically said that you won't do it, you can't be surprised if they leave it for you to do. Tell them.

thesnowmanleft · 05/04/2011 17:24

I always tidy for my cleaner because we can only afford her for 2 hours and I'd rather she spent the time cleaning rather than tidying.

But if they pay you for your time, I don't see why it matters what you do with that time tbh.

Unless it's very phsical; gardening, tiling the roof or child care... surely what you describe does come under 'cleaning'

MrSpoc · 05/04/2011 17:32

Oohps I meant MIL.

Original poster
superv1xen · 05/04/2011 17:33

i charge ten quid an hour.

interesting responses! i think i will carry on with them until if/when i find a better client.

mickeyjohn what your old boss did, thats my ultimate goal! :o

OP posts:
alemci · 05/04/2011 17:35

I think it was mean of them to leave it like that but OOH I would have cleaned that mess up and then left a note saying you couldnt do as much as you normally did as you had to spend an hour cleaning up the kitchen and loading the dishwasher.

I would never leave my home like that and expect someone else to clean up. I did think of having a cleaner but i now work part time so i can do it myself.

cordyblue · 05/04/2011 17:35

Baffled as to what most cleaners do as my cleaner actively asks me if there's anything extra I need her to do each week - she changes all bedlinen, empties and reloads the dishwasher, tidies away obvious stuff that's been left out, etc etc.

So, yes I would say YABU.

Getting another client to fill the vacancy in this economic climate may not be as easy as you think. Cleaners are the first thing to go imo when a family starts to feel the pinch.

Whatever17 · 05/04/2011 17:36

When I used to have a cleaner I would put away our clean clothes, ask her not to touch my desk and she did everything else.

I did pay her 6 hours a week for a small 3 bed semi though. If she had wanted more hours I would have paid her more.

I miss her....maybe she hates me?

MrSpoc · 05/04/2011 17:38

i like the idea of a cleaner who chooses only to clean clean houses. What plonka pays for that, its bonkers.

ladysybil · 05/04/2011 17:39

I'm not sure i understand what the problem is really... are you annoyed coz they are asking you to do things that werent agreed on when you first started?
I expect my cleaner to change the bedsheets every other week, and put some in the washing machine and turn it on if i am not at home. if i am, then i usually help her with the double quilts and stick in the washing machine myself. but if not, then its part of her remit.
She is expected to clean up the kitchen, that includes unloading and loading the dishwasher. some pots and pans have to be hand washed , which she does. but i dont expect her to handwash anything that doesnt fit into the dishwasher, so if we have a dinner party on the weekend, i try and do as much cleaning up of dishes etc before,but if it doesnt get done, then, it doesnt.

if they had asked youto come into the kitchen and peel and chop for them, then i would have thought it was ott. but nothing you describe in your op seems inappropriate.

SardineQueen · 05/04/2011 17:43

disclaimer - never had a cleaner or been one

Don't people agree between them what the scope of the role is? Each family has different things that need doing - isn't that arranged at the start?

OP if you're not happy with what they are giving you then you need to tell them. OTOH if you would like the money you could say that you are able to do the other bits but they will have to pay for the extra time.

DiveBomb · 05/04/2011 17:47

My cleaner changes the beds, does the washing up, unloads the dishwasher, does the ironing... I'm paying her to do it, it's not a favour. She's been with us for 4 years. I didn't realise there was some wierd etiquette about cleaners not doing certain types of cleaning!! If she just threw the dirty dishes back into the sink I'd be well pissed off. But we had a long chat about what I was after when she started, and she's not run screaming, so I guess she's fine with it. And she's well paid!

compo · 05/04/2011 17:50

Yanbu
my mum had a cleaner and when we were young we always had to tidy our rooms the night before she came

ChristinedePizan · 05/04/2011 17:52

I have always tidied up for cleaners. It's about respect I think. It's grim not tidying up after yourself on the basis of 'oh well the cleaner's coming tomorrow, she can do it'.

MCos · 05/04/2011 17:54

My cleaner changes beds, unloads dishwasher (but it is often done already by husband!). If any room is a mega mess (i.e. Toy room, or on occassion a kids room), I usually leave a note for cleaner to skip it.

However, my cleaner works for 3 hours exactly. If house tidy, every thing gets done. If some clutter, or if extra jobs requested, not everything will be done.

If you are paid by the hour, is there also agreement on how many hours? As there lies your answer... If you can't get it all done within allocated time, it doesn't all get done.

togarama · 05/04/2011 17:57

Hmmm not really sure if YABU or YANBU. I don't really know what is expected by most people in terms of regular cleaning.

Out of curiosity, is it possible to hire a "tidier" instead of or as well as a "cleaner"?

I'm rubbish at organising my physical environment (lazy, poor spatial awareness and not very aware of mess until it reaches epic levels) and would rather pay someone to do that than the cleaning.

Useful to know that if I did get a regular cleaner they might take exception to me...

ivykaty44 · 05/04/2011 17:59

well as long as you are not expected to be cleaning other stuff and it is hourly - so they are wasting their money really - why have someone in to do the washing up if they are being paid to clean.

But do you get paid by the hour? What did you set out as your jobs when you took the job? Did the clening include dishwahing and filling dishwasher - perhaops she doesn't really want you to do this.

Why not grab her at the end of your next shift with her and explain that you are concerned that she is getting what she wants from a cleaner as you are doing the disher washer etc and leaving other cleaning jobs - aks is this hwo you want me to spend my time or would you rather we went through a check list and I left the kitchen alone?

Original poster
superv1xen · 05/04/2011 18:10

mrspoc (and anyone else who has said it) of course i don't expect a house to be clean! thats what i am there for, to clean, i just prefer it to be reasonably uncluttered so i can actually do what i am paid for :o

OP posts:
chickchickchicken · 05/04/2011 18:12

i have a cleaner for 3 hrs a week. i do make sure i tidy before she comes so that she is actually doing the cleaning jobs. i gave her a list before i employed her of essentials every week things and then optional things if/when she has any time left.
i also think its about respect. ds has to tidy his room before she comes. he is told that we are lucky to have a cleaner and that he has to not make her job any harder by leaving the floor of his room messy

speakercorner · 05/04/2011 18:15

My friend had a cleaner. Her house was the messiest, grubbiest house I ever saw - toys everywhere. I used to feel really sorry for the cleaner. Most decent cleaners are in demand, and would not put up with this. I would work on getting a replacement client if I were you.

Onetoomanycornettos · 05/04/2011 18:20

I absolutely don't get the point of these cleaners who don't clean, but just whisk a duster around over tidy surfaces but there are plenty of them around. When I had a cleaner, the children were tiny, I was working full time and had no dishwasher. I did want someone to do the dishes and wipe the stove down twice a week, because it meant I could collapse into bed an hour earlier rather than stay up doing housework. I don't see the difference between 'cleaning' and 'daily chores' myself. However, my cleaner (who was an older lady who clearly hated cleaning) moaned about it even though I explained very nicely (and the house wasn't filthy, just with a few dishes on the side) that for me, I really needed a hand with everyday tasks and I didn't actually want the skirting boards wiped down. But she still moaned about washing up so we just asked her to leave.

Now I have a dishwasher, and it's all fine, but surely cleaning up after a fry-up isn't a demeaning task beyond the capabilities of a cleaner, but a normal activity we all do. Next you will be telling me that you don't clean toilets for the same reason!

Giselle99 · 05/04/2011 18:24

My cleaner strips and makes the beds, puts the bedlinen in the washing machine and washes them, washes whatever is lying about by the sink... on top of all the other cleaning she does. She doesn't do any ironing. I pay her £10 an hour.

I occasionally tidy up before her, but to be honest we have such a good understanding that nowadays I don't bother, and I'm not that untidy anyway.

She started doing all the extra things like washing the bedlinen etc herself - she'd leave me a note saying that she's happy to do xyz if I'm happy and can I leave her a note to that effect?

I've been lucky with cleaners. Have had a few duffers over the years but had a lovely Bulgarian girl for 5 years who was excellent, and the one I have now (also Bulgarian) has been with me for over a year. I pay her whether I'm away or she's away, and a month after she started she bought me a christmas card and present, just like my previous cleaner who once spent more on xmas presents for me than I paid her per session! Probably all that holiday pay... at least they don't seem put off by my dirty dishes (I don't have a dishwasher)

I can't imagine any cleaner around these parts dropping a client because they left dirty dishes etc out. Almost every day I get cleaner request cards through my postbox; in my part of London at least, there seem to be far more people looking to clean than clients.