What to expect from a cleaner

[broodymamma]

Is it too much to expect my cleaner to actually tidy my house. I have 5 kids the eldest being 8. They are very efficient at turning my house upside down. But up till now I have had a cleaner every day for at least 4 hours. If she finds a kids skipping rope say on the kitchen floor she will pick it up and put it on a chair and tuck chair in rather than find the appropriate place to put it. Worst still if she goes to the playroom to tidy and finds feltips with the lids off she will not replace the lids. She will gather the whole lot and toss them into the nearest toybox. She will often be met with a mixture of games of various sorts that have been played with but unfortunately not been put away. She will make no effort to tidy each game into the appropriate box but toss the whole lot in to whichever toy box is nearest. I guess that if this doesn't suit me I should look for a replacement cleaner. but just wondering if I am expecting too much and a replacement wouldn't be any better. I know my kids need to learn to tidy up after themselves and I am working on this.

[Serialweightwatcher]

If your house is ginormous, which it must be to warrant a cleaner 4 hours a day, then presumably her time is taken up with the actual cleaning for all that time - if it's not so big and she can do all the 'cleaning' jobs in plenty of time, you need to speak to her and explain that all needs to go back where it belongs ready for the next day and it is not helpful to put things in places they can't be seen, ie the skipping rope .... other than that, get a big box or two and ask her to place all bits of games etc in these and when the older two children get home, ask them to put these things back in their rightful place and let them make a game of it .... don't suppose stuff will stay where it should though with such little ones around

[TataEs]

if you were clear from the off that that's what was expected, then it's not unreasonable.
she's there 4hours a day, i imagine there's time to tidy and clean.
yes children should be picking up after themselves but i'm raising a sceptical eyebrow that none of you ever pick after your own children... my oldest is 4 and at the very most i expect him to help, so well put lego away together etc.
and small children, my youngest is 1, don't really get it and you'd never leave the house if you waited for him to tidy up...
if she doesn't want to tidy up just find someone who does, if you are clear when people apply for the position what is required u will find someone who is happy to do both if you pay appropriately

[PlumsGalore]

IMO, expecting her to put the lids on felt tips and sort and tidy games is taking the proverbial. You need to work harder on your children. Does the teacher tidy up after those that are at school when they have finished their school work? Put the lids on their pens? doubt it.

SusanneLinder

I am with you!

[PinkiePiesCupcakes]

But if it's not something your cleaner is happy to do. I would look for one that will.

In other words, she better do it or she's sacked.
Nice.

Imagine if all bosses were that way inclined?
I'm sure its perfectly legal too.

[Trifleorbust]

Your expectations are unreasonable if you think about what a cleaner is supposed to do: clean. Most cleaners expect clear surfaces and floors so they can clean them. If you are happy to include time for tidying in your cleaner's paid time (so you're not going to be asking why she hasn't dusted the mantelpiece when she spent that time tidying up after your kids) then as long as she is happy to do this, no problem. But your expectations are out of sync with the norm.

[FlyingElbows]

I don't have a cleaner but did grown up with a housekeeper / mother's help. There's no way we'd have been let away with dropping things at our backsides and expecting her to pick them up. She wouldn't have stood for it and neither would my parents. Ofcourse teaching little kids to tidy is a work in progress but it needs to be done and any child of nursery age and older should be familiar with "tidy up time". It's not a cleaner's job to manage that.

[broodymamma]

It's your DH's socks, not your sons. .grin grin grin [ grin] OP, you're having us on here. I cannot believe a grown adult needs somebody to pair his socks up. It was bad enough when I thought it was your DS.
Does she out toothpast his toothbrush as well, a la HRh Price Charles. smile

I'm guessing you and your husband don't work full time?

[harderandharder2breathe]

You and your family sound increadibly lazy


's

[ViewBasket]

I agree with others that you're describing duties of a housekeeper, not a cleaner.

[Trifleorbust]

OP, your responses are pretty defensive. You've asked whether you are being unreasonable. Here is the key question: did you advertise for a cleaner? The other key question: what contract do you have with her? Most people would argue that a cleaner would not expect to be putting lids on pens and pairing socks. If you and your cleaner have a different arrangement, that's fine. If you don't, YABU.

[BoomBoomsCousin]

When I do the laundry I pair socks so it's faster getting dressed in the morning (normally in the dark and before I've had coffee). Because of this I batch buy my socks all the same so it's quick and easy. But if I had more time or inclination for laundry I might well indulge in prettier socks and match them up.

OP as many others have said, what you want isn't unreasonable in the time your paying for (unless you live in a mansion), but it's not cleaning. I know you don't want to look for another cleaner, but I really think with things like this, if she's not doing any of that sort of thing automatically, she doesn't have the right mindset for the sort of person you do want. You should talk to her, because this is a half time job for her and probably a substantial part of her livelihood, she should have the opportunity to adapt rather than lose it. But I think you're going to have to be a skillful manager to make this go smoothly.

Also, unless you have a mansion, if she's there for 4 hours everyday and she isn't tidying properly, what is she doing? And will you be OK if a lot of that isn't done?

[ShowMePotatoSalad]

OP the vast majority of people who work full time and have kids don't have a cleaner, or a housekeeper to pair their socks. Most people have to do it themselves. There's nothing wrong with hiring people to help you but just want to point out the realities.

[PabloEscobarReallyLovesHisKids]

I'm guessing you have a 1,3,5,6 and 8 year old all perfectly trained at how to tidy up after themselves. Please share with me your magic method, oh do!
I just expect them to. And they do. I know they tidy up after themselves at school and nursery and anywhere else they go.
I have a cleaner (just to make it clear I am not jealous ) and I also always tidy up so she doesn't have too - leaving crap lying around is just rude its like saying I can't be arsed to put this in the bin or laundry basket but I don't care if you do.

[broodymamma]

Sorry please educate me to what the difference is between a housekeeper and a cleaner. Is it how much you pay them?

[MauiWest]

Imagine if all bosses were that way inclined?

to expect you to do the job you are given? Actually, in the real world, most do.

[Sheepersfluff]

broody

Pretty simple. A cleaner cleans. A housekeeper cleans plus tidying, ironing, & other household tasks.

[BoomBoomsCousin]

^In other words, she better do it or she's sacked.
Nice.

Imagine if all bosses were that way inclined?^

Imagine if all bosses looked at the work they needed doing and offered their employees the opportunity to do that work? That sounds pretty much exactly what bosses should be doing.

How long do you think you company would last if the work you were prepared to do and the work your boss needed doing didn't match up and she didn't do anything about it? You think your boss should pay you to do stuff they don't need and leave the rest?

[CaesiumTime]

There is nothing wrong with having someone do the housekeeping for you as long as that was agreed prior to her hiring. The tasks you have listed as problematic are not beyond the ability of a good houskeeper.

There's nothing immoral with having someone tidy up for you. There are always folks on MN who get all het up about household staff.

I love being a lazy slattern. I never knew my life was so shocking until I read 'cleaner's threads' on MN

[Trifleorbust]

MauiWest: Well actually, yes. It would be unreasonable for me to advertise for a PA and then fire that PA because he or she wasn't also a trained spy. It is fair enough to say the requirement has changed and services are no longer required, but not to fire her.

[CaesiumTime]

broody it's in what their tasks are - I have a cleaner who does a lot of housekeeping but we've agreed that prior to her starting her job.

Tidying up is a housekeeping task.

[Bailey101]

Sounds like you need a housekeeper, not a cleaner. I would expect a cleaner just to clean but a housekeeper to tidy up, take deliveries, do laundry, that sort of thing. No idea about wage differences though.

Have you asked her to tidy things properly? What's her take on her job?

[Trifleorbust]

OP: A cleaner does household cleaning, not all housework including tidying/laundry/ironing etc.

[CaesiumTime]

As for pay - it depends on what the tasks they are doing. When my cleaner/housekeeper does something that goes into "Personal Assistant" territory (such as running errands) then I tend to give a tip to top up the London wage that I pay as that is beyond what we agreed.

[ShowMePotatoSalad]

How much do you pay her out of interest?

[SukeyTakeItOffAgain]

OP DID YOU DISCUSS WHAT SHE WOULD BE EXPECTED TO DO?