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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:
Original poster
superv1xen · 05/04/2011 18:25

no onetoomany i ABSOLUTELY do not mind scrubbing dirty surfaces, and of course i clean toilets Hmm i can't believe there are any cleaners out there that don't! and i wouldnt have minded doing a few dishes or stacking the dishwasher but personally i felt that the level of pots and filth was a piss take today. and if it was just a case of a greasy dirty cooker then that would have been fine, it was that combined with everything else.

OP posts:
rookiemater · 05/04/2011 18:26

Totally agree with onetoomanycornettos. The point of having a cleaner is to make life easier and if that means that she/he makes beds or empties the dishwasher rather than mopping the floor on occasion, why would this be a problem?

I'm frequently required to do things outside my job description at work and my attitude is that as long as I can still get my main tasks completed and it isn't too far fetched then I will happily do it.

We treat our cleaner in a reasonable fashion and give her a christmas bonus. I would be highly upset if she was talking behind my back like this because I had left out a few cups, or her time was spent folding laundry rather than hoovering I would be extremely upset.

rookiemater · 05/04/2011 18:29

Oops cross posted with OP. Ok point taken they are slovens, presumably thats why they have hired a cleaner though.

Onetoomanycornettos · 05/04/2011 18:36

See, I also think changing beds, washing a coffee machine out and putting a few pans in a dishwasher are also ok tasks to ask a cleaner to do, but you also mention they aren't part of your ideal job description. I think the key thing is for you to discuss how to spend those two hours. I think the best thing to do if you are confronted with a truly terrible sight is just to ask them by saying 'wow, it looks like you've had a party, what would you like me to do today in my two hours?' If they are not there, guess and leave a note about what you did.

Original poster
superv1xen · 05/04/2011 18:36

better hope i'm not your cleaner then rookie :o

OP posts:
changeforthebetter · 05/04/2011 18:37

YANBU (in the halcyon days) when I had a cleaner I would always tidy up toys etc as I paid her to really clean the place not spend half her time picking up bits of pink plastic crap. I rarely left any washing up, never expected her to do washing or ironing, paid her a fair wage and bonuses and praised her fulsomely. I was a fab employer but these days I am more likely to be doing the cleaning than employing someone Sad

A cleaner cleans - if you can afford a tidy-upperer then you pay more hours. And the leaving the fry-up stuff would grate. That's servitude.

BrandyAlexander · 05/04/2011 18:39

If my cleaner's expectation was that I had to have the house "ready" for her before she arrived, i would very quickly find another cleaner as I pay her to make my life easier not harder! Also as someone else said it's not like she's doing me a favour for free, she does actually get paid (well) or it!

DiveBomb · 05/04/2011 18:49

I think YABU to say that leaving dirty dishes/ a dirty stove/ a coffee machine for the cleaner to sort out is beyond the pale. But YANBU to prefer not to deal with it - just tell them that they need to find a cleaner who's a better fit.

darleneconnor · 05/04/2011 18:51

You've scared me off ever getting a cleaner!

We could really do with a cleaner, but cant afford one right now. I'm disabled and bed-making, dishwasher stacking etc is exactly the kind of thing I cant do myself.

I'd hate for a cleaner to come in and then be thinking badly about me because this was the kind of thing I'd be wanting.

I cant understand how cleaning toilets is worse than cleaning a messy kitchen.

BarbarianMum · 05/04/2011 18:54

In the good old days when I had a cleaner we had a deal that any clutter lying around in the living/dining room got dumped on the sofa so she could clean - I then sorted it when I got home. In the bedroom she just quickly dumped it on the bed and likewise. Worked well.

I would expect my cleaner to wash dishes/load dishwashers and just accept that she would subtract the time spent doing this from the time spent doing other cleaning. Not quite sure what your prob is, tbh.

freshmint · 05/04/2011 18:57

you are paid £x per hour to clean
so clean
and if you don't like it, then don't clean for them
not exactly rocket science, is it?

but why moan on here about it?

Onetoomanycornettos · 05/04/2011 18:59

Darlene, don't be scared, lots of cleaners are happy to do everyday household tasks, but they do like them to be agreed in advance (and you do get the odd one like my old cleaner who really likes light dusting but there you go). It would make such a difference to you to have someone come in and do the beds if you are unable to do it yourself (or just time-poor). And it is true that if every surface is covered, they can't dust, but most cleaners just don't do those surfaces, but can do a kitchen, bathroom, hoover and do beds without it being demeaning. I would ask about, or advertise specifically for what you want: cleaner for disabled lady, including all the tasks you need. Someone will jump at the chance to make some money (and I have cleaned hotels myself, so don't consider myself above cleaning in any way, shape or form).

exoticfruits · 05/04/2011 19:02

I'm sure that you can get plenty of work-pick your clients and get ones to suit you.

Onetoomanycornettos · 05/04/2011 19:05

Depends where you are and if you are flooded with offers. Our old cleaner even rang us up and asked to come back after we asked her to leave so obviously we weren't as bad as she made out (and it was at the start of the recession). I guess moaning about clients goes hand in hand with the job, I moan about my students sometimes, but I don't seriously consider leaving.

LDNmummy · 05/04/2011 19:06

Unfortunately many people think that because they are paying you to clean, it means that you should take care of every little thing they are too lazy to do. Thats why cleaning companies have different quotes and regulations over what they're staff actually have to do during the time they are cleaning someone's home. People take advantage, some of my relatives have been cleaners way back when and people can be unreasonable and expect way too much.

I would outline to them about your time limitations and what you actually expect to do within that time frame but if they want you to take care of extra duties, they can pay a small surcharge to cover it.

mollymole · 05/04/2011 19:07

my cleaner are there to CLEAN - not tidy up - but they do clean the top of the stove/fridge etc.
each week i leave them a list of what i want them to do and a secondary list in case they have any more time

i have a large 3 bed house and there are 2 of them that come for 2 hours therefore 4 hours cleaning in this time they usually,
clean all internal windows and ledges (14) - vacuum/dust/polish all through/
wash all hard floor surfaces - clean 2 bathrooms , including wipe down tiles and clean the kitchen
they do not tidy as I leave the house in a fit state for them to do their work

AnyoneforTurps · 05/04/2011 19:09

TBH I don't give a toss if my cleaner thinks I'm a slob or not? Why would I?

MissMarjoribanks · 05/04/2011 19:09

Superv1xen - if you're in Manchester, PM me. I need a new cleaner and I always tidy up before they arrive. Grin

ChristinedePizan · 05/04/2011 19:10

I used to clean for a family where the man had psoriasis and took baths in that black stuff that you have to use. I didn't mind doing it but they did pay me extra for what was frankly a filthy and grim task

belgo · 05/04/2011 19:10

OP it sounds like you need to be very clear about your job and what you do and don't do. If you haven't said anything, they obviously don't realise it's a problem for you.

sprinkles77 · 05/04/2011 19:11

Speak to them. Explain you charge by the hour. If they want you to do all this extra stuff it will either cost them more or mean that other stuff does not get done. Their choice.

sprinkles77 · 05/04/2011 19:13

btw, I tidy up for my cleaner, and do the nasty stuff (cat litter), she does ironing. She made it very clear that she wanted to do 3 hours, but I can only afford to pay her for 2. So I keep things nice and she only does the stuff I really cannot be arsed with like dusting, vacuuming, ironing.

lettinggo · 05/04/2011 19:14

YABU. I've had a cleaner for the last 2 years. She comes for 3 1/2 hours per week.I'm out at work when she comes and when I get home from work she's still there. If I felt I had to clean up the porridge pot/hot milk pot etc in the morning before she got there, it would be more trouble than it's worth to have a cleaner in the first place. We do a general tidy/ pick the lego up off the floor on a Tuesday so that she can hoover, wash floors etc. To my mind, it should be a help to me, not a source of stress. Why should your client have to clean before the cleaner comes? Might as well do it herself if that's the case.

Mutt · 05/04/2011 19:21

This reply has been deleted

Message withdrawn at poster's request.

TheProvincialLady · 05/04/2011 19:25

If your client had asked you to shovel half a ton of coal for her, carry buckets of hot water upstairs to her bath, do her washing by hand and peel a sack of spuds - then you might justifiable complain about skivvying.

As it is, they wanted you to clean up some greasy pans and a dirty cooker. It might not be what you had in mind but it is cleaning. If you are a light vacuum and duster then you need to make that very clear to people, otherwise they might reasonably suppose that they could tell you what cleaning they wanted doing and you would do it.

You haven't been cleaning very long have you, if memory serves correctly? It would benefit you greatly to communicate your expectations - and also to ask in detail what your clients are likely to expect of you. And you can always quit if you don't like working for someone, as long as there is the work out there of course.